The US Air Force has returned a B-1B Apocalypse II bomber from the "aircraft graveyard."

The US Air Force had previously initiated the process of retiring the B-1B Lancer bomber. The first major fleet reduction occurred in 2003, when fleet Thirty-three aircraft were retired. In 2021, 17 aircraft were decommissioned, reducing the fleet from 62 to 45. The decommissioning program was launched to save funds allocated for servicing the most worn-out aircraft and to direct resources to the new B-21 Raider strategic bomber project.

The original plan called for the retirement of all B-1Bs by the early 2030s. However, due to the high demand for the aircraft and the need to maintain strike capability until the mass introduction of the B-21, the program was revised. Congress mandated that the B-1B fleet be maintained at 45 aircraft. Therefore, the Air Force plans to invest $340 million in upgrading the remaining aircraft to ensure they remain in service until at least 2037.

B-1B in storage at the "boneyard":

Moreover, the Air Force has even begun returning individual aircraft from the Arizona "aircraft boneyard" to service to replace those crashed or damaged in accidents. For example, in January 2024, a B-1B crashed while attempting to land during a training flight (due to pilot error, who failed to control the speed and approach angle in dense fog and windshear). The crew ejected successfully, but the aircraft was lost, with damages amounting to $456 million.

B-1B Apocalypse II after recovery:

According to the Air Force, B-1B serial number 86-0115 (formerly known as "Rage"), which had been recovered from the "boneyard" (where it had been since 2021) and sent to Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma for restoration, underwent nearly two years of repairs. The aircraft, renamed "Apocalypse II," is currently stationed at Dyess Air Force Base in Texas, where it has joined the 7th Bomb Wing.

However, it should be noted that only four of the 17 B-1Bs sent to the "boneyard" in 2021 were subject to long-term preservation. Most of the remaining aircraft were placed in so-called "non-returnable storage." In this category, aircraft receive only minimal protection in the form of a latex coating on the engines and canopies. Their primary role is to serve as spare parts donors for the remaining active fleet. Once all valuable components are removed, the airframes will be sent for metal recycling. Aircraft in this category are technically practically impossible to return to the skies.

Comments

[knn54]

As L.I. Brezhnev said, "The economy must be economical."

[novel66]

First of all, there must be an economy!

[isv000]

Quote: novel xnumx

First of all, there must be an economy!

To do this, we need to remove Na.e. Bullina, and that's at the very least...

[novel66]

The condition is necessary - but not sufficient!

[bayard]

Quote: novel xnumx

The condition is necessary - but not sufficient!

And Siluanov.
And nationalize the banking sector.
And everything will work out right away.

[novel66]

What about gas and oil? And metal too?

[bayard]

Quote: novel xnumx

What about gas and oil? And metal too?

This is the basis!
That's where we should be implementing the new Industrialization. Selling less abroad, processing it with maximum processing for YOUR needs and for export – more. It's better to sell fertilizers, plastics, and various gases (helium, for example), and all the cream (fractions) of the gas except methane – to the gas chemical industry – into plastics and other things. Selling them is both more convenient and more profitable.
And in general, it is better to sell airplanes than our Black Gold for unsecured foreign currencies.

[Asker]

Black, black envy of their capabilities, budgets and even cemeteries.
When you watch the US Congress, they show freaks, psychos, LGBT lobbyists, etc., but it turns out they're thinking about aviation, the army, and Americans... Miracles!

[PROXOR]

Quote: Asker

but it turns out they are thinking about aviation, the army and the Americans... Miracles!

It's more prosaic. They treat things with care. The recycled market is huge, and they use them. Take electric car starters or generators, for example. When something breaks down, we have only one option: the copper and metal dump. But for them, you bring the old one and get an equally junky one. The broken one goes to the factory. There they disassemble it, check for defects, rewind it, install more modern electronic components if needed, paint it, and put it on the shelf, as well as a replacement.
It's no wonder they're still doing just fine. They need to change their mentality, not just be proud: Russia is a generous soul.

[isv000]

Quote: PROXOR

It's no wonder they're still doing just fine. They need to change their mentality, not just be proud: Russia is a generous soul.

They store their equipment in the desert, where there's virtually no precipitation and the aircraft are stored in a hot climate. Where in Russia are they stored like that?! You're not suggesting we build climate-controlled hangars, are you? Then it would definitely be cheaper to build a new aircraft...

[PROXOR]

Quote: isv000

They store their equipment in the desert, where there's virtually no precipitation and the aircraft are stored in a hot climate. Where in Russia are they stored like that?! You're not suggesting we build climate-controlled hangars, are you? Then it would definitely be cheaper to build a new aircraft...

There's no snow in China, except in Tibet, but the climate is also very humid. Nevertheless, they retained the MiG-19s and are now converting them into UAVs and wingmen.
Need I remind you how many buildings of huge industrial giants were demolished? How much equipment could have been crammed under the roof there?

[isv000]

Remind me, how many strategists can fit into these corps?

[isv000]

Quote: Asker

Black, black envy of their capabilities, budgets and even cemeteries.

We shouldn't envy them, we should do something about the authorities, but I don't know what... Radical methods won't work; we've already seen that, but apart from substituting concepts and changing the "elites," we've gotten nothing but repression...

[PROXOR]

Quote: isv000

received nothing but repression...

And in the current situation, society cannot be healed any other way. After Stalin, society was radically renewed; people worked for the national economy, for the common good. But that scoundrel Khrushchev introduced a lot of liberalism, and people began to fudge reports, because the old NKVD no longer existed. There was no need to fear for one's skin for giving false figures.
Drawing parallels, this society cannot be saved now without repression. I'm not saying everyone should be thrown up against the wall. On the contrary. Let them dig a tunnel to Sakhalin. Let them prepare the railroad tracks. And there are plenty of places where hard physical labor is needed. Let them atone for their guilt.

[Serafim]

It's time to bring back the Tu-16 (or rent similar aircraft from China, along with their crews), equip them with "elephants", FAB9000, and thoroughly, slowly, generously iron out the 404 (with a change in the landscape).

[commbatant]

Quote from Serafim

It's time to bring back the Tu-16

We don't have them anymore, but abroad they were in Iraq and China, some were destroyed, others are being modernized into carriers of cruise missiles and are needed by China...

[isv000]

In the States, they often snoop around cemeteries, now they're on airplanes, and they used to even take the dead. The dead "voted" for Biden in elections as far back as the 19th century...

[Samaks]

The B1BLancer looks like a cuttlefish. Our Tu-160 exudes beauty, speed, and power.