MESA, Ariz. — If you wanted to get a good look at a B-52, you would generally have to turn your head to the sky or head to an airplane museum. But for a few lucky Valley residents, they just had to be at the right street at the right time.
Earlier this week, the decommissioned body of a B-52 bomber made its way through parts of Gilbert and Mesa. The large piece of aeronautics history had no problem turning heads as it snaked through the East Valley.
Did you miss catching a glimpse of the unique sight? Don't worry, the Facebook page Boneyard Safari posted photos from its trip through the Gilbert and Mesa area.
According to the post, Arizona Department of Public Safety and Worldwide Aircraft Recovery are assisting with the transport of the B-52.
The Boeing B-52H Stratofortress 61-0009 'Damage Inc. II' is going to be used as a test bed, according to the website Scramble.nl. An article on the site also said the B-52 was deactivated in Sept. 2008 and stored at 309th AMARG at Davis Monthan's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group.
This B-52 began is now headed to the Boeing facility in Oklahoma City. Once it arrives at its new home, it will be used for research and support for the modernisation of the B-52 fleet.
If you want to follow the B-52's journey on social media, follow the hashtag #B52RoadTrip. As of Thursday, the plane made its way through Highway 87 north of Mesa heading to Payson.
What is the Valley?:
“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest.
The Valley is made up of various major cities other than Phoenix, including:
- Mesa
- Chandler
- Scottsdale
- Tempe
- Glendale
- Surprise
- Peoria
- Gilbert
- El Mirage
- Avondale
- Litchfield Park
- Goodyear
- Buckeye
Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on where it is in relation to Phoenix.
The cities of the Valley have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country right behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.
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