The U.S. Air Force has awarded contracts totaling up to $766 million to advance the modernization of the B-52 Stratofortress, covering production of the new AN/APQ-188 radar as well as upgrades to the bomber’s weapons-carrying systems.
The latest awards represent another significant investment in extending the operational relevance of an aircraft that first entered service in the 1950s and is expected to remain in service for decades to come.
The larger of the two contracts is a $603 million indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) award to Raytheon, an RTX business, for the production and sustainment of the AN/APQ-188 radar which will replace the aging AN/APQ-166 radar across the Air Force’s fleet of 76 active B-52s.
Boeing received a separate contract valued at nearly $163 million for bomb rack modernization kits as part of the broader B-52 upgrade effort.
According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the modernization is designed to preserve mission-critical navigation and weather-avoidance capabilities while enhancing the B-52’s effectiveness in both conventional and nuclear missions.
Let’s dissect this.
Source: Defense Updates
