FlyingtheB52Part1

MajorKong

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B52GEarly1990s

OKthisisthebigone.Mybigchancetosharemyexperiencesboreeveryonewithwarstories.
Itwasmyprivilegetoflyoneofthegreatclassicsofaviation.Onethatisstillaroundtodayand
maystillbearoundevenafterI'mgone.
IservedasanaircraftcommanderonB52Gsfrom19891992.Thiswasaninterestingtime.The
ColdWarwasnearingitsend,buttheSovietUnionwasstillaroundandStrategicAirCommand
bombersstillsatnuclearalert.ThentherewasthatlittlespatintheMiddleEast.
NewairdefensesweremakingourlivestougherbutB1swerejustbecomingoperationalandthe
B2wasstilladream.Wewerestillthebackboneofthebomberforceinthosedays.Wehadtobe
good,damngood,becauseourplaneswereolderthanmostofusflyingthem.Wemayhavebeen
besttrainedbomberforceever.
Thisisaprettybigtopic,soI'lltalkmoreaboutthemissionlater.InthisdiaryIjustwantto
introduceyoutotheairplane.

Firstoff,it'snota"Stratofortress".NobodycalleditaStratofortress.Itwas,andwillalwaysbe
"TheBUFF".Ifyoudon'tknowwhatthatacronymmeans,I'llletyoulookitup.It'snotapolite
term.
IflewtheB52G,orthe"Gmodel".They'renotaroundanymore.Theywereallretiredaround1993.
BytreatywiththeRussianstheywereallchoppedintopiecessothattheycouldneverbeputback
intoservice.WhenIsawthembeingcutupontelevisionIcried.
TheGwasbuiltbetween1957and1959.Itwasaninterimmodelbetweentheearlier"talltail"
modelsandtheHmodel,whicharetheonlyonesstillflying.The"new"oneswerebuiltin1960by

theway.
Solet'stakealookatthisthing.

B52GConfigured

Firstoff,it'ssinisterlooking.Itlookslikeitwasbuilttokillthings.....itwas.They'vehadmany
paintschemesovertheyears.Ourswerepaintedeitheraverydarkgreenoraflatblack.IfDarth
Vaderhadaplane,thiswouldprobablybeit.
Bythenthesleeklinesofthelate1950shavegivenwaytoallkindsofbumpsandbulgesfrom
camerapodsandjammingantennas.Acloselookwouldrevealaveritable"antennafarm"alongthe
bellyoftheplane.
Damnit'sbig.Thatwingismassive189feettiptotip.It'sgoteightengines.Nothingelsehas
eightengines.Sure,they'recrappylate50sturbojetsbutthere'seightofthem.That'scool.Eight
noisy,smokebelching,gasguzzling,waterinjectedturbojets.Nobodyusesturbojetsanymore.
Evenfightershaveturbofansin1989.
Suretherearebiggerplanesbutthisthingjustseemsimpressive.Ahulkingbruteofanairplane.It
canweighinat500,000pounds.Mostofthatisfuel.Atypicalfuelloadwas280,000pounds.Toput
thatinperspective,myentire757onlyweighs200,000poundsfullyloaded.Ittakesalotoffuelto
flytoRussia.Another50,000poundsofthatcouldbeweapons,conventionalorotherwise.Moreon
thatlater.
It'salsodifferent.There'snothingnormalaboutit.AllBoeingshavealotincommon,except
forthisone.I'veflownthe707(KC135),727and757now.TheB52isnothinglikethem.It'slike
theoddfamilymemberthateveryonewondersiftheywereadopted.
Airplaneslookthewaytheydoforareason.Inthiscasethemassivebombbay,thepurposefor
thisplane'sexistence,isthatreason.Tomakeroomforittheyhadtoputasetofmain"trucks"in
frontofitandanotherbehindit.Thefrontwheelsarethesamesizeasthebacks.Thenarrow
stanceofthemaingearrequiredthemtoputsmallwheelsoutatthewingtipstokeepthewings
fromtouchingtheground.
Theythenhadtoattachthewingatanupwardsanglejustsothethingcouldtakeoffandlandwith
thatfunkylandinggear.Ifyoueverseeonetakeoff,thewingstartsto"fly"beforetherestofthe
plane.That'salsowhytheysometimesappeartobeflyingnosedowntheyare.It'sjustdifferent.
Technologywiseitrunsthegamutfromlate1940stostateoftheartforthetime.Thebombracks
andreleasemechanismarerightoutofaB17.Theradar,howeveristhesameunitastheB1.It

