In photos, U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers blast through Green Flag-West 15-02

B-1B Lancer bombers at work at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, and over the Southern California desert during Green Flag exercise.

B-1 bombers, assigned to the 34th Bomb Squadron, from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, have deployed to Nellis AFB, Nevada, to take part in Green Flag-West exercise.

Las Vegas background

Green Flag-West provides combat training to joint and coalition warfighters in the art of air-land integration and the joint employment of airpower at the U.S. Army National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.

B-1 on apron

The images shows the “Bones” (as the B-1 is nicknamed among aircrews), both on the ground and while being refueled mid-air by a KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Fairchild AFB, Washington, temporary assigned at Nellis Air Force Base.

B-1 tails

The B-1’s blended body configuration, variable-geometry wings and turbofan engines with afterburners provide long-range employment, maneuverability and high speed while enhancing survivability. Moreover, the plane can rapidly deliver massive quantities of precision and non-precision weapons operating from deployment bases (as happening in Syria) as well as on Global Power round-trip missions from the Continental U.S.

B-1 refuel

Image credit: U.S. Air Force

 

About David Cenciotti
David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.