Skip to main content

B-1 Lancer


Rockwell B-1 Lancer






Nicknamed “The Bone,” the B-1B Lancer is a long-range, multi-mission, supersonic conventional bomber, which has served the United States Air Force since 1985. The aircraft is on track to continue flying, at current demanding operations tempo, out to 2040 and beyond, and Boeing partners with the Air Force to keep the B-1 mission ready. Originally designed for nuclear capabilities, the B-1 switched to an exclusively conventional combat role in the mid-1990s. In 1999, during Operation Allied Force, six B-1s flew 2 percent of the strike missions, yet dropped 20 percent of the ordnance, and during Operation Enduring Freedom the B-1 flew on 2 percent of the sorties while dropping over 40 percent of the precision weapons. The B-1 has been nearly continuously deployed in combat operations over Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001






The BONE
The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers in the U.S. Air Force fleet as of 2018, the other two being the B-2 Spirit and the B-52 Stratofortress.






The B-1 was first envisioned in the 1960s as a platform that would combine the Mach 2 speed of the B-58 Hustler with the range and payload of the B-52, and was meant to ultimately replace both bombers. After a long series of studies, Rockwell International (now part of Boeing) won the design contest for what emerged as the B-1A. This version had a top speed of Mach 2.2 at high altitude and the capability of flying for long distances at Mach 0.85 at very low altitudes. The combination of the high cost of the aircraft, the introduction of the AGM-86 cruise missile that flew the same basic profile, and early work on the stealth bomber all significantly affected the need for the B-1. This led to the program being canceled in 1977, after the B-1A prototypes had been built.







B-1B Lancer Technical Specifications
Function                           Long-range, multi-role, heavy bomber
Power plant                   Four General Electric F101-GE-102 turbofan engine with afterburner
Thrust                           30,000-plus pounds with afterburner, per engine
Wingspan                    137 ft (41.8 m) extended forward, 79 ft (24.1 m) swept aft
Length                           146 ft (44.5 meters)
Height                           34 ft (10.4 meters)
Weight                           Approximately 190,000 lbs (86,183 kg)
Max Takeoff Weight   477,000 lbs (216,634 kg)
Fuel Capacity           265,274 lbs (120,326 kg)
Payload                           75,000 lbs internal (34,019 kg), 50,000 lbs (22,679 kg)
Speed                           900-plus mph (Mach 1.2 at sea level)
Range                           Intercontinental
Ceiling                          More than 30,000 ft (9,144 m)
Crew                          4 (aircraft commander, copilot, and two weapon systems officers)
Inventory                  66


The program was restarted in 1981, largely as an interim measure due to delays in the B-2 stealth bomber program, with the B-2 eventually reaching initial operational capability in 1997. This led to a redesign as the B-1B, which differed from the B-1A by having a lower top speed at high altitude of Mach 1.25, but improved low-altitude performance of Mach 0.96. The electronics were also extensively improved during the redesign, and the airframe was improved to allow takeoff with the maximum possible fuel and weapons load. The B-1B began deliveries in 1986 and formally entered service with Strategic Air Command (SAC) as a nuclear bomber in that same year. By 1988, all 100 aircraft had been delivered.




In the early 1990s, following the Gulf War and concurrent with the disestablishment of SAC and its reassignment to the newly formed Air Combat Command, the B-1B was converted to conventional bombing use. It first served in combat during Operation Desert Fox in 1998 and again during the NATO action in Kosovo the following year. The B-1B has supported U.S. and NATO military forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Air Force had 66 B-1Bs in service as of September 2012. The B-1B is expected to continue to serve into the 2030s, with the Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider to begin replacing the B-1B after 2025. The B-1s in inventory are planned to be retired by 2036.


RELATED LINKS:-

Boeing Upgrades - https://boeing.mediaroom.com/2015-04-30-Boeing-Upgrades-to-Keep-B-1-Bomber-Soaring-for-Decades-to-Come

Popular posts from this blog

Gas Turbine Compressor

PURPOSE OF COMPRESSOR                                     The compressor section of the gas turbine engine has many functions. Its primary function is to supply air in sufficient quantity to satisfy the requirements of the combustion burners. Specifically, to fulfill its purpose, the compressor must increase the pressure of the mass of air received from the air inlet duct, and then, discharge it to the burners in the quantity and at the pressures required.                               A secondary function of the compressor is to supply bleed-air for various purposes in the engine and aircraft. The bleed-air is taken from any of the various pressure stages of the compressor.                              The exact location of the bleed ports is dependent on the pressure or temperature required for a particular job. The ports are small openings in the compressor case adjacent to the particular stage from which the air is to be bled                                Air is often bled
Read more

Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II

Ø   The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole fighters. Ø   The fifth-generation combat aircraft is designed to perform ground attack and air superiority missions. Ø   It has three main models: ·        the F-35A conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant, ·        the F-35B short take-off and vertical-landing (STOVL) variant, ·        the F-35C carrier-based Catapult Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery (CATOBAR) variant.                                      Role Stealth   multirole fighter National origin United States Manufacturer Lockheed Martin Aeronautics First flight 15 December 2006 (F-35A) Introduction F-35B: 31 July 2015 ( USMC ) F-35A: 2 August 2016 ( USAF ) F-35C: 2018 ( USN ) Status In service Primary users United States Air Force United States Marin
Read more

ATA Chapters

Air transportation Association (ATA) published a numbering system to learn and understand the technical features of an Aircraft The standard numbering system was published by the   Air Transport Association   on June 1, 1956.  While the   ATA 100   numbering system has been superseded, it continued to be widely used until it went out of date back in 2015, especially in documentation for   general aviation   aircraft, on aircraft Fault Messages (for Post Flight Troubleshooting and Repair) and the electronic and printed manuals. This commonality permits greater ease of learning and understanding for   pilots ,   aircraft maintenance technicians , and   engineers . The Joint Aircraft System/Component (JASC) Code Tables was a modified version of the Air Transport Association of America (ATA), Specification 100 code. It was developed by the FAA's, Regulatory Support Division (AFS-600). This code table was constructed by using the new JASC code four digit format, along with an abbreviate
Read more