evenhadGPSandsatellitecommunicationswhenthosewerenewtechnologies.
Andithasguns!Howcoolisthat?Thereare4fiftycalibermachinegunsinthetail.Justlikeinall
thoseoldmovies,exceptthegunnersitsinthecockpitandcontrolsthemremotely.MostlyIjust
liketheideaofhavingsomethingtoshootbackwith.
Let'stakealookinside.It'shardtogetinto.Youclimbupasmallladderunderthebellyofthe
plane.It'scrampedinthere.Asbigasitistheydidn'tleavemuchroomforpeople.Whatspaceisn't
takenupbyfuelorweaponsistakenupbyelectronics.
Thecockpithasanupperandlowercompartmentwithanotherladderthatgoesbetweenthem.That
ladderistheonlyplaceyouhaveroomtostandupright.
Thetwonavigatorssitdownstairs,inthedark.Nowindows.Theyhaveejectionseatsbuttheseats
firedownwards.Notsogoodforlowlevelmissions.

Nowindowsdownhere.

Behindthemarethe"facilities"consistingofacanwithalidonit,whichsometimesleaks.EveryB
52Iflewinsmelledlikestalesweat,pissandengineoil.
UpstairstheGunnerandElectronicWarfareOfficer"EDub"sitfacingbackwards,inthedark.They
don'thavewindowseither.Theyatleasthaveproperejectionseatsthatgoup.
MyselfandtheCopilotsitupfrontofcourse.Thereisnoflightengineer.Oddforsomethingbuiltin
the1950s.TheplanewassetupfortheAircraftCommandertoflyandtheCopilottomostlyactas
theflightengineer.
ClimbingintotheAircraftCommander'sseat,it'sreasonablycomfortableforanejectionseat.After
12hoursnotsomuch.

Notmuchroominhere.

Onceagainit'samixofveryoldandverynew.Italmostlookssteampunk,orlikea1950smad
scientistmovie.Alotofitlookslikeitwas"tackedon"overtheyearsbecauseitwas.
Humanfactorsweren'tabigdealinthelate50'sanditshowsinthecockpit.Theyprettymuch
stuckswitchesandgaugeswherevertheyhadroomforthem.OnlyIcanreachthehydraulic
systems,onlytheCopilotcanreachtheelectricalsystems.Flyingthisthingwillbeaseriousteam
efforttheairlinescallit"CRM",SACcalledit"CrewConcept".
Still,itfeelsgoodsittinghere.Feelstough.Feelspowerful.Lookbackatthosemassivewingsand
thoseenginepods.Grabholdofthoseeightthrottles.Itmaynotbeasleek,pointynosedfighter
butit'sawarplane.
That'sallfornow.We'llgoflyinginthenextdiary.

FlyingtheB52Part2
MajorKong

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InthelastdiaryIintroducedyoutotheB52,atleastasIrememberthemfromthelate80sand
early90s.
FlyingtheB52Part1
Todaywe'regoingtotakeitoutonatrainingmission.Betterpackalunch,trainingmissions
typicallylasted12hours.Wenormallydidoneortwoaweek.
AsSACusedtosay"You'vegottobetoughtoflytheheavies".

Atrainingmissionactuallystartsthedaypriortotheflight.You'dspendthebetterpartofaday
missionplanning.Thecrewwouldstudytherouteofflight,especiallythelowleveltraining
route(s),airrefuelingprocedures,formationproceduresandthentheAircraftCommander(me)
wouldconductaformalcrewbriefing.
Onanormalmissionyoumightbedonemissionplanningby2:00PM.Ifyouwereplayinginabig
exerciseitmighttakeacouplemorehourstocovereverything.
Mymemoryishazyonthis,butIthinkweshoweduponthedayoftheflight21/2hoursormore
beforetakeofftime.Daysortiestookoffaround6:30AMandnightsortiestookoffaround6:30PM.
Thismeanteithergettingupatridiculousoclockorgettingtobedatludicrousoclock.Itwas
prettycommontohaveadayandanightsortieinthesameweek,whichreallythrewoffyour
sleepschedule."Fatigue"wasnotawordinSAC'svocabulary."Yougottabetough....."
AbuswouldtakeustoLifeSupporttocollectourflightgear,theFlightKitchenforourboxlunches,
CommandPostfortheflightplan(thesewerestoredonportablecomputertapedrives).Finallywe'd
headtoBaseOperationsforourweatherbriefingandtoconductafinalcrewbrief(andalast
bathroomstop!)beforeheadingouttotheairplane.
Attheplanewe'dcheckthemaintenancelogs,andthenmyselfandthecopilotwoulddothe
exteriorinspection(we'deachtakeaside)whiletherestofthecrewsettledin.
Normallyyoudon'tjustjumpintoabomberfireitupandgofly.Ittakestimetoaligntheplane's
navigationalsystemsandtorunthelengthyinteriorinspectionchecklist.There'salsoagoodchance
ofsomethingrequiringmaintenanceattention.Theseareoldplanesandthere'salotofthingsthat
canbreak.I'veactuallytaxiiedtotherunwaywithelectronicstechsworkingonsomepieceof
equipmentintheplaneandkickedthemoutjustbeforetakeoff.
Everythinginabomberisbasedontiming.Weneedtotakeoffontimetomeetupwithourtanker
ontimeandtomakeourlowlevelrouteontime.There'ssomeslopbuiltintotheflightplan,buta
significantdelaywillrequiretheschedulerstostartcoordinatingnewtimesforeverything.

