The USAF temporarily forward deployed B-52s tempo stands at:
(From RAF Fairford, UK)
1xB-52 in Estonia,
1 B-52 in Romania
1 B-52 over Barents Sea
(From Guam)
2 B-52 off Far East Russia.
This is rare. The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is part of the backbone of the US strategic bombing force. https://airman.dodlive.mil/
A group of 6 B-52s came from 2nd Bomb Wing in Louisiana to Europe as part of ‘Operation Atlantic Resolve’, which is aimed at reassuring NATO allies against Russia.
The RAF Fairford deployment as described by Daily Mail: https://twitter.com/
https://southfront.org/us-air-
It is not rare to have a B-52 sortie over the Baltic and turn round off the Polish coast, as the annual BALTOPS testify. A number of B-52’s have been currently touring around Northern Europe since 14th March. Several Baltic runs have been made since then. The most surprising one is a B-52 strategic bomber flying in the airspace of Estonia, just under 200km from St Petersburg.
While most focus was on the Baltic, 2 other USAF B-52Hs left Guam and flew near Kamchatka. USAF KC-135Rs tankers were also sent to support the B-52 flight.
https://twitter.com/
This is not the first time that B-52s have been deployed to Europe, as reported in 2017.
https://southfront.org/us-
However, the multi-pronged sorties, as well as Baltic-Pacific probing of Russia is certainly unusual. However, another tweet reported another B-52 mission to Barents Sea:
https://twitter.com/mil_radar/
Likewise, another USAF B-52 exercised with Romanian F-16s to “demonstrate the capability of rapid deployment of allied forces in south-eastern Europe.”
https://boardingpass.ro/
Last week two B-52s bombers flew near to contested islands in the South China Sea. https://twitter.com/cnn/
This latest bout of saber-rattling from Washington comes at a time when the US Air Force is now preparing its fleet of B-52s for the possibility of launching the ‘Long Range Stand Off’ (LRSO) weapon. As such, B-52s are being prepared with with prototype nuclear-armed cruise missiles. https://www.foxnews.com/tech/
Despite their age B-52s are still seen as a highly visible way of showing firepower, in other words a ‘threat posture’, for political purposes.https://www.newsmax.
Having ditched the INF, (torn it up really), Washington’s gloves are off. Russia apparently took the decision to station nuclear-capable Tupolev Tu-22M3 strategic bombers to Crimea. This is said to be partially in response to the US continued implementation of the missile defence systems in Romania. https://www.reuters.com/
B52 + KC135 în March 18 in Romanian airspace, close to the Black Sea: https://twitter.com/boardingpassro/status/1107703535771238400
I was in Romania during the 1999 Kosovo campaign, and this attitude of painting themselves a cross on their foreheads, just to show their “solidarity” with the USA, is very familiar to me from their ruling elite. Most ordinary people I spoke to are orthodox, and have their sympathies elsewhere.
Still, Russophobia is very prevalent there. And that includes Ukraine. I remember one old woman in the Danube Delta telling me that “over there, there is the border with Russia”, and tried to correct her: No in fact its the Ukraine, and she told me: maybe today they are callling it Ukraine, it used to be Russia.
I merely thought that she was using Russia and USSR as synonyms, but actually she was right
Regarding the b-52 flights, a couple of b-52s here and there are not a threat. This is simply a usaf version of showing off an aged, overweight body at one of those gay pride events israel insists their colonies must stage. ;-D These flights affect the american taxpayers, who are forced to pay extra for this zionazi-gay willie wagging, far more than the Russians.
On the upgrading of the defense of Crimea, this has better info than the spin from the reuters zionazi-gay propaganda machine:
Russia deploys Tu-22M3 bombers & Iskanders to Crimea in response to US missile launchers in Romania
https://www.rt.com/russia/454153-crimea-strategic-bombers-iskander-romania/
“The installation of the American MK-41 missile defense launch systems in Romania became a “serious challenge” for Russia, Viktor Bondarev, the head of the Russian Federation Council’s Defense and Security Committee, said.
But the proper response has now been formulated, with “Russia’s Defense Ministry making a decision to deploy squadrons of Tu-22M3 long-range missile-carrying bombers in Crimea, at the airbase in the town of Gvardeysk.”
Russia’s state-of-the-art missile systems, including S-300 and S-400, Buk-M2, Pantsir-S1 and two modifications of [nuclear capable] Iskander, have also been stationed at the peninsula, he added.
