K
EEPING A COMPLEX, 60-year-
old bomber at the forefront
of the world’s most powerful
air force is no easy task. Just
ask the men and women
of the Oklahoma City Air
Logistics Center (OC-ALC) at Tinker AFB,
whose diligent skills have underpinned
US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress deep
maintenance since 1959.
In 2019, OC-ALC will mark 60 years of
providing that specialist care, looking
after not just the aged dinosaur of an
airframe, but also the embodiment of
various upgrade packages to retain
operational relevance. Unsurprisingly,
the past 60 years has heralded
transformational improvements in the
approach to keeping the ‘BUFF’ (Big Ugly
Fat Fella) in the air and the future looks
set to continue this tradition.
Incredibly, the forthcoming Northrop
Grumman B-21 Raider will replace justthe B-1B Lancer and B-2A Spirit. The
B-52 is still regarded as being virtually
irreplaceable and looks set to command
a place in the USAF ranks for several
more decades to come. Coupled with
a raft of new upgrades that are on the
table, eicient depot maintenance to
keep the B-52Hs lying is becoming
increasingly important.In the depot
‘Aircraft enter programmed depot
maintenance [PDM] about every ive
years — we induct 17 aircraft a year,’
says Connie Davis, director of the 565th
Aircraft Maintenance Squadron (AMXS),
which oversees B-52 PDM. ‘Once the
aircraft arrives it will go through a ive-
gate process. Our irst is the pre-dock
gate, which begins with the aircraft
being outside the building on the ramp.
Here the engines are removed, as is the
vertical stabilizer [in], the bomb [bay]The US Air Force
conducts B-52
heavy maintenance
at Tinker AFB. On
a daily basis, this
team must find
clever yet efficient
ways to keep the
mighty ‘BUFF’ fleet
in the air.REPORT
Michael Keaveney88 December 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net