Four B-52s and about 300 airmen returned to Barksdale AFB, La., after a four-week task force deployment to Europe that included training exercises throughout that continent and the Middle East.
The bombers from the 2nd Bomb Wing flew 32 sorties at its deployed home base of RAF Fairford, England, and trained with 13 total partner nations since first deploying last month.
“Bomber Task Force rotations provide us with a consistent and near-continuous long-range weapon capability, and represent our ability to project air power around the globe,” said Gen. Jeff Harrigian, commander of US Air Forces in Europe, in a release. “They also provide invaluable opportunities to train and integrate with our allies and partners in the Black Sea, Baltic, and the Arctic regions.
The task force flew over the Baltic Sea with aircraft and airmen from Poland, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania; with Romania, Ukraine, and Georgia in the Black Sea region; and three aircraft flew with US Navy P-8s and the Norwegian Air Force in the Barents Sea region of the Arctic Circle. Outside of Europe, one of the B-52s flew alongside Saudi Arabian F-15Cs in a flyover of Prince Sultan Air Base in that country.