The service's fiscal 2019 budget request seeks more than $1 billion through fiscal 2023 for a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress propulsion system replacement program. The initiative would replace the Pratt & Whitney TF33-103, which has powered the H-model B-52 since its introduction in 1960. But unlike the KC-135R refueling aircraft upgrade, which swapped four TF33s for four CFM International CFM56s, the Air Force is shooting for a straight "eight for eight" swap on the B-52, rather than attempting to install four large high-bypass turbofans.
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