Winston
Lorenzo von Matterhorn
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Wanting To Retire B-1B Bombers Is One Thing, Actually Making It Happen Is Another
The Air Force will reportedly ask to retire a portion of its B-1Bs force, but the motivations behind the move and its feasibility are far from clear.
4 Feb 2020
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zo...ne-thing-actually-making-it-happen-is-another
On the chopping block are a significant chunk of the older F-15s and F-16s, 17 of roughly 60 nonnuclear B-1 bombers, along with 21 of the service’s unarmed RQ-4 Global Hawk drones. The proposed cuts over what is called the “five-year defense plan” will be included in the White House’s annual budget submission for fiscal year 2021, which is set to be released on Feb. 10.
We have not been able to corroborate this information, but assuming it is accurate, the B-1B fleet would shrink down to just 43 airframes in the not so distant future. The idea had been that the B-1B force would be retired on at least a one to one basis once the B-21 Raider enters service beginning in the latter half of the decade and it has supplanted the B-2A Spirit. Overall, the B-1B is slated to exit the service by 2036, although that timeline is very likely to shift to the right if the B-21's development hits some roadblocks. All said, by the end of the 2030s, the entire USAF bomber force would be made up of B-21s and upgraded and re-engined B-52s under the USAF's most recent bomber roadmap.
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I'd guess that this is a depot-serviced plane landing after a test flight being done before the plane is repainted:
Boneyard B-1s:
The Air Force will reportedly ask to retire a portion of its B-1Bs force, but the motivations behind the move and its feasibility are far from clear.
4 Feb 2020
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zo...ne-thing-actually-making-it-happen-is-another
On the chopping block are a significant chunk of the older F-15s and F-16s, 17 of roughly 60 nonnuclear B-1 bombers, along with 21 of the service’s unarmed RQ-4 Global Hawk drones. The proposed cuts over what is called the “five-year defense plan” will be included in the White House’s annual budget submission for fiscal year 2021, which is set to be released on Feb. 10.
We have not been able to corroborate this information, but assuming it is accurate, the B-1B fleet would shrink down to just 43 airframes in the not so distant future. The idea had been that the B-1B force would be retired on at least a one to one basis once the B-21 Raider enters service beginning in the latter half of the decade and it has supplanted the B-2A Spirit. Overall, the B-1B is slated to exit the service by 2036, although that timeline is very likely to shift to the right if the B-21's development hits some roadblocks. All said, by the end of the 2030s, the entire USAF bomber force would be made up of B-21s and upgraded and re-engined B-52s under the USAF's most recent bomber roadmap.
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I'd guess that this is a depot-serviced plane landing after a test flight being done before the plane is repainted:
Boneyard B-1s:
