The BONEs are back to the UK for a Bomber Task Force deployment.
On Oct. 6, 2021, two B-1B Lancers from the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, Dyess Air Forces Base, Texas, arrived at RAF Fairford, UK, for a long-planned Bomber Task Force mission “a regularly scheduled U.S. European Command and U.S. Strategic Command joint mission series.”
Flying as “REMUS01” flight, the BONEs (from B-Ones), #86-0110 and #86-0140, arrived in formation and performed a left overhead break for landing.
The video below was filmed by our friend @Saint1 is particularly interesting. It shows, among all the other things, the break, the windy landing and smoking brakes of the USAF bomber. Amazing.
This is the second time in 6 months that the B-1s from the 7th BW (Bomb Wing) deployed to Europe: between February and March 2021, four U.S. Air Force B-1Bs from Dyess, operated from Orland Air Station, marking the very first Lancer deployment to Norway ever. During the same deployment, a B-1B landed for the first time at Bodø Main Air Station in northern Norway, marking the bomber’s first landing at an airbase above the Artic Circle. At the moment, it’s not clear what the BONEs will do and where they will fly during their stay in the UK, but it’s quite certain they will carry out missions across the Old Continent, integrating with a range of coalition.
“BTF missions amplify our coalition reach and project our collective airpower across theaters,” said Gen Jeff Harrigian, USAFE-AFAFRICA commander in a USEUCOM press release. “By training and integrating with our allies and partners, we are expanding our ability to adapt to challenges and counter adversaries in the global security environment.”
BTF Europe missions date back to 2018. They have consisted of rotations of B-1B Lancers, B-52 Stratofortresses, and, most recently, B-2 Spirit stealth bombers. As already reported, three B-2 bombers have recently returned to Whiteman AFB after being deployed to Keflavik Air Base in Iceland for a BTF mission where the aircraft conducted theater and flight training across Europe and Africa. The BTF mission was the first deployment to Iceland for the Spirit, after the first-ever landing in the country in 2019 for a hot pit refueling that expanded the capabilities of the stealth bomber well into the strategic Arctic region.
USAF B-1Bs REMUS01 flight 86-0110 & 86-0140 from 7th Bomb Wing Dyess AFB. Arriving this morning (06/10/2021) at RAF Fairford for a BTF deployment @CivMilAir @Andy007_SR_A @TheAviationist @thewarzonewire @BZZSpotters @RAFFFDSpotters pic.twitter.com/c2EJrFJc2e
— Mark Kwiatkowski (@markkwiatkowski) October 6, 2021
Dealing with the B-1 bomber fleet, it’s worth remembering that 17 bombers have retired from a fleet of 62 to make room to the B-21 Raider, leaving 45 in the active inventory.
