Key Points and Summary – Rolls-Royce F130 engines, new pylons, power generation and glass displays headline the B-52 Stratofortress Commercial Engine Replacement Program, aimed at keeping 76 bombers flying into the 2050s. This known as the B-52J program in most defense circles.
-An APG-79-derived AESA radar will sharpen targeting for long-range standoff weapons. But GAO says development slipped nearly a year to June 2025 after testing found non-uniform airflow at the new engine inlets, forcing a redesign and wind-tunnel work through summer 2025.
Bombs Inside the B-52 Bomber. Photo taken by Harry J. Kazianis/National Security Journal.
-Critical design review is now planned for April 2026, with first upgraded jets flying around 2033 and program completion in 2036. Despite delays, added range and efficiency are pivotal for Indo-Pacific reach.
B-52 Upgrade Program that Will Keep the Stratofortress Fleet Aloft for a Hundred Years
Thanks to a raft of upgrades to the US Air Force B-52 fleet, the long-range strategic bombers will remain in service until the middle of this century—despite a hiccup in integrating new components to the Cold War-era bombers.
It is a tall order for one of the United States’ elderly aerospace programs: reengineering the B-52 Stratofortress. The job is to be completed by aerospace heavyweight and propulsion expert Rolls-Royce. The program is known as the B-52J modernization, from the B-52H.
According to Rolls-Royce, the F130 engines that are to be podded and mated to the B-52’s wings in an underslung pylon arrangement will “provide vastly greater fuel efficiency while increasing range and reducing tanker aircraft requirements.” Thanks to their extensive use in both civilian and military fleets, the engines are a ready, mature, off-the-shelf technology that would be a boon to B-52 performance.
Rolls-Royce’s engine will replace the eight TF33 engines, built by Pratt & Whitney, that currently propel each B-52 Stratofortress. That earlier TF33 engine is a design stemming from the early years of the Cold War, and Pratt & Whitney ceased production of the engine in the mid-1980s.
Aside from the anticipated boost to fuel efficiency and range, the new engines will drastically simplify maintenance time, reducing service workload and decreasing turnaround time for the strategic bomber.
It is part of a broader modernization effort, dubbed the Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP), which will also involve replacing the B-52’s engine struts, electricity generation components, and introducing more modern cockpit displays for pilots that replace some of the legacy cockpit equipment.
Another crucial piece of kit that is part of the installation program on the B-52 aircraft is its radar. The fleet’s current AN/APQ-166 radar, which is mechanically-scanned, will be replaced with an electronically-scanned array radar that is a derivative of Raytheon’s AN/APG-79 radar employed by F/A-18 Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers. While the upgrade will increase the bomber’s radar fidelity, it will also give the B-52s a more precise targeting and tracking capability that will be of intense importance to the delivery of the bomber’s anticipated long-range, stand-off munitions in the future.
Once realized, the United States Air Force will have a fleet of 76 up-engined B-52J Stratofortresses sporting the US Air Force roundel — but when exactly that will happen is a goalpost that is, metaphorically, moving forward into the future.
B-52J: A Bit of Turbulence on the Horizon
Despite the fuel efficiency and performance boost promise held by the B-52’s new reengineering, the program has experienced some friction already—enough of a problem that the engine’s air intake outlet, a crucial component, must be redesigned before being installed on the aircraft.
B-52 Bomber Bombs. Image Credit: National Security Journal.
A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress, assigned to the 2nd Bomb Wing, receives fuel from a KC-135 Stratotanker, assigned to the 340th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, during a multi-day Bomber Task Force mission over Southwest Asia, Dec. 10, 2020. The B-52 is a long range bomber with a range of approximately 8,800 miles, enabling rapid support of Bomber Task Force missions or deployments and reinforcing global security and stability.(U.S Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joey Swafford)
A report from the Government Accountability Office, a non-partisan watchdog that compiles and collates reports for the US Congress, shed some light on the B-52 delay, painting a dire picture.
“In December 2023, the program received Air Force approval to transition to the MCA pathway before development start, but development start has been delayed by nearly a year—to June 2025,” the Government Accountability Office wrote.
“According to the program, delays stem from ongoing engine inlet issues the program found during design testing and from Boeing’s lag in submitting proposals needed for maturing the program’s cost and schedule baselines. Officials stated that Boeing submitted qualified proposals in summer 2024 that the program is currently reviewing.”
During the B-52J redesign, program officials identified a significant issue with the B-52’s engine inlets, specifically a “non-uniform flow of air that can affect the engine’s performance and operability,” which necessitated a redesign of the engine inlets.
“While the program used a digital model during the rapid prototyping effort that simulated how prospective contractors’ engines would fit in the aircraft,” the GAO wrote, “officials said performance data from testing showed that the design did not meet requirements. Officials stated that Boeing will complete wind tunnel testing to fully verify the design in summer 2025. Officials stated that these data are essential to completing the critical design review, planned for April 2026, 3 years later than originally planned.”
The B-52J program’s moving timeline is slowly eroding the on-paper benefits of the B-52 by the CERP program. Back in 2023, the US Air Force indicated that it would conclude the CERP program in 2035; however, that date has now been pushed back to 2036. The US Air Force has also previously indicated that it will not begin flying the upgraded B-52 bombers until 2033, a full 12 years after the initial Commercial Engine Replacement Program agreement was signed.
What Happens Next on B-52J?
The B-52’s great strength — and, indeed, its usefulness to the US Air Force — is its range and payload capacity. There are very few countries in the world that can haul approximately 70,000 pounds, or 35 tons of weaponry, to far-distant targets.
With the aid of aerial refueling, the bomber’s range, augmented by Rolls-Royce’s fuel-sipping engines, is instrumental in the Indo-Pacific theater.
Given the incredibly vast distances between islands and the mainland in that area of the world, the newly minted Department of War is surely eager to squeeze every drop of range it can muster from the ancient bombers.
But will the B-52J survive cost and other pressures?
About the Author: Caleb Larson
Caleb Larson is an American multiformat journalist based in Berlin, Germany. His work covers the intersection of conflict and society, focusing on American foreign policy and European security. He has reported from Germany, Russia, and the United States. Most recently, he covered the war in Ukraine, reporting extensively on the war’s shifting battle lines from Donbas and writing on the war’s civilian and humanitarian toll. Previously, he worked as a Defense Reporter for POLITICO Europe. You can follow his latest work on X.
More Military
The F-35 Ferrari Could Transform the U.S. Military
How the F-14 Tomcat Fighter Went to War Without Spare Parts
Fact: The F-35 Can’t Be Replaced
How Do You Replace the Main Battle Tank?
The F-35 ‘Ferrari’ Fighter Might Be ‘Coming Soon’ to a War Near You
Krystal cane
September 13, 2025 at 1:32 pm
It doesn’t matter what you call it the idiot secretary of defense and his leader Will call it even something more stupid 😁