Report: B-52 Modernization Program Faces Key Hurdles

Efforts to keep the U.S. Air Force bombers flying into the 2050s are running into cost and schedule concerns.

Jack Daleo

Wednesday, August 05, 2026 at 10:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

A B-52H Stratofortress, assigned to the 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, taxis on the flight line at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, in 2024. [Credit: U.S. Air Force]

Key Takeaways:

The U.S. Air Force's B-52 bomber modernization efforts are widely troubled, with the majority of its 13 programs experiencing cost overruns, schedule delays, or performance issues, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The two most critical programs, the Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP) and Radar Modernization Program (RMP), account for 88% of the $21 billion budget and face all three types of problems, including significant cost increases (30-38%) and multi-year delays.
These pervasive issues, exacerbated by maintenance capacity and parts shortages, jeopardize the operational readiness of the B-52, a crucial nuclear-capable asset, leading the GAO to recommend improved risk assessment and the use of digital engineering.

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The U.S. Air Force faces cost overruns, schedule delays, or performance issues for the majority of its 13 programs aimed at modernizing the B-52 bomber, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Researchers found that 10 projects face at least one of these issues, including those aimed at upgrading the B-52’s engines and radar, which are contending with all three. According to GAO, the engine and radar efforts have an estimated price tag of $18 million, or about 88 percent of the $21 billion the Air Force is spending on modernization. They are also the most time-intensive aspects of the program, it said.