[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 70 (Wednesday, June 8, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                           THE NEW B-1 BOMBER

  Mr. PRESSLER. Mr. President, I wish to take a moment to address the 
future of the B-1 bomber and the role it can play in as our heavy 
bomber force becomes more strategically important. Because the United 
States is in the process of closing overseas bases, the ability to 
project American air power worldwide--and project it in a timely 
manner--is becoming an increasingly important part of our Nation's 
security.
  The B-1 originally was designed as a multirole bomber. However, the 
world situation dictated an emphasis on its nuclear capabilities when 
it entered operational service in the mid-1980's. In response to recent 
and dramatic world changes, the emphasis must now be shifted to the B-
1's conventional capabilities. With some modification to its inherent 
conventional capabilities, the B-1 will be an outstanding conventional 
weapons system. In fact, the B-1 holds 44 world records in combined 
speed, payload, and range--the very categories which will serve it well 
as the workhorse of the future conventional bomber force.
  The Air Force has deemed the B-1 ``the backbone of the bomber 
force.'' In the Bottom-Up Review released last year, the Clinton 
administration made it clear that it plans to continue investing in the 
future conventional capabilities of the B-1 bomber.
  Although I have been a long-time supporter of the B-1 bomber, not all 
of my colleagues feel the same way. The plane often has been unjustly 
faulted for not performing up to its full potential. The B-1 must be 
funded fully in order to attain its full potential and achieve 
established readiness goals. The reality is, as my colleagues are well 
aware, that the B-1 has never been funded fully and therefore has been 
prevented from living up to its capabilities.
  Hopefully, all of this is about to change. Language in the 1994 
Defense authorization bill directs a stringent test of the B-1's 
capabilities. The Air Force is convinced this test will put to rest, 
once and for all, the concerns surrounding the B-1's mission 
capability. One wing of B-1 bombers will be provided a full complement 
of necessary support and afforded the opportunity to demonstrate that 
with the planned support it can perform up to Air Force goals. After 
abolishing the myths of its inadequacies, the B-1 will finally be able 
to assume its rightful place as the most versatile workhorse in the 
bomber force. Through the ensuing years, with consistently adequate 
funding, the B-1 will become more and more capable and play a much more 
vital part of our national security.
  This is not idle speculation. Today, B-1's throughout air combat 
command are participating in global power projection missions. On May 
19, a B-1 landed at Andrews Air Force Base after completing a 20-plus-
hour mission. The plane flew out of Texas, completed an electronic 
warfare exercise in Scotland, and struck targets on a bombing range in 
the Netherlands before returning to Andrews. The weapons directly 
struck their intended targets at precisely the right time--the timing 
error was zero seconds, and the miss distance, zero feet.

  In the not too distant future, as part of the conventional upgrades, 
the B-1 will be equipped with advanced conventional weapons, among 
them: the joint direct attack munition [JDAM], and the tri-service 
standoff attack missile [TSSAM]. I understand there also has been some 
discussion in the Air Force of equipping the B-1 with conventional air 
launched cruise missiles [CALCM]. These upgraded conventional munitions 
will provide the B-1 with far greater accuracy and the ability to 
strike a wider range of targets while remaining farther from hostile 
threat areas, thereby enhancing its survivability and the safety of 
U.S. military personnel. The B-1 bomber, equipped with the planned 
modifications identified in the conventional mission upgrade program, 
will provide a cost-effective and strategically flexible means of 
enhancing the United States' defense capabilities. The B-1 can fly 
faster with a greater payload than any other aircraft in the world. Of 
our three heavy bombers, supersonic airspeed and maneuverability give 
the B-1 the unique ability to fly with a complement of fighter aircraft 
and carry as many as 24 2,000-pound weapons. The B-1 could be engaged 
in one theater and within 24 hours strike targets on the other side of 
the globe were a second conflict to arise.
  The Air Force currently has 95 operational B-1 bombers. Of these 95, 
60 will be designated primary aircraft authorized [PAA], 27 will be 
placed in attrition reserve status, 6 in back-up aircraft inventory 
[BAI], and 2 will remain as test aircraft. According to Gen. Mike Loh, 
commander of Air Combat Command, the 60 PAA will be divided between 
Ellsworth Air Force Base, in my home State of South Dakota and Dyess 
Air Force Base, TX.
  In closing, I would like to commend General Loh for his valiant 
efforts on behalf of the B-1. He has been instrumental in effectively 
promoting it within the Air Force. I also would like to encourage my 
colleagues who may doubt the capabilities of the B-1--the backbone of 
the bomber force--to take another look. This bomber is crucial to the 
ability of the United States to project the kind of air power we need 
to secure the national defense well into the next century.

                          ____________________