The US Air Force Global Strike Command plans to equip the B-1 Lancer strategic bombers with the AGM-183 ARRW (Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon - “Airborne Rapid Weapon”). This was announced by the head of command, General Timothy Rey, in an interview with the official magazine of the US Air Force Association Air Force Magazine.
In an interview, the full version of which will be published in the May issue of the magazine, Ray said he wants to re-equip and upgrade the remaining Rockwell B-1 Lancer aircraft. The modification plan includes the installation of eight additional external nodes for the suspension of weapons that can carry missiles ARRW.
“My goal is to bring at least one squadron of B-1 aircraft equipped with external holders for ARRW hypersonic cruise missiles,” Air Force Magazine quotes the commander.
The publication notes that at the Edwards Air Force Base in California in August 2019, B-1 aircraft with additional equipment, including suspension components and extended bomb hatches, were already tested. At the same time, test launchers for CSLR cruise missiles equipped with high-precision JASSM-ER missiles were used as test weapons.
In service since the 1980s
Commenting on the prospects of equipping the B-1 with hypersonic missiles, General Ray admitted that these aircraft "will require significant structural improvements," and for this the US Air Force will have to request additional funding from Congress.
“We can make competent actions, and we have Congress support for this. This is what we are working on to cope with this task. We had a good dialogue, ”said the general.
The military leader explained that the modification of the B-1 bombers for the ARRW hypersonic missile was not included in the defense budget for 2021. However, Ray added, his agency continues to work on this project.
- Strategic Bomber B-1B Lancer
- Gettyimages.ru
- © Ethan Miller
Recall that specialized publications and American military experts have repeatedly paid attention to the exhausted resource for operating Rockwell B-1 Lancer aircraft - supersonic strategic bombers with variable sweep of the wing. In the 1980s, the U.S. Air Force purchased a total of 100 such vehicles.
The demand for them increased sharply during the military campaigns of Washington in the Middle East. The publication Defense News notes that over the past 20 years, B-1 aircraft (in service, according to the Boeing website, now there are 66 such machines) were used almost continuously.
In the summer of 2019, the Air Force Times, citing data from the US House of Representatives Armed Forces Committee, reported that the number of B-1 Lancer combat-ready US strategic bombers today is “units”.
According to analysts, in order to rectify this situation, the US defense department may need more than one year and serious financial injections. It is worth noting that the draft US Air Force defense budget for the fiscal year 2021 provides for the cancellation of 17 B-1 aircraft at once - almost an entire squadron (it usually includes 18 aircraft).
A military expert Alexei Leonkov in an interview with RT noted that the B-1 Lancer is often compared with the Russian Tu-160 - both are jet strategic bombers with variable wing sweep. However, the expert explained, the Tu-160 is superior to the American aircraft in a number of ways.
“The Tu-160 is an order of magnitude superior to the American aircraft in speed and range. The Russian Federation has adopted a program under which the existing Tu-160s will undergo modernization, new cars will be produced that will be even better in terms of performance, ”the expert noted.
As the editor-in-chief of Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine Viktor Murakhovsky noted in an interview with RT, the United States withdrew the B-1 Lancer bomber from strategic nuclear carriers after signing the START-3 treaty with Russia.
“They dismantled equipment for launching nuclear weapons from him, stopped making cruise missiles with an air-based nuclear warhead. Now, as part of the work on hypersonic weapons, as part of the concept of a quick global strike, they are going to re-equip their bombers with such an weapon system, ”the expert explained.
Modernization of B-1 Lancer aircraft for new types of weapons will require at least four years, Viktor Murakhovsky believes.
“In 4-5 years, the combination of an ARRW rocket and a B-1 aircraft can become operational. In addition, a high-precision LRSO nuclear missile can be launched in 2-3 years, and the capabilities of the AGM missile can also be expanded, ”the military analyst said.
Perhaps in the future, the United States will think about the return of a nuclear-powered cruise missile into the armament of the B-1 bomber, Viktor Murakhovsky believes.
“If the United States does not extend the START-3 treaty, then they will definitely be engaged in this project,” the expert added.
Russia is ahead
When asked if the US Air Force Global Attack Command prefers ARRW missiles over other promising hypersonic missiles, its head Timothy Ray replied: “I think we will stop on the ARRW variant, since we have suitable bearing capabilities for this.”
According to Ray, ARRW has a successful design and compatibility that will allow the US Air Force to "quickly enter the game."
Recall that the development of ARRW (also has an AGM-183A nomenclature) began in 2018. Then the company Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control received a contract of $ 480 million for the development of hypersonic aeroballistic missiles for the US Air Force.
- The layout of the promising American hypersonic aerial ballistic missile Lockheed Martin AGM-183A ARRW on the external suspension of the US Air Force strategic bomber Boeing B-52H
- © US Air Force
The project is still in prototype stage. The first tests of the rocket took place in June 2019, but there were no test launches with warheads: only the aerodynamic qualities of the product were tested. According to plans, the rocket should be ready by the end of 2022. The technical characteristics of the AGM-183A ARRW missile were not made public.
This weapon, perhaps, will be adopted only after 3-4 years, military observer Viktor Baranets noted in a conversation with RT. During this time, Russia, which already operates hypersonic missiles, will advance in their development even further.
“Russia, too, will not sit idly by; developments for the future are already underway. Moscow in the field of hypersound is already ahead of Washington by at least 10-15 years. By 2023-2024, when these missiles go into service in the United States, Washington’s lag will intensify, ”the expert noted.
With this assessment of the state of the development of hypersonic weapons in the United States and Russia, Victor Murakhovsky agrees.
“Russia is ahead of the United States in this area. Moscow was the first to put into service a planning guided hypersonic unit for strategic and ground-based nuclear forces. It is known that the Dagger complex has experience of combat duty, the carrier of which is a modified MiG-31 fighter-interceptor, ”the expert recalled.
In addition, there are a number of samples of hypersonic weapons that are in the final stages of testing.
“At the completion stage of the tests is the Zircon hypersonic missile, which is designed for advanced anti-ship missile systems, for equipping surface and submarine ships. After the termination of the INF Treaty, nothing prevents us from using it on terrestrial media, ”the expert concluded.