For the very first time, a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress has moved
from the boneyard back into the sky again. The veteran bomber took off from Davis-Monthan
Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona for the first time following its restoration
on Friday, the 13th of February.
Technicians at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance
and Regeneration Group, otherwise known as AMARG, pulled the BUFF from the massive storage
yard beside Davis-Monthan during 2014 to replace a damaged aircraft in the
active fleet which the Air Force deemed beyond economic repair.
The newly restored Stratofortress, serial number 61-0007, had been in
1000-level storage at AMARG alongside twelve other B-52Hs, far away from the
ragged, chopped up Stratofortress carcasses on the other side of the boneyard.
Unlike other 1000-level aircraft, or inviolate storage where an airframe is
made safe and preserved without losing any parts to salvage, these bombers are
looked after in a far more detailed and careful fashion at AMARG.
Each
Stratofortress in this small group has its own plane captain at the base whose
primary responsibility is to monitor its health regularly and quickly
intercede when maintenance is necessary. This practice has clearly shown its
worth, judging by the mere months it took to return the aircraft to flight
following years of storage.
http://www.warbirdsnews.com/warbirds-news/fun-facts/return-ghost-rider.html
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