Why the 60-Year-Old B-52 Still Powers U.S. Airstrikes

It first entered service in 1961, but the B-52 Stratofortress is still at the center of America’s military campaigns—including the current war on Iran.

Seventy-six of these Cold War bombers remain active, making up half the entire U.S. bomber fleet. They can carry 70,000 pounds of weapons, including nuclear arms, and fly 8,800 miles without refueling.

Crews call it the BUFF—Big Ugly Fat Fella—for its size and reliability. The B-52 carpet-bombed Vietnam, pounded Iraq in Desert Storm, and hit ISIS in Syria.

Now it’s launching strikes on Iran, with some bombers heading to the UK after Sir Keir Starmer approved the use of British bases.

Rolls-Royce is fitting new engines to keep them flying into the 2050s. Sixty-three years old, and still the backbone of U.S. air power.