U.S. Air Force outlined plans for its strategic bomber fleet in its Fiscal Year 2019 President’s Budget Request on Feb. 12, 2018. In...
In line with the service’s bomber vector, the budget request detailed the Air Force plan to update the B-52 Stratofortress fleet and continue modifications to the B-1 Lancer and B-2 Spirit fleets while continuing to acquire B-21 Raiders.
“As part of our decisions presented in the FY19 President’s Budget, the Air Force will update the B-52 bomber fleet and fund development of replacement engines,” said Secretary of the Air Force Heather A. Wilson. “We will also continue necessary B-1 and B-2 modifications to keep them relevant until the B-21s come on line.”
Once sufficient B-21 aircraft are operational, the B-1s and B-2s will be incrementally retired. Delivery and retirement timelines are dependent on the B-21 production and delivery schedules.
“If the force structure we have proposed is supported by the Congress, bases that have bombers now will have bombers in the future,” Wilson said. “They will be B-52s and B-21s.”
The B-21, which the Air Force plans to start fielding in the mid-2020s, will eventually become the backbone of the U.S. strategic bomber fleet and serve as a visible, flexible deterrent to adversaries and assure U.S. partners and allies.
The decision to maintain the B-52 is based on numerous factors including maintenance and sustainment metrics, such as aircraft availability, mission capability, supply, maintenance hours per flying hour and total cost perspectives.
“With an adequate sustainment and modernization focus, including new engines, the B-52 has a projected service life through 2050, remaining a key part of the bomber enterprise well into the future,” said Gen. Robin Rand, Air Force Global Strike Command commander.
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| Northrop Grumman is developing the B-21 Raider stealth bomber, and is expected to enter service by mid-2020s |
“At the end of Desert Storm in 1991 we had 290 total bombers,” Rand said. “Today that force has dropped to 157 bombers at five bomb wings and 15 total force bomb squadrons. That’s a 46 percent decrease in our bomber force while we have conducted continuous combat operations such as Allied Force, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, Odyssey Dawn, Inherent Resolve and Freedom’s Sentinel, in addition to continuous bomber rotations in the (U.S. Central Command) and (U.S. Pacific Command) areas of responsibility.”
The Air Force budget request of $156.3 billion for fiscal year 2019 builds on the progress made in 2018 to restore the readiness of the force, increase lethality, and cost-effectively modernize.
The FY19 request supports the purchase of 48 F-35A Lightning II fighters, 15 KC-46 Pegasus tankers, and continued development of the B-21 Raider.
The FY19 proposal initiates development of B-52 replacement engines and continues development of the Long Range Stand Off missiles and the replacement of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile. The budget also targets investments to modernize the integrated land, air, and space-based systems to ensure secure, survivable connectivity with the President and national command leadership.
The FY19 budget proposes the modernization of seven E-3 Airborne Warning Command and Control aircraft (AWACS) and keeps the current E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar Systems (JSTARS) operational through the mid-2020s as the service develops and transitions to an advanced battle management system.
According to Wilson and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein, restoring readiness to win any fight, any time remains a primary objective in FY19. It funds 1.5 million flying hours at a cost of $8.7 billion. T
