17 Facts About B-1 Lancer

Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force.

B-1 Lancer was first envisioned in the 1960s as a platform that would combine the Mach 2 speed of the B-58 Hustler with the range and payload of the B-52, and was meant to ultimately replace both bombers.

B-1 Lancer again vetoed funding for AMSA aircraft development in 1968.

B-1 Lancer changed its name to Rockwell International and named its aircraft division North American Aircraft Operations in 1973.

In particular, Senator William Proxmire continually derided the B-1 Lancer in public, arguing it was an outlandishly expensive dinosaur.

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B-1 Lancer was informed of the relatively new work on stealth aircraft that had started in 1975, and he decided that this was a better approach than the B-1.

In 1981, it was believed the B-1 Lancer could be in operation before the ATB, covering the transitional period between the B-52's increasing vulnerability and the ATB's introduction.

The primary argument in favor of the B-1 Lancer was its large conventional weapon payload, and that its takeoff performance allowed it to operate with a credible bomb load from a much wider variety of airfields.

B-1 Lancer has a blended wing body configuration, with variable-sweep wing, four turbofan engines, triangular ride-control fins and cruciform tail.

The B-1 Lancer has been equipped to carry the ALE-50 towed decoy system.

B-1 Lancer holds 61 FAI world records for speed, payload, distance, and time-to-climb in different aircraft weight classes.

B-1 Lancer has been upgraded since production, beginning with the "Conventional Mission Upgrade Program", which added a new MIL-STD-1760 smart-weapons interface to enable the use of precision-guided conventional weapons.

The B-1 received the official name "Lancer" on 15 March 1990.

B-1 Lancer was first used in combat in support of operations in Iraq during Operation Desert Fox in December 1998, employing unguided GP weapons.

The aim was to detect and engage several small craft using existing weapons and tactics developed from conventional warfare against ground targets; the B-1 Lancer is seen as a useful asset for maritime duties such as patrolling shipping lanes.

From August 2014 to January 2015, the B-1 Lancer accounted for eight percent of USAF sorties during Operation Inherent Resolve.

One B-1 Lancer conducted a warm-pit refuel at Bodø Main Air Station, marking the first landing inside Norway's Arctic Circle, and integrated with four Swedish Air Force JAS 39 Gripen fighters.