With a legacy of almost 75 years of service, the US Air Force's B-52 Stratofortress remains one of the most versatile heavy bombers ever made, offering superior nuclear and conventional strike capabilities.

The aircraft can drop or launch a wider array of weapons than any other aircraft in the USAF fleet.

The B-52 can fly at subsonic top speeds of 1,046km per hour (Mach 0.84) and climb to ceilings of 15,240 meters.

With an unfueled combat range of 14,200km, the B-52's range can be extended indefinitely with aerial refueling.

As of January, the Air Force operates 76 B-52H bombers.

Diverse payload

With its 32,000kg payload, the aircraft can drop or launch a wider array of weapons than any other aircraft in the US Air Force fleet, according to the Department of Defense.

These weapons include gravity bombs, cluster bombs, precision guided missiles and joint direct attack munitions, among others.

The B-52's nuclear payload capacity includes AGM-129 advanced cruise missiles, AGM-86A air-launched cruise missiles and nuclear bombs.

It also can carry conventional weapons including the AGM-154 Joint-Standoff Weapons and Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles, a low-observable standoff air-launched cruise missile with a range of up to 1,000km, depending on the version.

The B-52 can also drop Joint Direct-Attack Munitions, a guidance kit that transforms "dumb" bombs into precision guided munitions.

In the case of a naval conflict, B-52s are also able to use the Long Range Anti-Ship missile, long-range, precision strike AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles and heavy-duty naval mines.

Future air power

The B-52's unmatched air power represents just one of the US military's enduring and innovative platforms used to ensure global security.

All of the US Air Force's 76 B-52H bombers are slated to receive upgraded engines and new radar systems and cockpit modernizations, including a crew reduction.

Each aircraft is to be re-designated as a B-52J once it receives the new engines, with the first upgraded bombers expected to enter service in the late 2020s or early 2030s.

The new B-52J model will feature the integration of the AN/APG-79 and an active electronically scanned array system as well as the introduction of a glass cockpit that includes four large color multifunction displays to show a variety of flight status information as well as imagery from the new radar.

The upgrades are expected to keep the B-52 operational into the 2050s.