The Air Force will fly all three of its bomber types—a B-1B, B-2A, and B-52H—over Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Fla., on Feb. 7, the service announced. The mission marks the first time the three bomber types have flown formation over such an event, and ...
The first flight of the secretive B-21 bomber has slipped to mid-2022, but the program is moving along well, Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office director Randall Walden said in an exclusive interview. The second copy of the B-21, which will be used for structural testing, ...
The other military services should defend USAF's air bases as the “tax” to enjoy the many benefits the Air Force provides them in terms of communications, mobility, and protection, Deputy Chief of Staff for operations Lt. Gen. Joseph T. Guastella Jr. said Dec. 8. The ...
House-Senate Conferees require a larger Air Force in the final version of the fiscal 2021 defense bill, directing the service to build the 386 combat squadrons it said it needs to meet the National Defense Strategy, and specifically raising the bomber fleet to 225 aircraft, ...
The structural fatigue test of the B-1B bomber, which began in 2012 and was initially expected to take five years, will wrap up in 2021, an Air Force Materiel Command spokesman told Air Force Magazine. The test will stress the B-1 to 28,000 hours on ...
Russian aircraft intercepted two B-1 bombers over the Bering Sea on Oct. 20, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Twitter. The USAF aircraft never entered Russia's sovereign airspace, and the Russian planes followed “international airspace rules,” the ministry added. Pacific Air Forces on Oct. 21 ...
The bomber fleet is turning in exceptional readiness and performance since it turned away from the continuous bomber presence and close air support mission, Air Force Global Strike Command chief Gen. Timothy M. Ray reported. In its new dynamic force employment role, the bomber is ...
The U.S. Air Force is leading the way within the military on adopting new technologies and adapting how it operates to be ready for “great power competition,” both with technological advancements such as the Advanced Battle Management System and new ways to deploy aircraft such ...
The Air Force still needs 220 total bombers, including about 100 new B-21s, though that target is a “living number” that can change as the Raider comes online and aging aircraft are modernized and outfitted with advanced weapons, the head of Air Force Global Strike ...
Two of the Air Force’s three bombers recently flew simultaneous long-range missions across the Indo-Pacific, with two different sets of B-1s training alongside Japanese fighters and Navy ships, while stealth B-2s flew their own training mission in the Indian Ocean. Two bomber task forces are ...
Rolls-Royce formally entered the competition to re-engine the B-52 as expected, offering its F130 engine already in use in some USAF aircraft to power the bomber. The Air Force on May 19 issued its request for proposals for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program, with ...
Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett tagged along on a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber training mission during a June 11 visit to Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo. The trip earned Barrett a so-called “Spirit number”—an honor coveted by aviation geeks the world over.