The second phase of the ongoing Air Exercise
Cope India 2023 will include two B1-B strategic bombers.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) in a statement on the second phase said, “This segment of
the exercise will witness participation of B1-B bombers of the United States Air Force (USAF).
Before this on two occasions,
B-1B bombers have flown in Indian airspace to do flypasts during Aero India airshows.
This has long-term and complex ramifications.
Viewers may note that in the last 4-5 years relationship
between India and China has deteriorated considerably.
On the other hand , Indo-US relationship has been growing stronger.
In this video, Defense Updates analyzes why China would be very worried to see American B1-B
bomber in India? Let's get started.
B-1B is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force.
The B-1B is powered by 4 General Electric F101-GE-102 after-burning turbofan engines.
Each of these can generate 17,390 lbf (77.4 kN) thrust
when operating normally and 30,780 lbf (136.9 kN) with afterburner.
The B-1B is a bomber with the capability to fly at a supersonic speed topping out at
roughly Mach 1.25. It also has stealth features for improved survivability.
The design enables B1B to have an excellent range of 5,900 mi or 9,400 km and a service
ceiling of 60,000 ft. The engine performance makes B-1B capable of hauling a lot of weapons.
B-1B has a massive payload of 125,000 lb or 56,700 kg of internal and external ordnance combined.
It has 8 external hardpoints for 50,000 pounds or 23,000 kg of ordnance and 3 internal bomb bays for
75,000 pounds or 34,000 kg of ordnance.
Depending on the mission B-1B can carry a variety of ammunitions like Mk- 84 general-purpose bombs,
CBU-87/89/CBU-97 Cluster Bomb Units, GBU-38 JDAM
In a contested environment, B-1B combat jets will depend on long-range missiles to strike
targets without getting inside the rival's engagement envelope.
B-1B will deploy AGM-158 JASSM, AGM-158B JASSM -ER and AGM-158C LRASM.
The exercise will enable B-1B interoperability with Indian Air
Force and that could open a crucial possibility.
In the event of a conflict between the US and China over Taiwan,
the US may ask for permission to stage its B-1B bombers.
In normal circumstances, India would not entertain such a request but
under certain circumstances, India could definitely consider granting permission.
Similarly, India could approach the U.S. to host the bombers,
if it perceives an imminent threat from China.
The potential ability of the United States Air Force to stage its bombers through India
has strong deterrence value and would be a sobering prospect for the Chinese leadership.
General Wilsbach remarked on the unprecedented
participation of a US bomber in an exercise held in India, “We have an opportunity not
only to show the aircraft in public, but the crew also have an opportunity to train with
one another and incorporate the bombers into the scenarios so that everybody on all sides
has a chance to see how they operate and we can improve our tactics, techniques, and procedures.”
The USAF Global Strike Command has retired 17 B-1 bombers from its fleet of 62.
The 45 that remain in service will serve until the new B-21 Raider stealth bomber is deployed.
There is a chance that IAF could look to lease or
acquire a squadron of B-1B bombers after having them refurbished.
This could be a cost-effective and quick option. India doesn’t have a dedicated bomber while
China has Xian H-6 which is a Tupolev Tu-16 produced under license in China.
A dedicated bomber has much more payload capacity, B-1B has about
7 times the weapon hauling capablility compared to IAF fighters like Su-30MKI
India and the US have already established all the necessary
agreements for the sale or lease of the bombers.
In June 2016, the US designated India a “Major Defense Partner,”
allowing for transferring assets like B-1 B-.
The 2016 Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) allows the militaries
to use each other’s bases to repair and replenish supplies.
The 2018 Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) agreement facilitates the sale
of high-end technology from the US to India. The October 2020 Basic Exchange and Cooperation
Agreement (BECA) agreement facilitates sharing of Geospatial Intelligence.
Getting used platform is not rare. Recently, the Australian government has decided
to acquire three used Virginia-class submarines from the U.S. as part of the AUKUS agreement.
B-1B is a lethal platform.
For example, each B-1B can carry 24 AGM-158C
missiles and 3-4 bombers could be deadly for the Chinese Navy.
AGM-158C is developed as an anti-ship variant of AGM-158 and is named LRASM by the U.S. Navy.
The stealth missile is designed to strike ships as far away as 300 miles or 480 km
though the exact range could be more. The missile is subsonic and but since
it is LO (Low Observable), the enemy warship will not see it coming till it is very close.
It uses an inertial and jam-resistant GPS navigation system for the initial phase of
the journey, a two-way data link for mid-course,
and a Radio-frequency and Infra-Red sensor for the terminal phase.
The warhead is potent enough to cripple a large warship.
So, a B-1B escorted by Indian fighters including
the French-made Rafael would be a potent strike package.
It remains to be seen how this pans out in the coming days.