The Air Force plans to fly for the first time a B-52 bomber powered by a mix of synthetic and standard JP-8 aviation fuel on Sept. 19. The service already plans to purchase 100 million gallons of synthetic fuel over the next year and has set its sights on achieving a 50 percent reduction in its use of standard aviation fuel by 2016. Ground tests have demonstrated that the synthetic fuel does not affect engine performance, so the Air Force expects the BUFF to fly.
It’s been a full three decades since the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School got a new aircraft, but that streak came to an end when a trio of A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft flew in from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., to their new home at Edwards Air…