Bad to the Boeing upgrades the supersonic B-1 bomber for the tough missions of today—and tomorrow by Ben Davis In a triple-wide hangar on the edge of the runway at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas, Terry Kemper prepares to enter an empty fuel cell in a B-1B bomber. In order to reach it, he must crawl through two access holes only 15 inches wide by 20 inches high (38 by 51 centimeters). “To get to the fuel cell where we are replacing the wall, we remove a panel, crawl through, remove a second panel and enter the fuel cell,” explained Kemper, who is just over 6 feet (1.8 meters) tall and certified to safely work in enclosed spaces. “I have to get one arm and shoulder in, then pull the other through. For the second hole, I tuck up in the fetal position and go in feet first.” Kemper is a member of Boeing’s B-1 bomber Contract Field Team, a group of 20 or so technicians who 22 Boeing Frontiers
Frontiers August 2015 Issue
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