BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- Hundreds of aircrew, maintainers and support personnel deployed with several B-52 Stratofortresses from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, April 9, in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.
These B-52s will replace the B-1B Lancers currently stationed in Qatar as part of the 19-nation air coalition conducting operations in the region. These operations include the elimination of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria and the wider international community.
"The B-1 force has been invaluable in meeting U.S. Central Command’s requirement for a long-range strike bomber. With the introduction of the B-52, we are bringing another asset to the fight which offers the capacity, accuracy and endurance to continue sustaining that requirement," said Maj. Gen. Richard Clark, Eighth Air Force commander. "Like the maintainers and aircrew before them, I'm confident the warriors from the 2nd Bomb Wing will prove indispensable in the fight against ISIL."
The B-52 is a long-range heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions including strategic attack, close-air support, air interdiction and maritime operations. In conjunction with coalition forces, deployed B-52 crews will carry out missions in both Iraq and Syria as needed to support Air Tasking Order requirements.
To date, the coalition has conducted more than 33,000 airpower missions in support of OIR. Since June 2014, coalition forces have struck approximately 459 vehicle-based improvised explosive devices, 776 mortar systems, 1,933 logistics buildings housing these weapons, 662 weapons caches and 1,341 staging areas.
"Every day, the Airmen of the 2nd Bomb Wing stand ready to provide unsurpassed firepower to our combatant commanders to hold any enemy at risk around the globe," said Col Kristin Goodwin, 2nd Bomb Wing commander. "Our aircrew, maintainers and support personnel are proud to be supporting U.S. Central Command, and eager to continue our legacy of bomber excellence."
This deployment is the first basing of the Stratofortress in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in since 1991, when B-52s based in Saudi Arabia supported Operation Desert Storm. The B-52s were last flown operationally during Operation Enduring Freedom in May 2006, and during Exercise Eager Lion – a USCENTCOM-led multilateral exercise – in Jordan in May 2015.