B-1 aircrews drop the hammer during exercise

  • Published
  • By Steven J. Merrill
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  Aircrews from the 37th Bomb Squadron "Tigers" thundered into the White Sands Missile Range, N.M. Oct. 25 and employed two Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles from a pair of B-1 bombers as part of the Air Force's air to ground Weapon System Evaluation Program known as Combat Hammer.

The goal of the exercise, managed by the 86th Fighter Weapons Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is to evaluate the effectiveness, maintainability, suitability, and accuracy of precision guided munitions and other advanced air to ground weapons. The entire process of weapons handling is evaluated from start to finish during Combat Hammer.

"Combat Hammer is the only training opportunity available to operational B-1 squadrons to employ the AGM-158 (JASSM), so it is an invaluable opportunity for our crews," said Lt. Col. Brian Mead, 37th BS commander. "We continually train to employ the AGM-158 on a regular basis ... but nothing can replace an opportunity to load and shoot an actual missile."

The JASSM is a 2,000-pound conventional, precision, standoff missile with a lethal penetrator/blast fragmentation warhead, JASSMs cruise autonomously in adverse weather, day or night, using a state-of-the-art infrared seeker and anti-jam global positioning satellite-aided technology to find a specific point on a target. A single B-1B can carry 24 JASSMs.

One of the purposes of the WSEP is to evaluate the ability of a baseline operational aircrew to successfully employ a given weapon in an operationally representative environment as a means of validating current tactics, techniques, and procedures, according to Mead. The 37th BS Tigers chose a mix of experienced instructors and younger aircrew with more retainability - all of whom are experienced combat aviators - to not only meet the intent of the WSEP, but also to ensure the squadron is able to retain the experience and lessons learned by the aircrew for as long as possible.

"It was definitely a rush," said Maj. David Bennett, 37th BS B-1 pilot. "It all went as planned and briefed, but you always get that nervous energy when you are doing something as big as this for the first time. We've simulated employing these weapons since receiving the Block E software upgrade, but it is definitely one of the first times we've employed it live, so it's quite an honor."

The last time the Tigers fired an actual JASSM was in 2006. Operational squadrons aren't provided a training allocation of the JASSM due to their cost and limited numbers.

"The vast majority of B-1 aircrews will go their entire career without shooting an actual AGM-158. That said, we regularly train on AGM-158 employment in SIM mode on the aircraft as well as in the WST (B-1 simulator)," Mead added. "Every lesson we learn from valuable, realistic scenarios provided during exercises like Combat Hammer is shared with every aviator in the B-1 community to ensure they are prepared for any type of situation they may face in combat."

In addition to providing valuable training for B-1 aircrews and ensuring the munitions operated correctly, Combat Hammer provided base munitions specialists the chance to work with the JASSM and aircraft maintainers the opportunity to hone their ability to prepare bombers and load munitions.

"Our Airmen assisted Lockheed-Martin engineers while they performed pre-flight inspections on the JASSM telemetry kit and the flight termination system, supported the assembly of the test munitions, assisted with munitions preparation before the WSEP evaluators arrived at Ellsworth, and delivered the munitions to the flightline," said Lt. Col. Carlos Dalmau, 28th MUNS commander. "The evaluators inspected the munitions to ensure they were correctly assembled and evaluated each step of the process."

Dalmau added the information isn't gathered to better prepare his Airmen for assembling munitions, but to protect forces on the ground by improving the accuracy and reliability of the weapon.

More than 60 Airmen from the 28th AMXS worked tirelessly to ensure the aircraft were ready for the live fire exercise, refueling three aircraft with more than one million pounds of fuel (149,253 gallons), providing 84 hours of pre- and post-flight inspections, conducting nearly 95 hours of unscheduled maintenance and uploading the munitions.

"Our crew chiefs, weapons loaders and specialists readied the aircraft five hours prior to launch, enabling effortless aircrew pre-flights, with zero maintenance late takeoffs," said Lt. Col. Brian Sitler, 28th AMXS commander. "Our Airmen were evaluated during the aircraft preparation and weapons loading procedures to ensure each person was qualified to perform the required tasks, and did each step correctly."

Sitler added that his Airmen are proud to be part of the exercise, and that the skills gained handling the live weapons will further build on their experiences gained while deployed.

According to Maj. Michael Ballard, 86th FWS lead bomber evaluator for Combat Hammer, the data gathered during the live weapons drops is not only crucial to maintaining the long term effectiveness of the American arsenal, but is immediately applicable to current and future conflicts around the world.