The Tu-22M3s in Crimea are to be modernized and equipped with new armaments in the next few years, which will allow them “to deliver warheads to any point in Europe, hitting any type of enemy anti-missile or air-defense facilities,” Bondarev, who was the commander of Russia’s Air Force in 2012-15, said.
Moscow insisted that the MK-41 launchers in Romania could be used to fire mid-range Tomahawk cruise missiles, which were banned by the landmark Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), without any modifications.”
A pathetic demonstration of power (threat posture) to bolster the sagging East European vassals. These big beauties as cruise missile platforms will have no place to land if they ever fired their “new weapons”.
Russia has made it perfectly clear that all bases, all launch systems, all platforms, all headquarters, all capitals will be targeted with nukes and equivalent kinetic weapons in response to any attempted first strike.
Russia may not match in size and scope the US+NATO force structure, but it easily can obliterate the US and NATO nations and everything in the air and ground and sea if attacked.
WWIII is about missiles and warheads. It won’t be a months long, years long world war.
Hypersonic is what we are addressing, not B-52s.That’s the equivalent of bringing a knife to a gunfight.
And think about this carefully–if the US attacked Russia, the US plan would include attacking China. No plan can afford to guess or hope that the other strategic partner would understand that blackmail was next, if not an attack on them also. So, would China wait and hope? Would Russia wait and hope if China was attacked?
The reality is both understand they must have the other or they are next.
So, US planners would include the other in any attack on one.
And both Russia and China understand this. They are each always next.
So, the US and its vassals have much more than they can ever chew.
The Double Helix is a strategic reality. Whether they are allies is not the issue. They are strategically bound, entwined.
How many cruise missiles have to be launched to defeat all Russia and China have for second strike?
Tens of thousands. How many platforms exist for such an attack?
And how would they hide those platforms so the attack would be a surprise?
Fantasy. US and NATO fantasy. With both standing together, neither will be attacked. Each day we see the two drawn closer and closer against the geopolitical and military moves of the US.
Larchmonter – a Chinese saying…
“It is easy to break one chop stick, but impossible to break five at once.”
You point is strategically spot on.
Removed.Insulting fellow posters violate the blog rules.State your message without insults.MOD
After all, the obvious strategy is to buy-off China, at any cost, to leave Russia all the more vulnerable and defensive; and should such a simple and obvious strategy become necessary, than all that remains is to hide that intent behind the usual left-handed and right-handed feints: “peas in a pod”, “double-helix”, “Brics in a wall”; or, “Golden Horde 2.0”, “yellow devils”, “Jews of the Orient”, etc…
Disagree.
China is not a target, nor an ally, but a market. There is one target only: Russia; and Russia will not give the Chinese an opportunity to double-cross them, by strategic alliance – this is only wisdom.
Mmmmmm, so there are 2 double helixes here, the first one being Russia and China so strategically bound together because the US cannot possibly attack one and not the other, and the second double helix being with US and China’s markets being so inseparably intertwined that they cannot exist without each other.
Its obvious which double helix has the stronger bond, so its spot on that “China is not a target, nor an ally, but a market”. The “gas station” had better always keep its flame thrower very handy. Luckily there is India just around the corner with a similar population to China, and perhaps similar potential, which keeps things indeterminate.
Actually, America has openly targeted China as a geopolitical adversary and “revisionist power” along with Russia. Indeed, it sees China as more of a *long-term* “threat” to America’s unipolar world dominance than Russia in that China is economically stronger than Russia.
Why would the US being cultivating India, Japan, and Australia as part of its Quad 4 Axis against China?
And why is America carrying out provocative military maneuvers in the South China Sea, or trying to use the North Korea issue to foment problems on the Korean peninsula?
Moreover, America is attempting to destabilize China’s Silk Road program in general such as the CPEC project with Pakistan.
In fact, the idea America merely sees China as a market is disinformation and is belied by the current American trade war on China, including thinly disguised attempts to sabotage its high-tech development. See the American sanctions war on Huawei and kidnapping … I mean … arrest of the Meng Wanzhou based on Trumped up charges over violating America’s illegal sanctions on Iran.
Ultimately, America–and indeed, the Anglo-American Axis nations in general–are genetically hostile to Eurasia and Eurasian integration. This means Russia and China (as well as Iran) are essential targets of Anglo hostility.
The Anglo Americans have raised Divide-and-Conquer tactics to a warped science. That is the only way they can maintain Anglo world dominance against the Eurasian challenge.
And in order to keep Eurasia divided, the Anglo Americans will even use whispering campaigns to undermine trust and cohesion among these Eurasian powers.