Onceeverythingwasreadyenginestartwasnormallybygroundaircart.We'dstartengines4and
5(themostinboardoneachwing)withtheaircartandthenusethoseenginestostarttheother
six.
Withtheenginesrunningit'sanextremelynoisyairplane,bothoutsideandinside.Wealwayswore
helmetsorfullheadsetstocancelsomeofthenoise.Unlikeanairlinercockpit,theonlywaytotalk
betweencrewmemberswasbyusingtheintercom.Mycopilotsittingthreefeetawaywouldnot
havebeenabletohearmetalk.Theairconditioningsystemseemedtogeneratemorenoisethan
coldair.
Oncetheenginesarerunningwebringtherestofoursystemsonlineandgetreadytotaxi.Even
withtheairconditioningonit'slikeasaunaintheairplane.MostoftheACisbeingsenttokeepthe
electronicscool.Wesweatinthecockpituntilwereachaltitude."Hey,yougottabetough....."
Thehardestpartofflyinganylargeairplaneistaxiingitontheground.TheB52especiallyso
becausetherearewheelsoutonthewingtipsandyoualwayshavetokeepinmindwherethose
are.FortunatelySACbaseshadnicewidetaxiwaysandrunways.Thenosetrucksarequiteaways
behindthecockpit,soyouhadtomakebigsquareturnslikeacitybus.Therewasnotillerforthe
nosewheelsteeringlikeanairlinerwouldhave.Itwasalldonethroughtherudderpedals.There
wasasettingfortaxiandalowrangefortakeoffandlandingthatlimitedhowmuchsteeringyou
had.
Neartheendoftherunwaytherewouldbeanotherpilot,sittinginatruckwitharadioandacting
asasafetyobserver.Hewouldgiveusaonceoverlookingforanythingoutofplaceontheplane.
Wealldidour"turninthebarrel"pullingthisduty.Onceclearedtogowe'dpulloutontothe
runway.
Takeoffwasdifferentfromanyotherplane.Iftherewasacrosswind,wecouldactuallypivotthe
mainwheelssothattheplanewouldfaceintothewindwhilethewheelsfacedstraightdownthe
runway.Whentheplanewasbrandnewthiswasactuallyclassified,andtheywouldn'tshowthe
landinggearinpublicityphotos.
Theflapsarehugeandelectricallypowered(mostheaviesusehydraulicsforthis).Theflapsare
actuallyaslargeasthewingonsomeairliners.Therewasonlyoneflapsetting,100percent,andit
tookthemafullminutetoextendorretract.
AswelinedupontherunwayI'dshiftthenosewheelsteeringtolowrange,advancethethrottles
andthenturnonthewaterinjection.Itwouldgetevennoisieras2000poundsofwaterwaspumped
intotheenginestoaugmentourthrust.
IalwaysthoughtthatwaterinjectionwassomethingWileE.Coyoteinventedtocatchthe
Roadrunner.I'mprettysureitsaid"ACME"onitsomewhere.Pouringwateronafiredoesn'tseem
veryintuitive,butitworks.Thewatercoolstheairgoingintotheengines.Thedenserairletsus
burnmorefueltomakemorethrust.Asthewaterturnstosteam,italsogivesusmorethrust.It's
sortofapoorman'safterburner.Wesometimesreferredtoourplanesas"waterwagons"or
"steamjets".
Thisalsoproducedatremendousamountofdense,blacksmoke.Ifyouweretakingoffbehind
anotherbomber(sometimesascloseas12seconds)youcouldn'tseeawholelot.
Takeoff,likeeverythingelseonabomberwasacreweffort.We'duseastopwatchtomakesure
wewereacceleratingproperly.Ifwedidn'tachieveacertainspeedbyacertaintimesomething
waswrongandwewouldrejectthetakeoff.

