[Yang Nak-gyu's Defense Club] US Strategic Bombers Conduct Joint Training with Japan After Two Months

The B-1B 'Lancer' bomber, a strategic weapon of the United States, flew over Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, where the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (ADEX) is being held on the afternoon of the 21st, escorted by an Air Force F-15K. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu Reporter]The United States and Japan conducted a large-scale joint aerial exercise for the first time in two months. Following the strategic bomber B-52, this time a B-1B Lancer, known as the 'Death's Swan,' was dispatched to Japan for training.

According to Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota on the 23rd, one B-1B from the 37th Bomb Squadron flew near Misawa, the US Forces Japan base, the previous day and conducted joint training with two F-2 fighters of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. Four US F-16 fighters also participated.

Ellsworth Air Force Base posted footage of the B-1B taking off from the base on its website and stated that it demonstrated the US Air Force's Dynamic Force Employment concept. The US-Japan joint exercise took place in the airspace over northern Japan's sea. The US Pacific Air Forces released photos on its social media showing the B-1B flying in a triangular formation with F-2 and F-16 fighters.

In February, the US and Japan also conducted a large-scale joint aerial operation at Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture, Japan, mobilizing over 60 fighters and strategic bombers. The US deployed the B-52 bomber, the air power most feared by North Korea, from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam. Although the US Pacific Air Forces described it as a routine allied training in the photo caption, it is considered unusual given that the B-52 strategic bomber has refrained from flying near the Korean Peninsula since 2018.

Some analysts interpret the consecutive deployment of strategic bombers for exercises near the Korean Peninsula as a result of the 'Dynamic Force Employment' concept. This concept, introduced in the 2018 US defense strategy, means rapidly deploying forces to desired locations with minimal detection by adversaries. Under this strategy, the US also irregularly operates aircraft carriers with three-month deployment cycles instead of the usual seven months. When a B-52H is deployed, it is immediately detected by China's and Russia's long-range radar networks, allowing them to estimate the mission area, which reduces stealth and strategic effectiveness.

The US military magazine 'Stars and Stripes' also explained on the 17th that "the US Air Force ended the long-standing practice of maintaining bomber presence in the Pacific through rotational deployments since 2004," adding that "this is part of a global deployment plan designed to be less predictable."

The long-range strategic bombers B-1B Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress, along with the B-2, are considered the three major strategic bombers of the US. The B-1B has a larger maximum payload than the B-52 and B-2, with 34 tons internally and 27 tons externally including the wings. It can drop a large amount of bombs in a single sortie. Its maximum speed is Mach 1.2, faster than the B-52 (957 km/h) and B-2 (Mach 0.9).

The strategic bombers previously stationed in Guam did not carry nuclear weapons. Of the 89 B-52 bombers currently owned by the US, 44, and of the 20 B-2 bombers, 16 are equipped with tactical nuclear weapons. This is due to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) between the US and the former Soviet Union, which mandated a 30% reduction in strategic nuclear weapons.

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