USAF Manned Bomber Force
Hi Guys,
From everything that I've read, the USAF plans to withdraw approximately 33 B-1Bs from the active force, including all the ANG aircraft. The remaining airframes will be concentrated at Dyess and Ellsworth AFB. The B-1B squadron at Mountain Home is also scheduled to be deactivated.
The remaining force of B-52H airframes will also remain stable at current force levels, whether or not the AFRES continues to fly them, I've not heard thus far. The B-52 is still the preeminent conventional weapons delivery platform for the USAF. The B-2 is basically a "silver bullet" designed to deliever JDAMs precision munitions. Current SecDef Rumsfled is in favor of retiring the entire fleet of "Bones" and buying more B-2s.
Regards,
P.S. I read recently that the retired E-18 ARIA aircraft are going to be modified into J-STARS? Have you heard what the final force number is going to be? USAF wanted 21, but was forced to settle for 13 under Pres. Clinton. J-STARS equipped with SAR is about the best thing for the type of warfare we are currently engaged in for detecting movement(s) of pers, armor, etc...