Pilot(me):"Setdrythrust"
Copilot(adjuststhrottles):"Clearedforwater"
Pilot(checkswaterinjection):"Fourgoodpumps"
Pilot(checksairspeed):"70knots....now"
Navigator(startshisstopwatch):"Nav'stiming"
Navigator:"ExpirationofS1timing.......now"
Pilot(checksairspeedagain):"Committed"
OncepastS1speed(V1inthecivilianworld,SACalwayshadtobedifferent)we'regoingnomatter
what.Wewouldn'tbeabletostopintheremainingrunwayifwehadaproblem.
Passing70knotsorso,thewingsactuallystartflyingsoIhavetostartworkingtokeepthemlevel.
I'malsoholdingbackpressureontheyoketokeeptherearwheelsontherunway.Otherwisethe
backwheelswillliftofffirstandwe'llbecomea480,000poundwheelbarrow(bad).Normalplanes
don'tactlikethis,bytheway.
Wealsodidn'trotatefortakeofflikeanormalplane,wewould"unstick".Whentheplane'sgoodand
readytoflyitflies.InafullyloadedGmodelwewouldbeuncomfortablyclosetotheendofthe
runwaybythetimethishappened.Wesometimesjokedthatitonlybecameairborneduetothe
curvatureoftheEarth.
That'sonlyaslightexaggeration.Gmodelshadabadhabitofusingmorerunwaytotakeoffthan
whatthetakeoffdatapredicted.Sometimesitwoulduseeverylastbitofrunway.Ononeortwo
occasionswehadtoputthethrottlesallthewaytothefirewallandoverboosttheenginesjustto
getthethingofftheground.It'sroughontheengines,butnotasroughasflyingthroughtrees
wouldbe.
Oncetheplanefinallydecidesthatit'sgoingtoflytoday,itactuallycomesofftherunwayina
noselevelorevennosedownattitude.Quiteoddthefirsteverytimeyouseeit.
Onceairborne,Iwouldtapthebrakestostopthewheelsfromspinning(normalplanesdothisfor
you)andcallforgearup.At1000feetI'dcallforflapsup.Astheflapsslowlycomeupthejet
accelerates.Thekeyhereistomatchouraccelerationwiththeflapposition.Toofastandweover
speedtheflaps.Tooslowandwecouldstalltheairplane.Abouthalfwaythroughbringingtheflaps
up(ittakesaminute)thewaterinjectionwouldrunoutofwater,itwouldgetabitlessnoisy,and
we'dstarttodescend.Oncetheflapswerefullyupwe'daccelerateto280knotsandstarttoclimb
again.AB52takeofflookslikearollercoasterup,down,andfinallyupagain.Normalplanes
don'tdothisnoticeatrendhere?

B52Gwaterinjectedtakeoff

ClimbperformanceinaGmodelwasprettyuninspiring.Itwilltakeagoodhalfhourorsotoreach
cruisealtitude.Oncethere,we'llstartheadingforourfirsttrainingeventtoday,apracticeair
refueling,whichI'llcoverinthenextinstallment.

FlyingtheB52Part3
MajorKong

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So,we'reanhourorsointoour12hourB52trainingmission.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Nowit'stimetomeetupwithatankerandpracticesomeairrefueling.
Airrefuelingisabigpartofthebombermission.DuringtheGulfWarwewouldhavetoairrefuelthreetimesto
gettothetargetandback.Wepracticeditonjustabouteverytrainingsortie.
IalsofoundittobethemostdifficultmaneuverIeverhadtolearn.

