New B-52? Meet The 'New' B-52J Stratofortress Bomber

Rather, as the current bombers are receiving new Rolls Royce F130 engines, swapping out the Pratt & Whitney TF-33 engines, the current fleet of B-52Hs will become B-52Js.

“Any B-52H aircraft modified with the new commercial engines and associated subsystems are designated as B-52J,” the Air Force said in justification documents for its 2024 budget request, per Air & Space Forces magazine back in April.

Some of the current fleet of bombers, which first entered service with the U.S. military in the early 1950s, have already received the installation of Raytheon’s AESA AN/APG-79 radar, in addition to new navigation and communication systems. As a result, there was speculation the engine upgrade would call for the B-52K designation, but the Air Force is sticking with the J designation – at least for now.