Drone Scanning and Augmented Reality Demonstrated at Barksdale AFB for B-52 Maintenance | Aviation

The technologies saved hours of time and effort, improved safety, and simplified several tedious tasks in maintaining the B-52.

The U.S. Air Force is experimenting with new ways to improve maintenance and repair practices on the B-52 Stratofortress bomber by using drones, advanced scanning, augmented reality, and data processing algorithms that reduce the time and effort expended in upkeeping the 60-year-old airframe.

Under the aegis of the Global Strike Command and the AMC (Air Mobility Command) at Barksdale AFB Louisiana hosted representatives from Boeing, SEMPRE, Northrop Grumman, Skydio, and Near Earth Autonomy which demonstrated multiple technologies on Jul. 16, 2024. These included “unmanned aerial systems (UAS), AI software, stand-alone networks, and augmented reality devices.”

Produced in the 1950s, the aircraft is the mainstay American strategic bomber, expected to stay in service for the next few decades through an impending upgrade to the B-52J variant with new Rolls Royce engines, a slight airframe redesign and a series of new electronics and avionics to survive a…