Inordertopracticeairrefueling,wehavearefueling"track"scheduled.Thisisachunkofairspaceroughly100
mileslong,10milesorsowideandacouplethousandfeetofaltitude.
Therearerefuelingtracksscatteredaroundthecountry.Whenthetrackisactuallybeingused,AirTrafficControl
willkeepeveryoneelseoutofthatairspace.
Firstwehavetogetthere.TheB52isprettymuchaNavigator'sairplane.ItoftenseemedlikeIwasjustthe
voiceactivatedautopilotfortheNavs."Pilotflyheading325.Pilotgiveme290knotsindicated."Therewasvery
littlenavigationalinformationavailabletothepilots.WejusthadtotrustthattheNavsweregettinguswherewe
neededtobewhenweneededtobethere.
"Nav,wherearewe?"
"Well,we'relostbutwe'remakinggoodtime."
"#$&^*!!!!"
Therearetwowayswecanjoinupwiththetanker(s).Ifwe'reallheadedmoreorlessinthesamedirection
(maybewetookofffromthesamebase)we'lljustdoanenrouterendezvousmeetingataspecificpointata
specifictime.
Ifthetankeriscomingfromanotherbase,theymightalreadybeattherefuelingtrack,inanorbit,waitingforus
togetthere.Thetankerwillmakeaturnaswecomedowntrackand,ifeverythingworksasadvertised,theywill
rolloutroughly3milesaheadand1000feetaboveus.
Aquickwordabouttankers.ThetankeristheleastglamorousaircraftintheAirForceandtheonethatreally
makesustheforcewearetoday.Everybodyneedstankersupport:bombers,fighters,transports,AWACS,the
Navy,theMarinesandevenNATO.
Thetankerguys(andIwasonelaterinmycareer)likedtosay"Nobodykicksasswithoutourgas".
Togetthatgasweneedtocloseupthelast3milesandgetjoinedupwiththetanker.Weknowthetankeris
holdingtherefuelingairspeedforourplane280knots.Wejustgoabitfasterthanthatandslowlyclimbtowards
hisaltitudeasweclosethegap.Wedothisinaverycontrolledmanner,reducingourclosurerateasweget
closer.Wedon'twantto"cowboy"ithere.Screaminginwithabunchofairspeedandunderrunningthetanker
wouldbeextremelydangerous.Severalbombersandtankershavebeenlostthatwayovertheyears.
Westopourclosureabout100feetbehindandbelowthetankerinwhat'scalledthe"precontact"position.The
boomoperatorinthebackofthetankercomesontheradioandclearsmeto"contact".Notethatinwartimewe
mightdothisallwithouttalkingontheradioswewouldn'twantpeopletoknowwewerecoming.
Nowtheaerodynamicsoftwolargeairplanesflyingincloseformationareprettycomplicated.I'mnotanaero

engineersoI'mnotsureIcouldevenfullyexplainit.InSACwejustsimplifiedittoeachairplanepushinga"bow
wave"ofairinfrontofit,kindoflikeaship.Easyenoughtoimagine.

Notaseasyasitlooks

Aswecloseinourbowwavewillverynoticeablypushuponthetanker'stail.Thetankerpilot(orautopilot)will
havetocorrectthiswithtrim.
Closinginfromprecontactisabittricky.Ihavetomoveforwardsandupwardstoapositionroughly30feet
behindthetanker.Ataround50feetI'mgoingtopassthroughhisbowwave,whichwillstopmeifIdon'thave
enoughclosure.IfIusetoomuchspeed,however,I'llcomeindangerouslyfastandtheboomoperatorwillcall
fora"breakaway"maneuverandwe'llhavetogobackandstartalloveragain.
AsIcloseinIseethetipoftherefuelingboompassoverthecockpit.Wecanactuallyhearthesoundofthe
airstreamgoingpastit.Therefuelingreceptacleisroughly10feetbehindwhereI'msitting.Someboomoperators
will"reach"forusandplugusonthewayin.OtherswillwaituntilI'mgoodandsteady(hah!)inthecontact
positionbeforeconnecting.
Oncetheboomoperatorishappytheywillextendtheboomintoourreceptacleandelectrictoggleswillphysically
latchontoit.Tworowsoflightsonthebellyofthetankerhelpmestayinpositiononesetforup/downandone
setforfore/aft.

attribution:NoneSpecified

Looksclose,don'tit?

