Bomber Requirements

The US bomber force faces a significant modernization challenge. As the weapon of choice for rapidly projecting national resolve over intercontinental distances, the bomber force must prepare for the future by establishing a wide array of capabilities across the entire spectrum of conflict. However, our current modernization process is bogged down in a short-view, threat-based planning cycle. Instead, bomber modernization must come to grips with a wide range of requirements addressing future conflict. These essential requirements which stem from a series of military studies and vision documents place a premium on flexibility in operations. The bomber force must begin now to expand its modernization effort toward flexible avionics, weaponry, logistics, and training if it hopes to compete as a viable tool in future conflict.