Two B-52s escorted by Gripens conducted a flyover of the Swedish Parliament for the first anniversary of Sweden’s accession to NATO, and later performed a live weapons drop at the Vidsel Test Range.
On Mar. 11, 2025, two U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortresses conducted a formation flyover of the Swedish Parliament to celebrate the first anniversary of Sweden’s accession to NATO, and later performed a live weapons drop in the country. The mission, departed by RAF Fairford, UK, is part of the Bomber Task Force 25-2 and has been dubbed “Viking Nebula.”
B52H from RAF Fairford over Stockholm today escorted by two Gripens F7. I think the B52 is PINT21, tail 60-0007 #nato #föpol #svpol #säkpol #B52 pic.twitter.com/TE81tDhIl5
— Emulator II 🇸🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@Emulator_II) March 11, 2025
The flyover was announced a day earlier by both the U.S. and Swedish militaries. On the day of the anniversary, the B-52s appeared over Sweden, with one descending for the flight over Stockholm at low altitude, escorted by two Swedish Gripens.
The aircraft were also visible on flight tracking websites, thanks to the Multilateration (MLAT) of their Mode-S transponder signals. The two B-52s were the airframes 60-0007 and 60-0044, flying with the callsigns PINT11 and PINT12.
PINT21 & 22 #USAF B-52 Bombers Routing North East over Sweden after a low pass over the Capital. pic.twitter.com/Tr1HNB3hYz
— Globe Sentinel (@GlobeSentinels) March 11, 2025
The bombers and the fighters then continued further north, reaching the Vidsel Test Range, where the B-52s released GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) supported by U.S. and Swedish Joint Terminal Attack Controllers. The statements mentioned the mission reinforced coordination between air and ground units, refining precision strike capabilities in a new, complex training environment.
What a setting for a flight! ✈️
From the cockpit, a unique view of 🇺🇲 B-52 and 🇸🇪 Gripen flying in partnership, united in our capability and resolve to defend our Alliance, its citizens, territory and values. #WeAreNATO | #AllianceFirst | #BTF pic.twitter.com/h8ih054fnT
— SHAPE – NATO Allied Command Operations (@SHAPE_NATO) March 12, 2025
Although the U.S. Air Force described this as the B-52’s first-ever live weapons drop in Sweden, the B-52s already employed live GBU-31 JDAM bombs at the Vidsel Test Range in 2022. In that occasion, the bombers were deploying to Fairford and took part in drills with Swedish and Norwegian forces over Scandinavia, before reaching the UK, as we also reported here at The Aviationist.
The B-52 mission over Sweden on the first anniversary of Sweden as a NATO member follows the recent announcement that the Swedish Air Force will deploy eight of its Gripens to Poland. The aircraft, assigned to the Norrbotten Wing’s (F 21) Fighter Squadron at Lulea air base, will take part in the NATO Enhanced Air Policing mission between April and June 2025.
PINT21 & 22 #USAF B-52 Bombers Routing North East over Sweden after a low pass over the Capital. pic.twitter.com/Tr1HNB3hYz
— Globe Sentinel (@GlobeSentinels) March 11, 2025
“By contributing to NATO’s deterrence and defence, our Air Force enhances Swedish and NATO’s security. This is an important step in our interoperability and another step for the Swedish Air Force to become fully integrated into NATO’s Air Defence,” said Swedish Air Force Col. Jörgen Axelsson, Swedish Air Force chief of operations.
Bomber Task Force 25-2
Two U.S. Air Force B-52 strategic bombers from Minot Air Force Base touched down in the UK on Feb. 11, 2025 to kick off the Bomber Task Force 25-2 deployment. The first two airframes are 60-0007 and 60-0023, followed on Feb. 13 by 60-0044 and on Feb. 15 by 60-0037.
The first sortie flown by this detachment saw two of the bombers depart Fairford in the very early hours of Feb. 17, 2025, on a 24-hour flight that took them in the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility. The B-52s integrated with four partner nations, who provided fighter support at various stages of the sortie, and conducted live weapon drops at multiple ranges in undisclosed countries.
The bombers have been very active, with multiple missions where they worked with NATO Allies and partner nations, conducting joint training missions designed to enhance interoperability and readiness. Among these missions are “Spartan Mace” over Italy, “Spartan Sword” over Türkiye, “Fortress Hail” over the Baltic Sea, and “Onyx Cross” over Eastern Europe.
“Bomber Task Force missions reinforce our ability to rapidly project combat power, demonstrating U.S. lethality and readiness in a dynamic security environment,” said Major General Joseph Campo, U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa Director of Operations, Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration. “Training alongside our Allies and partners ensures seamless integration, enhancing our collective deterrence and warfighting capability across Europe and Africa” he added.
On Mar. 6, 2025, a B-52H Israeli Air Force (IAF) F-15I Ra’am and F-35I Adir fighters conducted a joint training exercise over the Arabian Peninsula in the U.S. CENTCOM (Central Command) area of responsibility. In the same mission, the B-52s also integrated with Royal Air Force Typhoons based at RAF Akrotiri.
On Mar. 7, 2025, two B-52s operated for a few hours over Italy and integrated with two Italian Air Force Eurofighter F-2000A Typhoons and Italian JTACs for “Spartan Mace”, a BTF 25-2 mission focused on enhancing close-air support interoperability. The rare mission saw both the Stratofortress bombers and the Eurofighters conduct simulated bomb drops under the guidance of Italian Joint Terminal Attack Controllers.