Soundseasyhuh?That'swhatIthoughtwhenIwasahotshotT38instructorcheckingoutontheB52."This
looksjustlikeflyingclosetrailinaT38".Exceptit'snothingatalllikeflyingclosetrailinaT38.AT38handles
likeaFerrari.AB52handleslikeadumptruck.
AB52Gisafat,wallowing,sowofanaircraftbehindthetanker.Therearenoaileronssorollcontroliseverso
slow.Movetheyokeandonetwothreeokayit'sfinallyrolling.Centertheyokeandonetwothreeit'sstill
rolling.....okayit'sfinallystopped.
Ifthatwasn'tbadenough,italsohaswhat'scalleda"DutchRoll",whichisn'tatypeofpastrypopularinthe
Netherlands.Itmeansthenoseoftheplaneistryingtomakealittlefigure8allthetime.Thatshorttail,
modifiedforlowlevelflying,justdoesn'tworkaswellastheoldtalltailsdid.Evenwithtwoyawdampersanda
pitchdamperthenoseoftheplaneisalwayshuntingaround.Notsomuchthatyou'dnoticeituntilyougetup
closebehindthetanker.
So,justtokeepmywingslevelIhavetoconstantlysawbackandforthontheyoke.Andbecausetheplaneisso
unresponsiveIhavetomakemyinputsbeforeIactuallyneedthem.Verynonintuitive.Itwasn'tuntilmyeighth
checkoutridethatIeversuccessfullygothookeduptothetanker.I'msureIscaredafewboomoperatorsinthe
process.
Gettingtheleft/rightnaileddownisthetoughestpart,butIalsohavetomaintainmyverticalpositionwithina
fewfeetandcontrolmyfore/aftpositionaswell.Hopefullythetankerpilotissmooth.Ifheletshisairspeeddrift
thenmyjobgetsthatmuchtougher.SoinadditiontosawingtheyokeI'malsomovingitforwardandaftwhile
constantlytweakingthethrottles.
I'mtryingtostayinsidea10footboxofairspacerelativetothetankerwhilebothofusaremovingalongat280
indicated,maybeatnight,maybeintheweather,maybeinturbulence.OnegoodflickofmywristandIcankill
10peoplemycrewplus4inthetanker.Tellmeagainwhyracecardriversmakesomuchmoney?
IfImoveoutofposition,mybowwavewillactuallypushthetankeraround.SotherougherIget,therougherhe
getsandsoon.It'seasierifthetankerisonautopilot,butwealsopracticewiththetankerpilothandflying.If
thingsgettoowildtheboomoperatorcandisconnectusorIcanpushabuttonmyyoketodisconnectus.
ThiswholetimeI'mjustlookingatthatgreatbigairplanefillingmywindscreen.Mycopilotmeanwhileisdirecting
thefuelwhereitneedstogotokeepourcenterofgravitywithinlimits.Onatrainingmissionwemayonlytake
onatokenamountoffuel,justafewthousandpounds.

YeahIknowit'sanHmodel.BestpictureIcouldfind.

Onarealmissionwecaneasilytake100,000poundsoffuelwhichrequiresasolid2025minutesontheboom.If
thatsoundslikehardworkitis.Imaginethetankergetting100,000poundslighterandusgetting100,000
poundsheavier.I'vehadthethrottlestothefirewallandstillbeenfallingofftheboom.
Onatrainingsortiewemightspendanhourorsoontherefuelingtrack,cyclingbackandforthbetweencontact
andprecontact.ThetankercrewneedsthepracticejustasmuchasIdo.Theboomoperatorneedsthepractice
asmuchasIdo.
Finallyit'stimetocallitquits.We'llfinishupwithapracticebreakawaymaneuver.Weneedtogetseparation
betweenthetwoaircraftanyways.
Wewoulddoabreakawayforrealifthebomberwascomingintoofastonthetankeroranytimethingsstart
gettingoutofhand.Theboomoperatorcalls"Breakaway!Breakaway!Breakaway!"overtheradio,webothhit
ourdisconnectswitches,Ichopmypowertoidleandcallforthelandinggeardown(!).Meanwhilethetankerpilot
goestomaximumpower.Wedropawayquicklywhilethetankeracceleratesaway.
Somewhereintherethetanker'sautopilotmaydecideitcan'tkeepupwiththetrimchangesandcallitquits
thenthetankerpilotsuddenlyfindshimselfwithahandfulofoutoftrimairplanepitchingupwhiletheboom
operatorgetsafacefullofB52.Fun.
You"madeyourmoney"asanAircraftCommanderbygettingthefuel.Ifyoucouldn'tgetthefuelyoucouldn'tdo
yourmission.Youeitherwouldn'tgettothetargetoryouwouldn'tgetback.
Ididn'tgetreallygoodatairrefuelinguntilaftertheGulfWar.Wespentalotoftimeontheboomduringthat
thing.IgottowhereIcouldpull3enginestoidleonthesamewingandstillstayhookedup.
Whew!Thatwasalotofwork.Nexttimewe'llgettothereallygoodstufflowlevelflying.

Heykids!YoucanmakeyourveryownB52airrefuelingsimulator!Justsitatyourdeskwhileholdinga3
pounddumbbellinyourlefthandlikeitwasanaircraftyoke.Nowmoveitupanddownsixinchesforthe
nexthour.Enjoy!

