The U.S. Air Force has announced that B-52H Stratofortress aircraft conducted flights from RAF Fairford, England, to Poland and the Netherlands on April 1, 2019.
In Poland, a B-52 conducted air interdiction and close air support training, including release of inert munitions, with Polish Joint Terminal Attack Controllers on the ground.
In the Netherlands, B-52s conducted close air support training, including release of inert munitions, at the Vliehors Range.
JTACs are military personnel – usually air force – attached to a ground unit that direct the fire of combat aircraft providing close air support. Seamless interoperability between aircrew and JTACS is a key aspect of coordinating joint military operations.
The flights also allowed aircrews to conduct theater familiarization and to demonstrate U.S. commitment to allies and partners through the global employment of our military forces. U.S. Strategic Command regularly tests and evaluates the readiness of strategic assets to ensure we are able to honor our security commitments.
The B-52s, part of the Bomber Task Force currently deployed to the U.S. European Command area of responsibility, are from the 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The aircraft arrived in theater on March 14-15 and are temporarily operating out of RAF Fairford.