Question. How hard would it be to outfit a C 5 Galaxy, or a cargo 747 to do this. Just think how much we would save in those situations where we have air supremacy and no worry about any significant anti aircraft capability? I'll take this question.
It would take some engineering to adapt a C-5 or 747 to drop 500lb bombs. It could be done, but it would include a re-design for both airframes as both of them were not designed for bombing (no bomb bays, no openings on the underside).
The real meaning of this test is to warn our enemies that our most invisible bomber is no longer limited to 2,000+ bombs.
The B-2 can now fly above most missle capabilities (IF the enemy radar could see her), and drop 80 500lb bombs. On target to one meter (a few inches over a yard).
And no force on earth can stop the B-2 from delivering this hellish payload.
Now, expand your imagination for a little while.
A NUKE now weighs a lot less than 500 lbs.
The B-2 flys so high that most forces can't hit one. And most forces (Russian and Chinese) can't hit ALL of them.
80 guided NUKES.
Think about that.
Our enemies are certainly thinking about that, and it makes their bowels weak.
FReegards, FRiend.
We are winning!
Everything you said, and not only that, commercial aircraft are not designed to take combat damage. I think for now there are sufficient heavy bombers available. I don't view "sufficient" as being "enough", and it's only sufficient because it looks like the B-52 will be a centenarian when it is retired. People beeyotching about military costs should think about that. I hope future technology will enable a large-enough fleet at a more reasonable life-cycle cost. At least, from what I've read, yeah, the B-2 is very formidable, but the skin is high-maintenance. If it even requires specialized hangars to deploy ahead of it, we've gotta be able to better than that. And, at half a Bill per plane, woe unto the wing commander that loses one, especially in an accident. It's bound to happen sooner or later. Someone's head would have to roll.