Lasttimewetalkedaboutairrefueling.
FlyingtheB52Part3
Nowit'stimetogetdownanddirty.Myfavoritepartofthebombermissionwaslowlevelflying.
Betterbuckleupit'sliabletogetbumpy.

Firstoff,whatidiotfliesahugeairplaneclosetotheground?Oh,andwedoitatnight?Areyou
kiddingme?
Keepinmindthatthiswasthelate80'searly90's.WewerestilltrainingtopenetrateSovietair
defensesif,Godforbid,itevercametothat.
USAFdoctrineatthattime,bothforbombersandfighterswasthatlowwasthewaytogo.B1s,F
111s,F4s,F16s,A10sallhadalowlevelmission.EvensometransportslikeC130sandC141s
hadspecialopsmissionsthatcalledforlowlevelflying.
Thisisancienthistoryofcourse.I'vebeenoutofthebombercommunityfor20yearsandI'msure
tacticstodayarequitedifferent.
So,we'reflyingthisthingthat'sasbigasanapartmentbuildingandourmaintacticistohide.I'm
imagininganelephanttiptoeingaroundandtryingtobesneaky.....
Whatdoesbeinglowgetyou?Backthenatleastitmadeithardforairdefenseradarstofindyou.
Especiallyiftherewasanykindofterrain.TheSovietfightersofthedaywouldhaveatoughtime
pickingyououtofthegroundclutter.Iknow,Mig29swerearoundthenbuttheywerenewand
thereweren'tmanyofthem.YouwerealotmorelikelytorunintoaMig23orMig21even.Alot
ofthebigsurfacetoairmissiles,thetelephonepolesizedonesthatcouldreachoutandtouchyou
alongwaysoff,couldn'tengageyoudownlow.Themissilesthatcouldwereshortranged.
EverseentheThunderbirdsorBlueAngelsatanairshow?They'llhaveoneguysplitoffandwhile
you'rebusywatchingtheothershe'llcomesneakingaroundlow,rightoveryourheadfromwhere
you'renotlooking.Surprise!Kindoflikethat.

Notme.Wishitwas.

Sobeinglowmadeyouhardtofindandhardtoshootiftheydidfindyou.Couldyoustillgetshot?
Heckyeah.Nobody'sinvincible,nobody,wewerejusttryingtoeventheodds.
Howlowcouldwego?Atnightourequipmentwouldletusgodownto200feet.Normallywe
bumpedthatupafewhundredfeettohaveabiggersafetymargin.200feetisroughlyequalto
yourwingspan.Intheday?Wellweweren'treallysupposedtogolower.Someotherguysmight
havegonedownto50feetonce,soIheard.I'lldenyeverything.That'smystoryandI'msticking
withit.

Alsonotme.

Sohowdoyoufly360knotsafewhundredfeetofftheground,atnight,inthemountains?
Verycarefully.Youcangetkilleddoingthis.AB1crewwaskilledonanightlowlevelaroundthat
timeframe.AfewyearsprioraB52crewskippedoffamesaandallbutonegotout.Iknewthe
Navigatoronthatone.Hehadburnsonthebackofhisneckfromjustbeatingthefireballoutofthe
airplaneasheejected.
Ihadagoodejectionseat,buttheNavigator'sseatsfireddownwards.Ifsomethinghappeneddown
lowmyfirstinstinctwouldbetotradeourairspeedforaltitudeandgivetheNavsthe500feet(or
morehopefully)theyneededtogetout.Thoseguyshadtobrave.Nowindows,nocontrolsanda
seatthatshootsyouattheground.
Wehadsomespecialequipmentontheplanetohelpus.TheprimarytoolwastheTerrain
AvoidanceRadar.UnlikeanF111orB1,theplanecouldn'tflyitselfdownlow.IhadaTVscreenin
frontofmethatwoulddepicta"Trace".Thiswasacrosssectionoftheterrainoutaheadofus.We
adjusthowfaraheadthesystemwaslooking.TherewasalittleairplanesymbolthatI"flew"along
theTrace.Thiswouldkeepusatourpresetterrainclearance.Wealsohadaradaraltimeter,which
toldushowhighwewereabovewhatwasdirectlybeneathus.

Youcanseetheterraintraceinfrontofmehere.

Downstairs,theRadarNavigatorhadanexcellentterrainmappingradarthatgavehim"thebig
picture".Weworkedtogetherveryclosely.Hewouldbelookingoutaheadwiththatradarand
tellingmewherethebestroutethroughtheterrainwas.
Wehadacoupleothertricksupoursleeve.Thetwo"chins"youseeunderthenoseofB52are
cameras.OneisaFLIR(prettynewstuffatthetime)andtheotherisaNightVisioncamera(also
hightechin1989).IcouldbringeitheroftheseuponmyTVscreen,alongwithsomeother
navigationalinformation.

