[Video] De-icing a U.S. Air Force B-52 strategic bomber at Minot Air Force Base

B-52 Stratofortress de-iced at Minot Air Force Base

With wind chill temperatures into the negative 60s F (-51° Celsius), Minot Air Force Base, in North Dakota, faces serious icing conditions in late fall and mid-winter seasons.

Therefore, 5 Bomb Wing B-52 Stratorofortress strategic bombers based there need to be de-iced before they can be launched; an operation that can be conducted by shooting hot air on the fuselage along with a mixture of hot air and glycol shot by de-icer trucks.

Interestingly, the forward section of the aircraft can’t be hit with a de-icing truck and it is de-iced thanks to an electric heating system made of resistive elements embedded in the cockpit (as well as in other parts of the airframe).

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About David Cenciotti

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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.