A pair of B-52H Stratofortresses on Tuesday carried out practice drops of live guided bombs at a Swedish weapons range, before flying over the nation’s parliament to mark the anniversary of Sweden joining NATO.
The bombers were taking part in a task force mission dubbed Viking Nebula, alongside a pair of Swedish JAS 39 Gripens. The Swedish fighters escorted the B-52s to Vidsel Test Range, where the bombers released GBU-30 joint direct attack munitions.
Joint terminal attack controllers from both the U.S. and Swedish militaries were on the ground supporting the drops, the Air Force said, and helped the forces practice how air and ground units work together with one another to deliver precision strikes.
Vidsel is located about 580 miles north of Stockholm, and is the largest land proving ground in Europe. The Air Force said this was the B-52s’ first live weapons drop in Sweden since the country joined NATO last year.
The B-52s and their crew are deployed to RAF Fairford in England as part of the 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron’s Bomber Task Force 25-2 deployment.
That expeditionary squadron, which contains four B-52s, air crew and other airmen needed to support the bombers, deployed from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota in February to train alongside NATO allies and partners in the region. Viking Nebula was the 11th operation this bomber task force completed.
And on Friday, a B-52 that is also part of the bomber task force conducted a low pass over Oslo, Norway as part of a mission dubbed Tower Blockhouse. That B-52 was escorted by two Norwegian F-35 fighters.
The Air Force regularly rotates B-52s through Europe on temporary deployments — as part of bomber task forces — to deter Russian aggression and show U.S. commitment to NATO’s collective defense and Europe’s regional security.
But this task force comes as the war in Ukraine, the largest conflict in Europe since the end of World War II, grinds into its fourth year. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine alarmed much of Europe, and prompted Sweden to cast off its traditionally neutral stance toward conflicts and seek NATO membership.
President Donald Trump has upended the U.S.’ long-established support of NATO, casting doubt on the value of the longstanding alliance and publicly suggesting America may not come to the defense of NATO members he feels are not spending enough on their own defense.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.
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