USAF Boeing B-52 Stratofortress Patch BUFF Bomber Vietnam Iraq US Navy Harpoon

Description

Beautifully detailed, LARGE Boeing
B-52 Stratofortress Bomber patch
.  5 inches across.  This is an exact copy of the patch produced by Boeing to highlight the B-52's ability to employ the anti-ship missile system HARPOON.  Orignal patches are rare.
The
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
is a long-range,
subsonic
,
jet-powered
strategic bomber
. The B-52 was designed and built by
Boeing
, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the
United States Air Force
(USAF) since the 1950s. The bomber is capable of carrying up to 70,000 pounds (32,000 kg) of weapons,
[4]
and has a typical combat range of more than 8,800 miles (14,080 km) with aerial refueling.
[5]
Beginning with the successful contract bid in June 1946, the B-52 design evolved from a
straight wing
aircraft powered by six
turboprop
engines to the final prototype YB-52 with eight
turbojet
engines and
swept wings
. The B-52 took its
maiden flight
in April 1952. Built to carry nuclear weapons for
Cold War
-era
deterrence
missions, the B-52 Stratofortress replaced the
Convair B-36
. A veteran of several wars, the B-52 has dropped only
conventional munitions
in combat. The B-52's official name
Stratofortress
is rarely used; informally, the aircraft has become commonly referred to as the
BUFF
(Big Ugly Fat $#*&).
[6]
[Note 1]
The B-52 has been in active service with the USAF since 1955. As of 2012, 85 were in active service with nine in reserve. The bombers flew under the
Strategic Air Command
(SAC) until it was inactivated in 1992 and its aircraft absorbed into the
Air Combat Command
(ACC); in 2010 all B-52 Stratofortresses were transferred from the ACC to the new
Air Force Global Strike Command
(AFGSC). Superior performance at high subsonic speeds and relatively low operating costs have kept the B-52 in service despite the advent of later, more advanced aircraft, including the canceled
Mach
3
B-70 Valkyrie
, the
variable-geometry
B-1 Lancer
, and the
stealth
B-2 Spirit
. The B-52 completed sixty years of continuous service with its original operator in 2015. After being upgraded between 2013 and 2015, it is expected to serve into the 2040s. (Wikipedia)
The
Harpoon
is an all-weather,
over-the-horizon
,
anti-ship missile
system, developed and manufactured by
McDonnell Douglas
(now
Boeing Defense, Space & Security
). In 2004, Boeing delivered the 7,000th Harpoon unit since the weapon's introduction in 1977. The missile system has also been further developed into a land-strike weapon, the
Standoff Land Attack Missile
(SLAM).
The regular Harpoon uses
active radar homing
, and a low-level,
sea-skimming
cruise trajectory to improve survivability and lethality. The missile's launch platforms include:
Fixed-wing aircraft
(the
AGM-84
, without the
solid-fuel rocket
booster)
Surface ships
(the
RGM-84
, fitted with a solid-fuel rocket booster that detaches when expended, to allow the missile's main
turbojet
to maintain flight)
Submarines
(the
UGM-84
, fitted with a solid-fuel rocket booster and encapsulated in a container to enable submerged launch through a torpedo tube);
Coastal defense batteries, from which it would be fired with a solid-fuel rocket booster.
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