Synopses & Reviews
A giddy airborne Slim Pickens might have introduced the world at large to the B-52 Stratofortress in 1964’s Dr. Strangelove--but by then, the B-52 had already been central to the USAF’s strategic bomber force for a decade. And, more than forty years later, the legendary aircraft is still in service--and no less critical to the Air Force’s fleet. This book gives readers a close-up look at a long-range heavy bomber like no other. Aviation writer Nicholas Veronico tells the full story of the B-52--from its original Cold War design to its latest update. This richly illustrated volume details the technology that allows the B-52 to fly at high subsonic speeds at altitudes up to 50,000 feet, delivering nuclear or conventional precision-guided munitions with precision navigation capability. It takes readers inside the design and building of an aircraft that--with its capacity to launch a wide array of weapons, from gravity bombs and cluster bombs to precision guided JDAMs--can be expected to serve the Air Force for decades to come.
Synopsis
A close-up look at the history and performance of the USAF’s most legendary long-range heavy bomber over five decades.
About the Author
Nicholas A. Veronico is the president of the northern California chapter of the American Aviation Historical Society. His many books include F4U Corsair: The Combat, Development, and Racing History of the Corsair; Giant Cargo Planes; Military Aircraft Boneyards; and Blue Angels: Sixty Years of Aerial Excellence. He served as an editor for Pacific Flyer Aviation Newspapers, In Flight USA, and Airliners: The World's Airline Magazine. Veronico lives in San Carlos, California, and has most recently published Hidden Warbirds (2013) and Hidden Warbirds II (2014) with Zenith Press.