U.S. Air Force Has Grounded Its B-1B Bomber Fleet

Aircrew members do preflight checks on a B-1B Lancer bomber as part of an exercise at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, August 13, 2014. US Air Force/Senior Airman Zachary Hada

Warzone/The Drive: The Air Force Has Grounded Its B-1B Bomber Fleet For The Second Time In A Year

The service says that this new parachute-related issue is unrelated to the incident that prompted the stand-down in operations last year.

The U.S. Air Force has ground its B-1B Bone bomber fleet for the second time in less than a year over problems with the aircraft's emergency egress system. This is this time has to do with how the drogue parachutes that stabilize the plane's ejection seats if the crew has to punch out.

Air Force Global Strike Command, which oversees all of the service's bombers, including the B-1Bs, ordered the "safety stand-down" on Mar. 28, 2019, after uncovering the issue in at least one bomber assigned to an unspecified unit. There is no indication as yet as to how many Bones actually have a problem or how long it be before the fleet get flying again.

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More News On The U.S. Air Force Grounding Its B-1B Bomber Fleet

Air Force grounds B-1 bomber fleet to inspect ejection seats -- Military Times
Air Force Grounds B-1 Fleet Over New Precautions Concerning Ejection Seat -- Military.com
Air Force grounds B-1 Lancer bomber fleet over ejection system concerns -- Stars and Stripes
Air Force grounds B-1 bomber fleet over ejector-seat issue -- FOX News
US Air Force grounds B-1 bomber fleet over safety concerns -- CNN