Wed, Nov 07, 2012
Aircraft Had Recently Come Out Of Maintenance
A B-52 bomber being test-flown on Thursday after undergoing maintenance shed flaps from both of its wings on takeoff, according to officials at Tinker Air Force Base in OK. It was not specified if it was the inboard, outboard, or all of the flaps that separated from the airplane.
The Logistics Center at the base overhauls about a dozen of the long-serving bombers each year. They are stationed at Barksdale AFB in Louisiana and Minot AFB in North Dakota.
According to a report appearing in The Oklahoman, the flaps on both the port and starboard wings came off the airplane during takeoff on the test flight. The engineer who reported the incident to the paper did not wish to be named. Base spokesman Ron Mullan confirmed the incident, adding that "the pilot landed the aircraft safely." No one was injured, and base officials are reportedly "looking into" the incident.
According to the Air Force, the B-52A first flew in 1954, and the B model entered service in 1955. A total of 744 B-52s were built with the last, a B-52H, delivered in October 1962. The first of 102 B-52H's was delivered to Strategic Air Command in May 1961. The H model can carry up to 20 air launched cruise missiles. In addition, it can carry the conventional cruise missile that was launched in several contingencies during the 1990s, starting with Operation Desert Storm and culminating with Operation Iraqi Freedom.
(USAF file photo. Not incident airplane)
More News
Back-Taxi A term used by air traffic controllers to taxi an aircraft on the runway opposite to the traffic flow. The aircraft may be instructed to back-taxi to the beginning of the>[...]
“Our WAI members across the nation are grateful for the service and sacrifice of the formidable group of WASP who served so honorably during World War II. This group of brave>[...]
“Many aspiring pilots fall short of their goal due to the cost of flight training, so EAA working with the Ray Foundation helps relieve some of the financial pressure and mak>[...]
Blind Speed The rate of departure or closing of a target relative to the radar antenna at which cancellation of the primary radar target by moving target indicator (MTI) circuits i>[...]
Aero Linx: International Airline Medical Association (IAMA) The International Airline Medical Association, formerly known as the Airline Medical Directors Association (AMDA) was fo>[...]