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B-52 short history and B-52D Specs. For more than 35 years B-52 Stratofortresses have been the primary manned strategic bomber force for the United States. The B-52 is capable of dropping or launching a significant array of weapons in the U.S. inventory. This includes gravity bombs, cluster bombs and precision guided missiles. B-52D The B-52 was designed and built to be a war machine. It has been the U.S.’s mainstream long-range strategic bomber since the mid-1950s and has been so successful that many experts predict that it will continue at least into the 2040s. Specifications: 170 B-52Ds were produced. First D model was flown on June 4, 1956. B-52 has six crewmembers. Power: 8 Pratt & Whitney J57-P-19W turbojet engines. Length: 156 ft. 7 in. Wingspan: 185 ft. (longer than the Wright brothers’ first flight). Maximum takeoff weight: 450,000 lb. Offensive payload: 54,000 lb. Maximum speed: 551 kt. Normal cruise speed: approximately 450 kt. Combat radius: 3,012 nautical miles without air-to-air refueling. |