Keeping her lethal: Airmen maintain the B-52’s combat capabilities

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Luke Hill
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
Barksdale Air Force Base, La. --  The aircrew prepares to deliver the payload. They communicate one last time with their liaison on the ground and confirm their coordinates. An aircrew member places the enemy in his sights and releases the payload. It’s dropped directly on target and away from allies and civilians. The aircrew is able to deliver a precision strike because the communication and navigations systems on the aircraft are in perfect shape which results in a successful mission.

Airmen from the 2nd Maintenance Squadron communication and navigation systems shop at Barksdale play a vital role in maintaining and repairing systems essential to the B-52 Stratofortress’s combat capabilities.

One of the most important systems that Comm/Nav Airmen work on is the radar antenna.

“The radar is used for ground mapping as well as tracking weather conditions,” said Tech. Sgt. Joshua Harville, 2nd MXS Comm/Nav specialist. “It’s also used in bombing to make sure we put bombs on target. If things are off even a fraction of an inch, you can miss targets by up to a mile.”

Another piece of equipment which Comm/Nav Airmen maintain is the B-52’s communication system. This system is essential for coordinating with other pilots and ground units.

“Being able to communicate is essential to mission success,” said Airman 1st Class Mark Clemente, 2nd MXS Comm/Nav apprentice. “Fighters, refuelers, and tactical air control parties all need to have open communication. Being able to communicate and be at the right place at the right time saves lives.”

Comm/Nav Airmen also save the Air Force thousands of dollars by repairing and maintaining equipment instead of replacing it. Keeping these parts ready to go also prevents delays and allows for greater mission efficiency.

“Finding these problems before we release these parts for use on the flightline is hugely important,” said Harville. “These particular assets take about two to three hours to change out on the flightline and when you have 20 minutes to get a bird up in the air if one of these parts are bad you can possibly cancel a sortie.”

Without communication and navigation systems working properly, the mission just simply couldn’t happen. Thankfully, Comm/Nav Airmen maintain these systems which make the B-52 efficient and lethal.