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Go along on a B-52 mission
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The plane's controls may look antiquated, but
the effectiveness of the aircraft is proven
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INTERACTIVECNN correspondent describes lengthy flight
March 30, 1999
Web posted at: 10:04 a.m. EST (1504 GMT)
In this story: Not high-tech, but lethal RELATED STORIES, SITES 
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FAIRFORD, England (CNN) -- The giant B-52, one of the warplanes taking part in NATO airstrikes against Yugoslavia, is older than the U.S. Air Force crew members who fly it.
No warplane in history has lasted longer, flown more missions, dropped more explosives or held on so sturdily against the march of technology.
The lumbering, long-range aircraft, now loaded with cruise missiles, are back in action in Operation Allied Force -- their third war -- in NATO's bid to force Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to the peace table.
Despite the proven worth of radar-evading "stealth" aircraft, the Air Force says the slow but steady B-52 -- the primary U.S. strategic bomber since 1954, used in wars in Vietnam and Iraq -- will remain on duty for another 40 years.
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| A U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber on a mission against Yugoslavia | |
The raw power of the B-52, with its 185-foot wingspan, shudders through the aircraft as it rises.
"It's a stick and rudder airplane," says one crew member, an Air Force colonel who, for security reasons, cannot be identified. "It's not high-tech, like the new fighters and the new weapons systems ... (It's) the old style of flying."
Still, amid museum-like dials and gauges, almost quaint throttle controls and other equipment with flaking paint, this will be an airstrike as lethal and sophisticated as any ever made.
"It's a great way to fight a battle," says an Air Force captain who also cannot be identified by name. "We can sit out there and execute the mission as NATO directs us to in a much less threatening environment."
In fact, when the B-52 launches its missiles, still hundreds of miles away from Yugoslavia, there's barely a bump in the ride.
RELATED STORIES:
Pentagon: NATO making progress, but campaign will take time
March 30, 1999
NATO puts more aircraft into Yugoslav campaign
March 28, 1999
B-2 stealth bombers make combat debut
March 24, 1999
Operation Allied Force blasts Yugoslavia
March 24, 1999
RELATED SITES:
B-52:
• US Air Force
• B-52 Bomber: Fact Sheet
• Air Power Over Kosovo
• More B-52s to bolster deployed force
• Welcome to the B-52 Stratofortress Association Web Page
• Historic Wings
• The Tale of the Stratofortress
Yugoslavia:
• Federal Republic of Yugoslavia official site
• Kesovo and Metohija facts
• Serbia Ministry of Information
• Serbia Now! News
Kosovo:
• Kosova Crisis Center
• Kosova Liberation Peace Movement
• Kosovo - from Albanian.com
Military:
• F-117s arrive at Aviano to support possible NATO operations
• NATO official site
• BosniaLINK - U.S. Dept. of Defense
• U.S. Navy images from Operation Allied Force
• U.K. Ministry of Defence - Kosovo news
• U.K. Royal Air Force - Kosovo news
• Jane's Defence - Kosovo Crisis
Relief:
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
• International Committee of the Red Cross
• Kosovo Humanitarian Disaster Forces Hundreds of Thousands from their Homes
• Catholic Relief Services
• Kosovo Relief
• ReliefWeb: Home page
Media:
• Independent Yugoslav radio stations B92
• Institute for War and Peace Reporting
• United States Information Agency - Kosovo Crisis
Other:
• 1997 view of Kosovo from space - Eurimage
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