In fact, it is has been said that on Russian-oriented forums, certain posters will feign sympathy towards Russia–while trying to undermine China’s image.
Similarly, on Chinese-oriented forums, certain posters will feign sympathy towards China–while trying to undermine Russia’s image.
I suspect that the former situation is precisely what is happening on the Saker forum with the agenda of certain posters here.
Perfidious Albion doesn’t just describe England but the entire Anglosphere and its hordes of sympathizers, trolls, and psyops peddlers.
The US war on China’s economic model
https://gowans.wordpress.com/2018/12/30/the-us-war-on-chinas-economic-model/
Washington’s Dirty Fight Against China’s OBOR
https://journal-neo.org/2018/11/21/washington-s-dirty-fight-against-china-s-obor/
The US Air Force Is Preparing for a Great Power War Against Russia and China
https://russia-insider.com/en/us-air-force-preparing-great-power-war-against-russia-and-china/ri25324
The United States Is Pushing Toward War with China
https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2018/06/21/the-united-states-is-pushing-toward-war-with-china.html
US “Worldwide Threat Assessment” takes aim at China
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/02/01/usth-f01.html
Mmmmmm, I suspect numerous posters on numerous websites, whether Russian or Chinese or Antarctic oriented, of being on the Yuan payroll, and then some.
Currently America can’t tackle China properly without shooting itself in the foot because then Walmart will be empty, therefore America’s only real enemy is Russia. China is more of a most favoured trading partner with some quirks.
Actually the China dilemma is similar to the cheetah and hyena hunting dilemma. The cheetah (Jews) can bring their prey (US and Europe) down as their prey has been sufficiently weakened over the years. Only problem is, if they bring their prey down now they won’t be able to enjoy the meat themselves because the hyena (China) will just walk in and take over the kill and eat all the meat by itself. And hyena’s aren’t known for sharing.
To add insult to injury, the cheetah has made use of the hyena to weaken its prey by shifting the bulk of the manufacturing of its prey to the hyena’s lands.
With the hyena constantly lurking in the background, the cheetah cannot bring down its prey now. Instead it has to try and keep its prey alive and strong enough long enough to avoid the hyena, while at the same time trying to make the hyena just disappear so that the cheetah can then take down and eat its prey in peace. Yet the hyena is, thanks to the cheetah’s prior initiatives, stubbornly closely coupled to the cheetah’s prey.
And the cheetah knows that this will probably be the last time that it can ever take down prey of this magnitude, previously the prey was small so when the cheetah took it down it could only become king of some hill for a short time. But if the cheetah can take down its prey this time it can become Kings of this World. The cheetah will never get this opportunity again, yet circumstances are increasingly conspiring against it, and prey in the past has been known to turn against the cheetah. The cheetah might be better off being vegetarian.
(Possible) Solution to quandary of the ambush-cat? Allow the hyenas to go into the herd of swine—and hurl themselves into the sea. In other words, serve-up a great feast to the pigs that can’t be refused; feed the wolves to the pigs; or, feed the hyrcanians to the hyenas. It seems that this path is presently being opened; and leave it to the Chinese to make their silk-path from a pig’s rear.
Somebody please reassure me that we haven’t got over active juvenile apes running our governments.
It is a mystery to me what the US really intends to do with those B-52’s. Even though they have been upgraded, they are still old planes, designed back in the 1950’s. They were used in the Vietnam war, and between 12 and 31 B-52’s were shot down by North Vietnamese AA units using old Russian SAM-2 missile systems. Think what the new ones can do. Why use the old B-52 and not the B-1 or B-2 ?
If the intent is to launch nuclear cruise missiles from the B-52’s, then their mere presence will alert the Russians. On the other hand, if the intent is for some of them to be sacrificed, provoking the Russians to shoot them down, then this would be a foolish course of action.
The US cancelling of the INF Treaty was also a very foolish act. The US is demanding that Europe submit to becoming a future battlefield, where the US would place medium range missiles for a sneak attack against Russia, hoping to gain an advantage. I don’t think the US is aware of the consequences. This act alone will contribute to the dissipation of NATO. Europe fought two world wars, and there is no appetite for World War Three, certainly not for a nuclear confrontation. I doubt if Washington has fully grasped this fact.
Is this latest B-52-s deployment a costly posturing to privoke costly counter-posturing by the much less afluent opponent?
