Elizabeth Leigh
Boeing will work to increase the smart weapons capacity of theĀ U.S. Air Force's B-52 bomber fleet by 50 percent under a contract worth $24.6 million.
The company aims to have aircraft be able to carry 24 500-pound joint direct attack munitions or 20 2,000-pound JDAMs by the end of the initial updates, Boeing said Wednesday.
A collection of other missiles will be added in succeeding phases.
Three prototypes are slated for demonstration and the first of the operational aircraft is scheduled to roll out by March 2016.
