B-52H Stratofortress seen from a KC-10 Extender. (Photo: USAF/Louis Briscese)
The B-52 Commercial Re-Engining Program (CERP) for the USAF will cost more than anticipated, Acting Air Force Secretary John P Roth admitted on 17 June.
Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Roth said that CERP costs for the 76-strong B-52H Stratofortress fleet have risen by 9% to about $11 billion, although he denied recent media reports of a 50% increase.
Roth attributed the 9% jump to information obtained from virtual prototyping of the system, certain ‘realities of buying from the current industrial base’ plus ‘a reassessment of the requirement’ and costs associated with the complexity of integrating a modern engine into the ageing B-52H, which entered service in the early 1960s.
USAF Global Strike Command told Shephard in April that it ‘is still evaluating proposals from industry for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program and is continuing to evaluate industry’s offerings’.
CERP contenders include GE with its CF34 and Passport engines, Rolls-Royce with the F130 and Pratt & Whitney (P&W) with the PW800.
The decision on CERP will probably not happen until late in Q3 or Q4 this year.
The company has tested over 15 mission sets for the drone, with the rotorcraft used to demonstrate the viability of armed forces utilising large uncrewed aerial systems’ (UAS) for autonomous missions in the future.
The US Navy’s answer to a sixth-generation fighter has experienced a range of setbacks and delays to the programme, with only $47 million in this latest proposed budget set aside for completing the aircraft.
The UAE’s Edge Group has been positioning itself as a key defence and technology partner to Indonesia, where it has been focusing on naval platforms, UAVs and long-term industrial collaboration.
With roughly 80% of combat missions flown by Typhoons in Europe, the Eurofighter consortium is emphasising the continued relevance of its jet and wants to ramp up production to continue to deliver combat mass in light of a shifting geo-political world order.
In the past 18 months, Boeing’s MQ-28A Ghost Bat uncrewed aerial system (UAS) has achieved several milestones including teaming with manned aircraft, achieving 100 flight hours and training of first military pilot.
The order for two more aircraft for the NATO Multinational Multirole Tanker Transport (MRTT) fleet comes as Airbus considers increasing A330 MRTT production to meet demand.
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