LookcloseandyoucanseetheridgelineintheFLIRpicture.

Thesewereimportantbecauseifwewereactuallyinbadguycountrywemighthavetodothiswith
oursupercoolradarturnedoff.Nothingscreams"Hey!There'sabombercomingyourway!"than
blaringawaywithapowerfulradarthancanbedetectedalongwayoff.
NightVisionGoggles(NVGs)werebrandnewthenandwewerejuststartingtousethemaswell.
Theseweretheheavy,firstgeneration,models.Theyclippedtothefrontofourhelmetanda
batterypackvelcroedtothebackofthehelmet.Ifyouneededtoejectyouwouldhaveto
remembertotakethemoffortheweightwouldsnapyourneck.Todayyoucanbuybetteronesata
sportinggoodsstoreforafewhundreddollars.Backthenthiswascuttingedgestuff.

Aquicknoteaboutthepictures.TheseweretakenonIR144,alowleveltrainingroutethat
goesthroughtheBigBendregionofSouthwestTexas,NewMexicoandArizona.
ThefirsttimeIflewthisroutewasatnight.WhenIflewitinthedayIwasamazedathow
sheersomeoftheterrainwas.
ThisrouteclaimedthelivesofaB1crewonanighttrainingmission.

Wenormallyflewlowlevelsbetween320and360knots.Ourtopspeeddownlowwas390,sowe
normallykeptalittleinreserveincasewegotbehindandhadtomakeuptime.

Notasmuchfunatnight.

Itcouldgetverybumpydownthere.Especiallyonahotday.Thathugewingwasdesignedtoflyat
50,000feet.Itwouldbeatyouupdownlow.I'dlookoutthewindowandwatchthatwingflex
18feetatthetipandtheenginepodsshakingbackandforth.AfterIwhileIstoppedlookingatit.
WhatIcan'tseecan'tscareme.Iftheturbulencegotsobadthatwecouldn'treadtheinstruments
we'dcallitquits.
Italsocouldgetprettyhot.Theairconditioningwasn'tworthmuchdownlow.
Rememberthateveryoneelseontheplaneissittinginthedark.MyRadarNavigatorwouldget
airsickandthrowuponeverylowlevel.Hewashardcore.Icouldn'thavedoneit.
Mostofthelowlevelroutestookaround3to4hourstonavigate.Alotofthetrainingrouteswere
upovertheDakotaswhereit'ssparselypopulated.ThemostfunoneswereoutoverUtahand
Nevada.MyfavoriteroutecrossedLakePowellyoucoulddropdownintothecanyonlikeLuke
SkywalkerattackingtheDeathStar.

Tuckingupalongsidetheridgeline.Thisiscalled"TerrainMasking".

Normallytherewouldbeapracticebombrunattheendofthelowlevelroute.
Wedidn'tusuallygettodroprealbombsinpractice,maybeonceayearduringabigexercise.We
wouldnormallytransmitatoneontheradioandaradarsitewouldscorewhereourimaginary
bombwouldhavewent.Ifweweresimulatinganuke,closecounts.
Thesitecouldalsobringuppretendthreats.Forexample,theycouldsimulatevariousmissile
radarslockingontous.ThiswouldgivetheElectronicWarfareOfficer(EWOorEDub)some
practicewithhisjammers.
Oncewedidourthingwe'dclimbuptoaltitudeandtakeawelldeservedrestonthewayback
home.Anightlowlevelwashardworkbothmentallyandphysically.Ittookthemostcrew
coordinationofanythingwedid.Wehadtokeepourselvesoutoftherocks,makeourtimeover
target,evadethesimulatedthreatsandhitoursimulatedtarget(s).
Ofcourse,they'dhave3hoursoftouchandgolandingsscheduledforuswhenwegotback.
Seriously."Yougottabetoughtoflytheheavies".
Sowouldthisstuffhaveworked?Ithinkso.AroundthattimeaRussianMig29pilotdefectedand
flewhisplanetoTurkey.TheSACtacticspeopleaskedhim"DoyouthinkyoucouldinterceptaB52
flying300feetatnightinthemountains?"
Thisguywasdescribedtomeasaverycocky,arrogantfighterpilot.Hewasflyingthebestplane
hiscountryhadatthetime.Hisanswer?

"NOEFFINGWAY!"