I'm lighter when I'm lower, I'm higher when I'm heavy, oh ooh "But this transition is really purely about pilots and WSOs and the right balance and the ability to sustain that force.East is up, I'm fearless when I hear this on the lowĮast is up, I'm careless when I wear my rebel clothesĮast is up, when Bishops come together they will know thatĭema don't control us, Dema don't control
"I think we'll continue to look at as they become a reality," Weatherington said. Other independent studies "also suggest a range of between 225 and about 270 on the high end," Weatherington said.Ī bigger bomber fleet would affect the maintenance and logistics communities as well. "We've said publicly that we think we need 220 bombers overall - 75 B-52s and the rest B-21s, long term," Ray told Air Force Magazine earlier this year. Tim Ray, head of Air Force Global Strike Command, has often proposed a bomber force of more than 200 aircraft. The service has said it plans to procure at least 100 Raiders, rounding out its bomber inventory to 175, including its B-52 fleet. The Air Force has said deliveries of the B-21, manufactured by Northrop Grumman, should begin in the mid-2020s, but have been careful not to broadcast details in order to protect its technology. "We're just in the initial phases of talking about it." "We'll look at any lessons that Pilot Training Next comes up with, and we'll partner closely with AETC," said Weatherington, who will visit Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, in November to observe some of this training. Last year, two B-1 WSOs took part in AETC's Pilot Training Next Initiative, which the service began in 2018 to test students' abilities within an augmented space mimicking in-flight experience. "We'll look at the capacity and what is the appropriate trade-off in terms of experience versus retainability, and certainly we'll have to make some of those decisions," he said. without putting an additional huge demand or big requirement on AETC ," Weatherington explained. Once WSOs are seasoned in their existing craft, the intention is to leverage "that existing talent that pilot need that we're going to see. Retraining WSOs will also help with the Air Force's overall pilot shortage, he added. "How do we give them the skills they would need for takeoff, landing, air refueling, some maneuvering types of skills, and piloting skills to help close that gap?"
that have skill sets that will be readily transferable to the B-21 in terms of employing that weapon system in a combat scenario," he said. Together with Air Education and Training Command (AETC), Air Force Global Strike Command is studying how it will take "some of these highly trained, capable, combat-experienced weapon systems officers.
It's anticipated the service will poach WSOs from the B-1 community, and a few from the B-52 pool, to punch up its B-21 pilot end strength, Weatherington said. Like its B-2 cousin, the B-21 is expected to be crewed by two pilots, Weatherington said.īy comparison, the B-1 heavy-payload bomber has four crew: two pilots up front and two WSOs - one operating offense, the other defense - in the back. The B-1B and B-2 long-range bombers will be retired in the mid-2030s. Despite its age, the venerable, Cold War-era Stratofortress is expected to fly into the 2050s. The service's future bomber inventory is expected to consist of the new B-21, also known as the Long Range Strike Bomber (LRSB), and the B-52.
actually get a better perspective on how to operate that airframe more effectively." That's so we get a range of perspectives and. "Particularly as the B 21 stands up, we know we want a mix of folks from the B-1, B-2 and B 52 communities that are involved. "I'd say we're looking at a reduction one-third to a half," he added. The service has roughly 260 WSOs in its operational units today, Weatherington said.