Or, simply, empty posturing for the sake of posturing (not beyond the seemingly unbalanced real estate businessman-bluffer sitting in the Oval Office)?…
And one might finally ask: what was the actual, practical purpose (if any) of all those Tu-160 visits to Venezuela (in 2008, 2013, 2018)?…
Can somebody explain what is the advantage of these big planes in a war? Aren’t they too slow and easy targets? Aren’t cruise missiles, with 1000’s of km range, much more effective? How are they supposed to penetrate Russian airspace in case of conflict?
Cruise missiles typically have no more than 1000 statute mile range so you need to get closer -particularly if you want to avoid countries in between that might take offence at missiles transiting their airspace. B-52s have 3X that range and can carry multiple cruise missiles.
A B-52 while hardly stealthy is a non-stationary target and can also fly low below radar horizons. It allows a heavy payload and with 8 engines and its massive size projects the bully/thug threat image so desired by the empire of chaos.
The only result today stemming from “political reasons” is a destructive one, once again proving politicians ruined the human race. The consequences of which have yet to materialize fully.
“The information that Russia has deployed to the Peninsula long-range bombers Tu-22M3 and also deployed “Iskander-M” was distributed by mistake” – said the press service.”
http://tass.ru/politika/6231437
Another B-52 sortie reported by Steffan Watkins, this time from US, over Canada 🇨🇦 to Arctic then to UK.
Pres release from USAF
“U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortresses are conducting simultaneous training flights in the U.S. European Command and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command areas of responsibility as a clear and visible demonstration of U.S. commitment to global allies and partners.”
https://www.eucom.mil/media-library/pressrelease/39555/u-s-air-force-b-52s-conduct-cross-command-missions
So the Daily Mail and RT got that wrong, nothing to do with Georgia. April Fools is a bit early imho.
America and its allies have a death wish–not only for themselves but the vast majority of the world.
I believe it was John Bolton who asserted that “there is nothing beyond Pax Americana.”
The American “rules-based” New World Order will never ever end. It will continue on forever and ever and ever to the end of time itself !
Bolton should have just come of the closet and declared that America will be a 1000-year Reich.
Top Russian MP compares Trump to Hitler, warns of new war
https://www.rt.com/russia/453519-nuclear-mission-usa-participation/
B-52’s are bomb and missile trucks. They have very heavy payloads and very long ranges. They were expected to fly from Kansas to the Urals with old-fashioned heavy hydrogen bombs. They have been repeatedly upgraded and are very capable at what they do, which is to carry bombs and missiles. The bombs and missiles are the meat in the sandwich. They are the real threat.
They were maybe threat up to some 20 years ago. Today they are flying museums.
We are living in the age of hypersonic missiles and these planes can be shot down pretty much as soon as they take off.
Same applies for floating ducks aka carrier groups.
Russia is heading in right direction focusing on missiles by constantly improving their deadly payloads and especialy speed. They are so far ahead of everyone in missile technologies thay it is prety much game over.
Although the B-52 is an old plane, it can inflict enormous damage to unprotected areas. This, I think, is the purpose of the flights, to force the other side, e.g. Russia, to focus on protecting remote areas.
The ultimate goal is to direct Russian attention away from Idlib, where the next real battle will be waged.
B-52s and aircraft carriers are not for fighting WW3, where they would be quickly destroyed, but for peacetime projection of force. As such they are not for frightening Russia, they are to maintain the Baltic States’ confidence in NATO. Russia will watch them like hawks, from the comfort of home.
Similarly, the US deployment of MK-41 missile launchers in Romania has been matched by Russia’s deployment of S-300, S-400, Buk-M2, Pantsir-S1 and Iskander in Crimea, plus squadrons of Tu-22M3 long-range missile-carrying bombers.
Meanwhile Putin has lured Erdogan away from NATO and has nearly completed the re-establishment of Syrian Government control, and is now offering support to Venezuela.
Trump has only managed to ignore North Korea’s threat, done nothing about China’s South China Sea and cannot finish off ISIS in Syria, while US infrastructure continues to decay.
Carry on.
This show was part of:
1. STRATCOM Ex Global Lightning
https://www.stratcom.mil/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/1783693/us-strategic-command-conducts-exercise-global-lightning/
2. EUCOM Austere Challenge.
Pacific off Kamchatka/Japan
and in Europe over Baltic and Romania.
Barents Sea and Arctic
While all previous comments have some merit, they all miss one pov: those rockets in Romania and Poland can easily face west, and other countries beside Russia are in range of the bombers. Soon some misbehaving ‘allies’ might get spanked real hard. Guess better implement those 2% of GDP for NATO or else.
B-52s flights still taking place over Europe and the Baltic in particular. Quite a days now.