miamiair wrote:About a thousand pounds lighter per engine.
So that's not a bad tradeoff for a
plane bomb truck that doesn't depend on speed as it's defense, give up 800 lbs of thrust for 8,000 lbs EW, that's also another 4 2,000 lb JDAMS or a little more fuel, etc.
If I were making that decision for my own personal B-52, I'd take it. Also good to not go with bleeding-edge tech and take one step back for well-proven and less expensive product. Uncharacteristically good decision on the part of the AF.
Slider... <sniff, sniff>... you stink.