Deep inside the B-52’s belly, a rotating launcher spins like a revolver, and a current upgrade nearly doubles the smart missiles it can fire from there.

This is the story of the strangest decision in American air power: instead of replacing its oldest bomber, the US Air Force is rebuilding it to fly for one hundred years.

The B-52 Stratofortress first flew in 1952, and the last one rolled off the line in October 1962.

Since then, every bomber designed to replace it has faltered: the supersonic B-58 Hustler lasted barely a decade, the Mach-3 XB-70 died after two prototypes, and now even the B-1B Lancer and the two-billion-dollar B-2 Spirit are scheduled to retire first, handing their missions to the B-21 Raider while the B-52 flies on.

In this documentary, we go inside the rebuild turning the B-52H into the B-52J. Eight new Rolls-Royce F130 engines under the Commercial Engine Replacement Program — with the first aircraft arriving at Boeing’s San Antonio plant this year. The Conventional Rotary Launcher and Internal Weapons Bay Upgrade, which raised the bomber’s smart-weapon capacity by 67 percent and turned it into a standoff missile truck carrying twenty precision weapons. And a new Raytheon AESA radar, derived from fighter radars, that gives the old airframe modern eyes.

By the time it is done, airframes built in 1962 will be flying toward a full century of service — longer than any combat aircraft in history. 

If you watch this video right here, there should be fewer ad interruptions. Remember to open for full view and to keep your sound turned on.

Thanks to ‘Beyond Facts‘ for this insightful documentary.                    The video is 22:05 long.