The Air Force plans to power its entire fleet of B-52 bombers with a synthetic fuel blend by year’s end, if the “detailed analysis” of recently completed testing, including extreme weather conditions at Minot AFB, N.D., and physical inspection of the test BUFF “prove out,” says Michael Aimone, USAF’s top civilian loggie. Aimone told Senators at a Finance Committee hearing Tuesday that preliminary inspections have found “no deleterious effects” from use of a synthetic blend jet fuel in the B-52, which has just returned from Minot to Edwards AFB, Calif. He expects to see a full test report this summer. The motivating factor in converting to synfuel, of course, is to reduce some of USAF’s staggering $7 billion annual energy bill. Aimone noted that fueling Air Force aircraft accounts for 80 percent of that bill. Next, the service may introduce synfuel for its tanker fleet.
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.