Rockwell B-1 Lancer

The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is an American, strategic, jet bomber introduced into service with the US Air Force at the end of the Cold War. It is a swing-wing supersonic bomber, which is capable of hauling a large bomb-load; 52,160 kg (114,993-lb) of ordnance. It was developed as a replacement for the B-52 Stratofortress, a heavy subsonic bomber that had been used in the Vietnam War. The B-1, nicknamed the ''Bone'', was used in combat in Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and in the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The first prototype of the B-1 Lancer (B-1A - serial number 74-0158) rolled out of the US Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, California, on October 26, 1974, and it made its first flight on December 23, 1974. It was flown by a Rockwell test pilot, Charles C. Bock. It was the result of a 1970 bid for a supersonic strategic bomber. Boeing, General Dynamics, and Rockwell had taken part in the competition, with Rockwell being awarded the contract for research, development, and building the whole aircraft and General Electric for developing the power plant. On October 1, 1986, it finally entered service with the US Air Force as the B-1B version, after twelve years of trials and technical improvement. Rockwell produced 4 B-1As and 100 B-1B bombers.

In 1977, US President Jimmy Carter had cancelled the B-1A program due to the huge cost that it would imply building 240 aircraft. He had concluded that the job of striking at the Soviet Union in case of war could be done by the old Boeing B-52 equipped with long-range, stand-off weapons. However, in 1981, President Ronald Reagan had revived the program and the B-1B version would be produced in large number.

Above: the B-1B Lancer in flight in 1988.

Technical Description

The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a four-engine, supersonic monoplane of all-metal fuselage. Titanium make up 21 percent of aircraft airframe. It features variable geometry sweep wing, which is mounted low on fuselage. When fully forward, wing leading edge has a 15° sweep, and 67° when swept backward. The carry-through structure, which connects the outer wings with their pivots, is made of titanium alloy, because it has to be strong enough to withstand the rigors of the wing sweep operation for high speed and low altitude. The aircraft has eight internal fuel tanks for the four General Electric F101-GE-102 turbofan engines. Each of the engine delivers 30,780 pounds of thrust with afterburner.

The cockpit of the B-1 is part of the escape capsule as the aircraft lacks ejection seats. This escape capsule allow the 4-man crew to leave the aircraft in an emergency when flying at high speed. Normal ejection at high speed would be fatal using ejection seats. The cockpit features fighter-type control sticks, vertical scale flight instruments, and TV screens for a forward-looking infra-red image. Two of the three long bomb-bays are located in fuselage ahead of wing, while the third one is above the end of engine nacelle. The aft portion of fuselage is equipped with a radome, in which a pulse-Doppler radar is located. The forward portion of fuselage is fitted with a pair of canards.

Specifications (B-1B)

Type: long-range, supersonic strategic bomber.

Length: 45.7 m (150 feet, 2 inches)

Wing Span (fully-forward): 42 m (137 feet). Swept: 24 m (79 feet)

Wing Area: 181 m2 (1,950 square feet)

Height: 10.24 m (33 feet, 7 inches)

Power Plant: four 30,780-lb, General Electric F101-GE-102 turbofan engines.

Maximum Speed: Mach 1.25 (1,335 km/h = 830 mph)

Range: 9,400 km (5,900 miles)

Service Ceiling: 18,000 m (60,000 feet)

Rate of Climb: 28.8 m/s

Crew: 4

Armament: 52,160 kg (114,993-lb) bomb-load, in three internal bays and on hardpoints for Mk-84 general purpose bombs, GBU-54 Laser JDAM bomb, AGM-158 JASSM air-to-surface missiles, and AGM-154 Stand-Off Weapons.