Engine Drops Out of B-52 During Training at Minot Air Force Base

[Dawood Ibrahim]

By: Valerie Insinna and Aaron Mehta, January 4, 2017 (Photo Credit: US Air Force)
MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. — An engine dropped out of a B-52 bomber during a training flight on Wednesday, the Air Force has confirmed following questions from Defense News.

Because the B-52 runs on eight Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-3/103 turbofan engines, pilots were able to land the aircraft safely without any injury to the five personnel on board. The Air Force has since dispatched a UH-1N Huey helicopter to recover engine debris, which was found located in an unpopulated area about 25 nautical miles northeast of Minot Air Force Base, an Air Force spokesman said in a statement.

There were no weapons onboard the B-52, which belongs to Minot Air Force Base's 5th Bomb Wing and was conducting a training mission, he said.

The service was not able to provide the root cause of the mishap, but the spokesman said an initial safety investigation has been initiated.

The incident could also ignite debate about whether and how to re-engine the service’s B-52 inventory. The Boeing-manufactured bomber has been flying since 1952 and is expected to remain operating until around 2040, depending on when it is fully replaced by the Northrop Grumman’s B-21.


Defense News
USAF Looking at B-52 Engine Options
In 2015, Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes, deputy chief of staff for Strategic Plans and Requirements, said the service was especially interested in a public-private partnership, which would keep it from having to funnel procurement dollars into a new engine program.

"The idea is in a public-private partnership, somebody funds the engine and then we pay them back over time out of the fuel savings, which are generated out of the new engines," he said then.

Pratt & Whitney has proposed an upgrade package for the TF33-P-3/103 engines that would make them less expensive to maintain.

Analysts have also floated the Pratt PW2000, known as the F117 when installed on military aircraft, as a potential substitute for the TF33. Engine manufacturers General Electric and Rolls-Royce could also offer their own replacements.

There are currently 76 B-52’s in the Air Force’s inventory.


http://www.defensenews.com/articles/engine-drops-out-of-b-52-during-training-at-minot-air-force-base

@war&peace @Khafee

 

[SherDil]

An engine dropped out of a B-52 bomber during a training flight

The old beast getting tired after a long service i guess

 

[GR!FF!N]

The old beast getting tired after a long service i guess

well,USA has plan to keep them till 2040.B-52 will serve nearly 100 years.It is unprecedented in Air Warfare(Though we're using Air platforms for warfare for only 100 years now)

 

[Naif al Hilali]

probably a maintenance issue not structural; something left out or improperly fitted.

the need to redesign the engine nacelles keeps putting the re-engining to four large modern efficient turbofan idea on hold.

Pratt & Whitney is happy to keep making improvements and keep getting the order:

P&W still pushing upgrade of B-52's original TF33 engine

 

[Penguin]

The Air Force has since dispatched a UH-1N Huey helicopter to recover engine debris, which was found located in an unpopulated area about 25 nautical miles northeast of Minot Air Force Base, an Air Force spokesman said in a statement.

Image this happening in a populated area....

 

[Blue Marlin]

in its defence it is older than anyone on this forum,

 

[Penguin]

in its defence it is older than anyone on this forum,

But its maintenance personnel probably aren't

 

[Blue Marlin]

But its maintenance personnel probably aren't

true.

 

[jhungary]

But its maintenance personnel probably aren't

lol, seeing the last B-52 rolled off the factory in 1962, and USAF have a force retirement regime for anyone over 65 (or 60, I forgot) to have a maintenance guy outlive the bomber, he would have been have to 72 years old now (assuming he join the service at 18, then serve 54 years) that mean he have to be retired by now. Or would have make a general at least........

So this is literally not possible. B-52 must have been outlive all its maintenance crew 6 years ago.

On the other hand, the problem I see is that this is MIltiary Aviation, an old plane like that in civil aviation would have passed a few airworthyness check already, either they got sold off, transfer or required to by the Aviation authority, and it would have been picked up by a Airworthyness Check, but since this is the Airforce and they don't sell B-52 to anyone, they did not do these type of check and normal daily or maintenance don't dissemble the engine (the only way you know the bolt is faulty) it would take years between a full service being done and the engine taken out.

Put together the fact that Military Aircraft have quite little flight hour compare to the civilian aircraft, the problem couldhave gone unnoticed for a long time before either an engine is deteched or someone look at those bolt holding the engine in place.

 

[Naif al Hilali]

probably a maintenance issue not structural; something left out or improperly fitted.

the need to redesign the engine nacelles keeps putting the re-engining to four large modern efficient turbofan idea on hold.

Pratt & Whitney is happy to keep making improvements and keep getting the order:

P&W still pushing upgrade of B-52's original TF33 engine

"It appears that the engine began breaking down from the inside, eventually cracking the protective casing around it and detaching from the plane", Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said in an exclusive interview.