What in the World Is NASA’s Research Plane Doing at a Military Base in Africa?
Digital Globe satellite imagery of the U.S. military base at Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti, dated Sept. 20, depicts NASA’s WB-57 high-altitude aircraft on the recently-expanded auxiliary operations apron.
The question is—why? What purpose does a scientific research plane have in visiting America’s main military outpost in Africa? One possible answer is … making maps for commando raids.
The B-57 is actually a variant of the British Canberra bomber design from the 1950s. The U.S. Air Force operated RB-57s for reconnaissance missions prior to the arrival of the U-2 spy plane in the 1960s. NASA’s WB-57 is actually an old RB-57 with significant updates.
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In some ways, the WB-57 still outperforms its successor spy plane. With a total payload capacity of 9,700 pounds, the former Canberra can carry almost double the weight that a U-2 can.
https://medium.com/war-is-boring/what-in-the-world-is-nasas-research-plane-doing-at-a-military-base-in-africa-fc64b074e01d
