The Pentagon's Family Heirloom

The award has to go to the legendary B-52 strategic bomber.  Boeing's big baby first flew in 1952 and the 8-engine behemoth has been the backbone of American airpower ever since.   Now the Pentagon has inked a $12-billion contract to update its remaining fleet of 85-operational B-52s.  The US Air Force expects these aircraft to remain in service beyond 2040 which will probably be some sort of record or even a bunch of records.   The Americans have B-52s today crewed by the children of fathers who flew them a generation earlier.