How many souls to make a Spirit soar?

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Steven Wilson
  • 36th Operations Group Public Affairs
The 393rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed here from Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., routinely demonstrate their global reach capability by flying the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber in sorties close to 24-hours in duration.

These flights often involve dropping weapons on targets located at training ranges in Alaska or Hawaii, and require support from aerial refueling platforms.

But, a peacetime global power sortie involves much more than the two-person B-2 aircrew and Airman piloting refueling tankers.

First, there's the planning.

Peacetime planning for a wartime job

"Mission planning for a global power sortie begins at least a month out," said Maj. Ryan Link, 393rd EBS assistant director of operations.

Major Link explained the reason so much time is taken for planning these long duration missions is to ensure things like tankers, command and control, ground personnel and the training ranges are all coordinated and scheduled perfectly.

A few weeks prior to the actual flight, it takes four people to plan for the specifics of one jet's particular mission, Major Link explained.

After that, the aircrews just stroll out to their jet, fire it up and cruise off, right?

Wrong.

"During the day of the sortie, there are two pilots to pre-flight the jet," said Major Link.

"There's one pilot to act as an equipment mover, one pilot to sit command and control for the sortie, one pilot for supervisor of flying and all of the pilots that mission planned to brief and ensure the fliers are prepared."

To put this in perspective, Major Link explained of a 24-pilot squadron, half can be involved in a global power sortie from the beginning to its end.

But, this process is largely by design to ensure the tip of the spear is always honed and razor sharp.

Wartime planning

While peacetime planning can sometimes take weeks to coordinate, a combat sortie can be built and executed in a matter of hours when needed.

"Keep in mind we're training new mission leads and other specialists during these global power training missions," said Lt. Col. John Vitacca, 393rd EBS commander.

"Mission planning timelines for combat sorties are completely different."

Lt. Colonel Vitacca explained during exercises or combat operations, concurrent actions by the Air Operations Center and the B-2's mission planning cell reduce the timeline.

For wartime planning, Lt. Colonel Vitacca said, a mission can be planned and a stealth bomber ready to strike a target anywhere on the globe at a time and place of the combatant commander's choosing.

However, there's much more to keeping a stealth squadron flying than, believe it or not, just flying.

Running the bomb squadron

"Almost every aspect of the care and feeding of the squadron is accomplished by the pilots," Major Link said.

Some of the things involved in running an operational bomber squadron that largely fall to the aviators are training, standardization, scheduling, deployment, tactics and mission planning, said Major Link.

"Flying, by percentage, actually takes up a relatively little portion of our work schedule," he said.

But, they don't get it done alone

While the stealth aircrews are constantly ready and prepared to put a weapon across a target if ordered to do so, there's a very special group of Airmen the fliers entrust their lives to for every mission.

"I cannot go to the fight without the professional support of all our enlisted troops," said Major Link. "However, life support is most directly involved with our daily flying operations."

Aircrew Flight Equipment, the career field formerly known as Life Support

The pilots fly the mission, but a group of very specialized Airmen make sure they can get there and back should the worst of situations arises.

"We take care of the pilots so they have one less thing to worry about," said Staff Sgt. Matthew Cost, NCO in charge of the aircrew flight equipment section as he explained what he and his team do for the flying mission.

Sergeant Cost said his specialty is to maintain and repair things like the survival vests the aviators wear, their helmets and the attached breathing apparatus.

"If they eject, the vest has all sorts of things the pilot would need to survive on the ground," said Sergeant Cost. "For the helmet and oxygen mask, we'll take it apart, repair it if necessary and make sure everything in it works."

Sergeant Cost and his fellow aircrew flight equipment specialists have also had to deal with the challenges of a newly merged career field.

Senior Airman Jeff Nieling said, "I was used to handling flotation devices and packing parachutes. Now, I'm also dealing with (oxygen) masks."

But, the career field merger did not detract from the sense of teamwork and need for mission accomplishment in the section. Roughly three-fourths of the way into a deployment, Sergeant Cost said he's very proud of his troops' performance.

"They're fantastic," he said. "I couldn't ask for more.

"Well, I'm not to the point I want to break them yet," he added with the signature evil gleam seemingly issued to all NCOs.

But make no mistake, the aircrew flight equipment Airmen here do take their mission very seriously. Sergeant Cost easily puts it in perspective.

"Ultimately, the price paid could be death if we didn't do our jobs," he said.

Major Link agreed and said his life is truly in these Airmen's hands.

"Their professional conduct while maintaining my equipment can, quite literally, be the difference between life and death," he said. "It never fails to impress me how these troops shoulder their grave responsibility to me, my family, and this country without hesitation.

"I can always count on my life support equipment to be well maintained and working properly."

The B-2 Spirit and their Airmen bring a combination of stealth, long range, large payload and precision weaponry to the combatant commander in any theater. These weapons systems are fully mature and available for use in the continued bomber presence in the Western Pacific, which is aimed at preserving peace and deterrence in the region.