{"id":45655,"date":"2020-04-23T16:00:55","date_gmt":"2020-04-23T16:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/04\/23\/americas-bomber-force-is-facing-a-crisis\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:28:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:28:20","slug":"americas-bomber-force-is-facing-a-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/opinion\/commentary\/2020\/04\/23\/americas-bomber-force-is-facing-a-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s bomber force is facing a crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The nation faces a bomber crisis, and it is time to openly acknowledge the scale and scope of the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tasked with deterrence and, if necessary, striking targets around the globe, Air Force crews operating these aircraft afford the nation\u2019s security leaders unique options best embodied in the phrase: anytime, anyplace. Despite the criticality of this mission, the Air Force currently operates the smallest, oldest fleet<\/a> of bombers since its 1947 founding. No other service or ally has this capability, which places an imperative on this finite force. The service\u2019s recent announcement that it will be ending its continuous bomber presence in Guam further amplifies the precarious state of bombers. It is a stark warning to senior leaders in the Pentagon, in the executive branch and on Capitol Hill that the Air Force is \u201cout of Schlitz\u201d when it comes to the critical missions they perform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bombers are unique instruments of power. They can strike targets with large volumes of kinetic firepower without requiring access to foreign bases and without projecting the vulnerability associated with regionally based land or sea forces. The striking power of a single bomber is immense. In fact, B-1Bs<\/a> flying missions against ISIS in the opening days of Operation Inherent Resolve were able to carry more munitions than that delivered by an entire carrier air wing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stealth bombers can penetrate enemy air defenses, depriving mobile targets of sanctuary. They can also carry large bunker-buster munitions required to eliminate deeply buried and hardened facilities. Bomber aircraft are also cheaper to operate on a per-mission basis when compared to alternate options, like ships, large packages of smaller strike aircraft or standoff missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The erosion of the bomber force is no secret. At the end of the Cold War, the U.S. Air Force possessed 400 bombers arrayed to fight the Soviet Union. Today, it has just 157, with a plan to cut a further 17 in the fiscal 2021 budget submission. Air Force efforts to modernize the bomber force a decade ago were thwarted within the Department of Defense by an excessive near-term focus on counterinsurgency operations. Bombers are requested by combatant commands on a continual basis given the concurrent threats posed by peer adversaries, mid-tier nations like Iran and North Korea, and hostile nonstate actors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Air Force knows this mission area is stretched too thin, and that is precisely why in 2018 leaders called for an additional five bomber squadrons in \u201cThe Air Force We Need\u201d force structure assessment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well-understood risk exists with operating a high-demand, low-density inventory for too long. The B-1B force, which makes up over one-third of America\u2019s bomber capacity, offers a highly cautionary tale in this regard. In the immediate aftermath of 9\/11, the service retired 26 of these aircraft to free up modernization funds, which subsequently were snatched away from the bomber mission area for other uses. For the next two decades, the Air Force flew the B-1B in a nearly continuous string of intense combat deployments. Sustainment funding was under-resourced, which further wore down the B-1B force. Last summer, B-1B readiness rates plummeted below 10 percent \u2014 effectively putting them out of commission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Air Force Global Strike Command Commander Gen. Tim Ray explained: \u201cWe overextended the B-1Bs.\u201d It was a toxic formula of too much mission demand and too few airplanes. Air Force leaders continually signaled concern, but their calls for help went unanswered. <\/p>\n\n\n\t