No, the United States isn’t testing a nuclear bomb from the B-1B Lancer
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Tensions between the US, Russia and China have sparked some fears of nuclear war. This may interest you : Secretary Blinken’s Trip to Cambodia, the Philippines, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda – U.S. Department of State. On August 1, at a conference on nuclear non-proliferation in New York, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres discussed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying, “Today, humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation from nuclear annihilation.”
However, a recent Facebook post claiming that a US bomber was testing a nuclear bomb is false, according to the US Air Force.
“US Tests New Deadliest Nuclear Bomb Shocks Russia, China,” reads the August 17 post.
It links to a blog post from the same date titled “US Tests New Deadliest Nuclear Bomb From B-1B Lancer.”
This post was marked as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat fake news and disinformation in its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
A U.S. Air Force spokesman told PolitiFact that the information in the Facebook post was inaccurate and that the plane was “not carrying nuclear weapons.”
Aside from the title, the blog post no longer mentions nuclear weapons. Instead, it appears to borrow heavily from a 2021 story in The Drive about Boeing Co.’s plans to begin testing hypersonic weapons capabilities for the B-1B Lancer in September 2022.
Contrary to the blog post, Drive, an automotive news site, does mention nuclear weapons — but does not say the US has tested them.
The planes “were once intended to carry nuclear weapons,” the article says, “before the B-1 lost that role after the end of the Cold War. The pylons were then disabled when the plane was brought into compliance with the New START (Strategic Arms) treaty. reduction) of regulations.”
New START, a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States and the Russian Federation, was signed on April 8, 2010 in Prague and entered into force on February 5, 2011.
Drive notes that “the first external pylons on the B-1B could also carry two missiles each, in this case a nuclear-tipped AGM-86B cruise missile or ALCM,” but none of the missiles in question “are expected to yield nuclear weapons.” “
The United States ended testing nuclear explosives in 1992, and testing can be done using computer simulations without an actual nuclear detonation, said Matthew Fuhrmann, a professor of political science at Texas A&M University who studies nuclear proliferation. The State Department said that “these computer simulation advances give the United States the ability to monitor and maintain a stockpile of nuclear weapons without testing nuclear explosives.”
Fuhrmann said the B-1B was converted in the 1990s to deliver exclusively conventional munitions.
“Theoretically, it could deliver a nuclear payload,” he said, “but as far as I know, it’s not doing that right now, and it hasn’t for several decades.”
Los Angeles Times, Even a limited nuclear war could kill a third of the world’s population, study suggests, 15 Aug 2022
Boeing September 29, 2021 to test hypersonic missiles for B-1 bomber next year
Department of State, Computer Simulations of US Nuclear Weapons, accessed 26 August 2022
Washington Post, Hypersonic Weapons: Who Has Them and Why It Matters, 6 Apr. 2022
Matthew Fuhrmann, Professor of Political Science at Texas A&M University, August 25, 2022
Electronic interview with Ann Stefanek, Media Relations, US Air Force, August 25, 2022
Organization of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, “23. September 1992 – The Last US Nuclear Test,” accessed August 26, 2022.
NPR, Why UN chief says we’re ‘one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation,’ 2 Aug 2022
US Air Force, B-1B Lancer, visited on August 26, 2022
Boeing, B-1B Lancer, accessed 26 August 2022
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.
The 17 B-1 bombers have been withdrawn from the 62nd fleet, which the Air Force says is overstretched after years of providing on-call air support to troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
How loud is a b1 bomber?
The previous B-1B takeoff holds the record: 127 dB SENEL. The maximum normal noise limit at LB Airport is 102.5 dB SENEL, where every 10 dB increase is approximately perceived as a doubling of perceived noise. B-1Bs and other military aircraft use afterburners (which are quite loud) on takeoff to ensure a safe takeoff.
What is the loudest military jet? The XF-84H was almost certainly the loudest aircraft ever built, earning the nicknames “Thunderscreech” and “Mighty Ear Banger”. Read also : Wildfire Business Assistance Grants Now Available.
What is the loudest bomber?
The loudest aircraft ever flown was probably the Republic XF-84H “Thunderscreech”, a turboprop version of the US Air Force’s F-84 Thunderjet fighter.
Are B-2 bombers loud?
As with most aircraft, the B-2’s noisiest component is the engine system. But unlike an airliner or B-52, the B-2’s engines are buried in the aircraft. To see also : Stability in times of upheaval – a challenge the Israeli high-tech industry may face. This helps to drown out the noise. An efficient aerodynamic design also helps keep the B-2 quiet, as the engines can operate at lower power settings.
What U.S. bomber carries the most bombs?
The B-1B can carry up to 34,000 kg of missiles or bombs inside. The Lancer can carry more cargo than any other American bomber. With the end of the Cold War, the B-1B lost its nuclear strike role and was instead repurposed for conventional warfare.
Which aircraft has the largest bomb load?
What is the US main bomber?
For more than 60 years, the B-52 has been the backbone of the United States’ strategic bombers. The B-52 is capable of launching or launching the widest range of weapons in the US inventory. This includes gravity bombs, cluster bombs, precision-guided missiles and common direct attack munitions.
How many bombs does a B-52 carry?
Unmodified B-52Ds could only carry 27 even 500-pound or 750-pound bombs, but the Big Belly could carry 84 500-pound or 42 750-pound bombs.
What is the most destructive bomb?
The Tsar bomb (Russian: Царь-бо́мба) (codename: Ivan or Vanja), also known by the alphanumeric designation "AN602", was a hydrogen aerial bomb and the most powerful nuclear weapon ever created and tested.
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