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The AGM-86 ALCM is an American subsonic air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) built by Boeing and operated by the United States Air Force.This missile was developed to increase the effectiveness and survivability of the Boeing B-52G and B-52H Stratofortress strategic bombers, allowing the aircraft to deliver its payload from a great distance.
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) since the 1950s, and NASA for nearly 50 years.
Operation Senior Surprise, also known as Secret Squirrel, [1] was a long range B-52G Stratofortress cruise missile strike against Iraqi targets that initiated the bombing campaign during Desert Storm. [2] (It was given the unofficial nickname 'Operation Secret Squirrel' by the B-52 crews.)
The B-52 command pilot did not do a final verification check before signing the manifest listing the cargo as a dozen unarmed AGM-129 missiles to depart Minot. [11] General T. Michael Moseley, USAF chief of staff at the time of the incident. The B-52 departed Minot at 08:40 and landed at Barksdale at 11:23 (local times) on 30 August.
In the 1980s when the B-1 bomber faced the possibility of cancelation, a lower cost alternative to the B-1 bomber known as the Cruise Missile Carrier Aircraft (CMCA) was designed. It consisted of reconfiguring Boeing 747-200 cargo airframes as special-purpose cruise missile launchers with a capacity of 50 to 100 AGM-86 ALCM missiles.
The B-52 is the only platform for these missiles. [1] The reductions also include all but 528 nuclear-armed ALCMs and are in part a result of the SORT/Moscow Treaty (2002) requirement to get below 2,200 deployed nuclear weapons by 2012, with the ACM chosen because it has reliability issues and higher maintenance costs. [ 2 ]
The U.S. Air Force recently announced that the last squadrons of the legendary B-52's have returned home after concluding operations against ISIS. 11 photos of the legendary B-52 Stratofortress bomber
A missile with these capabilities was called for in General Operational Requirement 148, which was released on March 15, 1956, known as WS-131B. [1] [2] GOR 148 called for a supersonic air-to-surface cruise missile with a weight of not more than 12,500 pounds (5,700 kg) (fully fueled and armed) to be carried in pairs by the B-52 Stratofortress. [3]