It is unclear how many airmen, including support personnel, were deployed to Spain or Guam for the abridged BTF deployments. However, the deployment was no vacation.
The United States Air Force announced the “deployment of multiple” Boeing B-52 Stratofortress long-range strategic bombers to Guam, as part of the latest Bomber Task Force (BTF) mission. The aircraft, along with “airmen and support equipment from the 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota,” have been deployed to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, arriving on Tuesday, July 8.
“This deployment is in support of Pacific Air Forces’ training efforts with Allies, partners, and joint forces and strategic deterrence missions to reinforce the rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific region,” the Air Force announced.
The service regularly carries out such BTF deployments, but does not generally announce the missions in advance.
The Air Force’s B-52s Keep a Grueling Schedule
It has been only six weeks since a B-52 Stratofortress bomber from the 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, had departed Guam on May 30. That aircraft had “completed a two-week” BTF mission—part of the US Air Force’s efforts to remain unpredictable in where its bomber fleet could be based.
It is unclear how long the B-52s will be in Guam, but it may be as short as the deployment in May, given the trend this year.
Another B-52, also from the 5th Bomb Wing, spent just a week at Morón Air Base (AB), Spain, around the same time as the other bomber was in Guam. The BTF 25-3 Europe mission was carried out to “test and demonstrate Agile Combat Employment Concepts” from “smaller, more flexible locations” in Europe and Africa, the United States Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa explained last month.
As previously reported, it is unclear how many airmen, including support personnel, were deployed to Spain or Guam for the abridged BTF deployments. However, the deployment was no vacation. Such missions still require months of preparation, necessitating tailored support for the arriving unit. For the airmen there might be barely time to get over the jet lag and then they were back home. That is part of the goal of the mission.
Beyond the show of strength, including the US Air Force’s capabilities to move its heavy bombers to distant bases, it is about demonstrating the personnel’s “ability to adapt, sustain operations, and project combat-credible airpower, regardless of environment or external factors.”
America Has a Continuous Bomber Presence Around the World
Before 2018, the United States Air Force maintained a “Continuous Bomber Presence” with its long-range bombers deployed to bases around the world for several months at a time. The policy changed in January 2018, when four Stratofortress bombers were deployed to Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford in the United Kingdom. Since that time, the B-52 has been a familiar sight in the skies around Fairford, with two deployments carried out last year and another earlier this year from the facility.
In addition, this year, US bombers operated from Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean and from Misawa Air Base, Japan.
Of the 744 B-52 Stratofortress bombers built for the U.S. Air Force, the service currently has 76 of the Cold War-era bombers in its fleet with 58 in the active force and 18 more in reserve. The aircraft have been steadily updated, and will continue to receive additional upgrades including the sensors and engines to keep the remaining aircraft flying into the 2050s.
That will allow the B-52 to continue to be deployed in BTF missions for decades to come.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
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