B-52 sqn scramble sept 2020
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B-52 sqn scramble sept 2020
Blimey, some of the crews have a heck of a run simply to get to the jets. Enjoy
Definitely lost the edge on Alert Force scramble procedures since the heyday of SAC.
Where are all the Alert Force vans / pick up trucks ?
WTF is with the Security Forces guy controlling access across the red line having a chair - from which he couldn't observe all round properly when seated and he is not holding his rifle ?
I expect they will be getting a visit from the IG !
General Curtis LeMay would not have been impressed with the faff trying to get the blank off here either ! You would have thought they would have had getting the blanks off in high winds down to a tee after 59 years of operation of the B-52H.
Where are all the Alert Force vans / pick up trucks ?
WTF is with the Security Forces guy controlling access across the red line having a chair - from which he couldn't observe all round properly when seated and he is not holding his rifle ?
I expect they will be getting a visit from the IG !
General Curtis LeMay would not have been impressed with the faff trying to get the blank off here either ! You would have thought they would have had getting the blanks off in high winds down to a tee after 59 years of operation of the B-52H.
I liked the hot start on #3 at 2:12 on that video.
Interesting that they start all 8 at once - no wonder they didn't see the hot start if there are that many gauges leaping into action all at once.
Interesting that they start all 8 at once - no wonder they didn't see the hot start if there are that many gauges leaping into action all at once.
They violently rip off the pitot covers like that all the time? Some guys have no idea that pulling the cover to the tail doesn't work. The harder they pull...
Given the height of the pitot, it appeared to me that the lanyards attached to the pitot are elasticated, the idea being that if you run towards the rear, stretching the lanyard and then releasing it under tension, the cover will fly off the pitot.
I also noticed a considerable number of edits to the video including possibly a startup failure, access panel left open, remedial work needing to be done on an engine, headsets were unplugged, and then appear later plugged into the same aircraft - headless chickens came to mind. It also looked like the cameras were positioned to evaluate crew performance on multiple aircraft during the event. The sequence of aircraft taxing and taking off, (a) into low cloud, then (b) into a clear blue sky. Was the video constructed from several days worth of activity?
But then I have been known to misinterpret chaotic activity in the past.
IG
I also noticed a considerable number of edits to the video including possibly a startup failure, access panel left open, remedial work needing to be done on an engine, headsets were unplugged, and then appear later plugged into the same aircraft - headless chickens came to mind. It also looked like the cameras were positioned to evaluate crew performance on multiple aircraft during the event. The sequence of aircraft taxing and taking off, (a) into low cloud, then (b) into a clear blue sky. Was the video constructed from several days worth of activity?
But then I have been known to misinterpret chaotic activity in the past.
IG
I also noticed a considerable number of edits to the video
I know it is comparing Apples and Pears but I have just come across this on YouTube.
Note how the B52 uses the curvature of the Earth to become airborne and the Vulcan doesn’t!
‘Mass rapids’ are all well and good but standing under a Vulcan doing a rapid start and then spooling up to 90% to cross feed the other three engines is a great way to check for loose fillings.
Note how the B52 uses the curvature of the Earth to become airborne and the Vulcan doesn’t!
‘Mass rapids’ are all well and good but standing under a Vulcan doing a rapid start and then spooling up to 90% to cross feed the other three engines is a great way to check for loose fillings.
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I know it is comparing Apples and Pears but I have just come across this on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYOgsgnZ8dw
Note how the B52 uses the curvature of the Earth to become airborne and the Vulcan doesn’t!
‘Mass rapids’ are all well and good but standing under a Vulcan doing a rapid start and then spooling up to 90% to cross feed the other three engines is a great way to check for loose fillings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYOgsgnZ8dw
Note how the B52 uses the curvature of the Earth to become airborne and the Vulcan doesn’t!
‘Mass rapids’ are all well and good but standing under a Vulcan doing a rapid start and then spooling up to 90% to cross feed the other three engines is a great way to check for loose fillings.
It's obvious from the comments on this thread that most posters either don't already know or haven't seen the various videos on You Tube relating to SAC procedures, or the more recent ones showing B-52H and KC-135R Minimum Interval Take Off (MITO) scramble procedures - so I'll go ahead and find them again.
Only the B-52H remains in service which has a 5-main crew as the there is no tail gunner.
The routine method of starting a B-52H using AGE normally takes about an hour:
For MITO scrambles, crew arrival at the aircraft to take-off can be achieved in about 10 minutes using the he cartridge starting system:
https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Disp...20the%20B%2D52.
Declassified SAC films indicate that the normal readiness state of Alert Force aircraft (both bombers and tankers) was RS15 - so that leaves around 5 minutes to get from the Alert Force building to the aircraft.
Alert Force vehicles in the SAC era were dedicated to each crew, self-driven, fitted with flashing lights and sirens, designator signs, and where necessary there were priority routes controlled by traffic lights.
Various videos shows Jeeps (1950s with the B-47), station wagons (estate cars) in the early 1960s, crew cab 5-PAX pick up trucks from the late-1960s, and most recently a mixed bag of unmarked commercial colored Ford Transit minibuses, pick up trucks and minivans with magnetic designator signs.
The main reason for MITO scramble practices now is to maintain the ability to Survival Scramble aircraft in the event of ICBM / SLBM attack. From the mid-1980s, numerous papers have described how the ability to get airborne in time is marginal - particularly in the face of a low trajectory SLBM attack.
These KC-135R crews are pretty sharp:
Only the B-52H remains in service which has a 5-main crew as the there is no tail gunner.
The routine method of starting a B-52H using AGE normally takes about an hour:
For MITO scrambles, crew arrival at the aircraft to take-off can be achieved in about 10 minutes using the he cartridge starting system:
https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Disp...20the%20B%2D52.
Declassified SAC films indicate that the normal readiness state of Alert Force aircraft (both bombers and tankers) was RS15 - so that leaves around 5 minutes to get from the Alert Force building to the aircraft.
Alert Force vehicles in the SAC era were dedicated to each crew, self-driven, fitted with flashing lights and sirens, designator signs, and where necessary there were priority routes controlled by traffic lights.
Various videos shows Jeeps (1950s with the B-47), station wagons (estate cars) in the early 1960s, crew cab 5-PAX pick up trucks from the late-1960s, and most recently a mixed bag of unmarked commercial colored Ford Transit minibuses, pick up trucks and minivans with magnetic designator signs.
The main reason for MITO scramble practices now is to maintain the ability to Survival Scramble aircraft in the event of ICBM / SLBM attack. From the mid-1980s, numerous papers have described how the ability to get airborne in time is marginal - particularly in the face of a low trajectory SLBM attack.
These KC-135R crews are pretty sharp:
Last edited by RAFEngO74to09; 6th Oct 2020 at 21:47.
The 1970s era SAC Primary Alerting System explained - a bit more high tech than the UK's "Bomber Box" !
3:48 "If the light stays on, we can call that unit over the grey phone ..." and give them a serious bollocking because they didn't acknowledge quickly enough !
3:48 "If the light stays on, we can call that unit over the grey phone ..." and give them a serious bollocking because they didn't acknowledge quickly enough !
Last edited by RAFEngO74to09; 6th Oct 2020 at 21:55.
I see in the first video there are a bunch of guys waiting to sell the crews cheap stereos when they return.
