B-52H STRATOFORTRESS BOMBERS deployed to Al Udeid, Qatar, received a new capability recently when the first conventional rotary launchers (CRLs) arrived in theater. The first CRL left Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, aboard a C-5M Galaxy on November 6. Bombers operated by the 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron were the first to use the CRL in combat. The launcher provides the B-52H with the capability to carry smart weapons including the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-off Missile (JASSM) internally for the first time. The upgrade modifies an existing common strategic rotary launcher (CSRL), designed for carrying nuclear weapons, into a conventional rotary launcher.
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