m e d i a
claimed that both
units had only a few jets ready, with
the rumors suggesting that 6 bombers were ready to
fly. As one could have expected, in 2020 a decision was made to
withdraw 17 aircraft that were flown the most. Some sources
suggested that the majority of the airframes listed above
were grounded anyway, for some time, while the recovery
of combat readiness would cost between 10 and 30 million
dollars
per unit. The first
of the worn-out B-1Bs made its
final voyage on February 17th, 2021 - from Ellsworth
AFB to AMARG (309th Aerospace Maintenance and
Regeneration Group), Davis-Monthan AFB. The bombers
would be maintained meeting the Type 2000 storage
requirements, allowing for reintroduction into service
(however, some may also be used as a source of spares,
to a limited degree). This is not a probable scenario, but it
cannot be ruled out in its entirety, as shown by the B-52H
„Wise Guy" bomber that was reintroduced into service in
March 2021, after a few years at AMARG. One of the aircraft
AVIATION