/15/2006 - WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- This year, the Air Force will test fly a B-52 Stratofortress that is powered, in part, by fuel derived from natural gas. The Air Force Research Laboratory's propulsion directorate, a part of Air Force Materiel Command, is providing technical assistance to the test flight scheduled for September at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The bomber will fly with two of its eight jet engines using a specially blended fuel made of conventional petroleum-derived JP-8 and a Fischer-Tropsch jet fuel produced from natural gas. The experiment is part of the Department of Defense's Assured Fuel Initiative,...