B-2 Spirit ready to fly despite safety pause
Air Combat Command Public Affairs
4/3/2008 - LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (ACCNS) -- Although B-2 flying operations remain in temporary pause, the Airmen and aircraft are ready and capable to generate missions if necessary, according to ACC officials and the 509th Bomb Wing commander at Whiteman AFB, Mo.
Since the first-ever B-2 crash Feb. 23 at Anderson AFB, Guam, all Air Force B-2s have remained suspended pending the results from a safety investigation board.
"This temporary pause is the prudent thing to do after an aircraft crashes," said Brig. Gen. Garrett Harencak, 509th BW commander. But the mission of the 509th Bomb Wing continues. "If tasked, the wing is capable and ready to execute our mission and can generate aircraft immediately."
ACC officials said a safety pause is unlike a grounding order, which would prevent all affected aircraft from flying despite mission needs.
B-2 bombers have been flying almost 20 years and are renowned in the Air Force for their unprecedented safety record, said General Harencak.
"This is the first B-2 crash in the history of the aircraft," he said. "These bombers combined have a logged more than 14,000 sorties, 100 combat sorties and 75,000 flying hours without a single Class A mishap until now."
A mishap is categorized as Class A when there is loss of life or damage in excess of $1 million.
But General Harencak made it clear that only one Class A mishap in 20 years beats the odds of almost any aircraft.
The B-2, he said, is a revolution in airpower. A single B-2 can strike multiple-targets, instead of needing multiple aircraft to strike a single target. A combination of stealth technology, precision weapons, long range and large payload give the B-2 the unique ability to penetrate an enemy's most sophisticated defenses, providing a strong effective deterrent and combat force for the nation.
The B-2 that crashed was named Spirit of Kansas. It had logged more than 5,000 flight hours and 1,036 sorties before Feb. 23 - and it was "renowned in the maintenance community for being a great jet," added Col. Bob Dulong, 509th Maintenance Group commander.
Because B-2 aircraft are an invaluable commodity - in performance and cost (at $1.2 billion per aircraft) - General Harencak said the 509th BW and ACC are taking measures for safety and prevention of further loss.
"We definitely want our return to flying to be deliberate and safe," he said. |
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