New B-21s & Upgraded B-2s, B-1Bs, B-52s : Can The Air Force Fix its "Bomber Deficit"
Kris Osborn
10h
Can upgraded B-1s, B-2s, and B-52s bridge the gap while the B-21 is delivered? A critical question for global air power readiness.
Warrior Spoke with US Army Pacific About Moving Tanks Across the Ocean
By Kris Osborn, Warrior
Years ago, the U.S. Air Force wrote what was called a “bomber vector,” a strategic document which identified the services’ “bomber deficit” and suggested a potential remedy. The core issue was a growing discrepancy between needs and requests of combatant commanders and available, ready bomber platforms. This problem has existed for many years and only grown more pressing as requirements for bomber task force deployments continued to increase around the world - in places such as the Pacific.
The challenge has been to find the necessary balance between arriving new platforms and upgraded legacy platforms with a specific mind to current force readiness and the “pace” of the production and delivery of new platforms. The service’s primary concern has quite simply been that there are not enough available bombers to support the Air Force’s global national security mission.
This predicament is very much on the Air Force’s radar now, as the service seeks to establish a solid, workable balance between the retirement of aging legacy platforms such as the B-1B, B-52 and B-2 and the arrival of the much anticipated B-21. While several B-21s are currently “airborne,” it is not clear how long it will take for the bombers to exist in large numbers, as it pertains to an Air Force-Northrop collaborative ability to “surge production.” Will aging current platforms retire before sufficient numbers of B=21s exist? Could this create a distinct and concerning national security liability or “gap” in air combat readiness?
The answer to this question hangs precariously upon the thin branches of yet-to-be determined contingencies …..and the continued success with modernizing existing platforms. These contingencies are quite clear and specific; will the B-21 be sufficiently accelerated with a “surge” in production? Can massively upgraded legacy platforms remain viable, credible, relevant and superior for years beyond their anticipated service life?
https://warriormaven.com/news/air/new-b-21s-upgraded-b-2s-b-1bs-b-52s-can-the-air-force-fix-its-bomber-deficit
