Two B-52H Stratofortresses flew home to Minot AFB, N.D., on June 23 after completing a roughly one-month deployment to RAF Fairford, United Kingdom. While in Europe, the bombers participated in exercises Baltops 16 and Saber Strike 16, flying a total of 25 sorties in countries such as Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, France, Germany, and Italy. The heavy bombers also participated in airshows around Europe, including shows in Paris and Berlin. “The B-52 is a great sign of America’s presence for assuring allies and deterring potential enemies,” said Col. Kieran Denehan, 5th Expeditionary Operations Group commander, in a June 23 release.
The Air Force wants to pump more than $12 billion over the next five years into its new affordable long-range missiles program and recently asked industry to push the flights of some of those munitions beyond 1,200 miles.