The Air Force plans to finalize integration activities and deliver the first lot of B-52 modified aircraft in the 2026-2027 timeframe, with initial operational capability expected in 2030. Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce has launched F130 engine testing at the company’s outdoor test facility at the NASA Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, U.S. The official confirmation brings clarity on the designation of the iconic strategic bomber as the 61-year B-52H is about to undertake its “largest modification in the history”.Īs already explained, new engines were the main reason the B-52G was redesignated as B-52H in 1962 and, although a final decision had not been taken yet, the upgraded bomber was about to be called either the B-52J or B-52K, with the first being considered as an interim designation (as the radar will be installed before the engines). “Any B-52H aircraft modified with the new commercial engines and associated subsystems are designated as B-52J,” the Air Force said in justification documents for its 2024 budget request according to Air & Space Forces Magazine. It’s official now: the upgraded B-52 bomber will be the B-52J.

B 52 bomber cockpit