The United States has accelerated the shipment of upgraded B61-12 thermonuclear bombs to NATO bases in Europe.
This is reported by Politico.
B61-12 bombs were planned to be sent to Europe in the spring of 2023, but the process was postponed to December 2022.
Two sources familiar with the issue of sending weapons to Europe confirmed to the publication that the bombs will be sent in an expedited manner. The press secretary of the Pentagon Patrick Ryder explained that the modernization of B61 bombs has been going on for many years. The USA had long planned to replace the old weapons with modernized versions of the bombs, and this is in no way connected with the war in Ukraine.
- Tests of the B61-12 bomb ended in the summer of 2020. Its tail part was created by the Boeing Corporation. The new design, along with updated control systems, made it possible to significantly increase accuracy and abandon the parachute system. Fighter pilots can drop bombs without flying over the target. B61-12 after reset autonomously glides towards the target, correcting its flight. The power of the bomb does not exceed one megaton, the radius of complete destruction and destruction of all living things is from 3 to 5 km.
- The bomb is adapted for air drop by fighters and bombers. In July, it was dropped by a fourth-generation F-15E Strike Eagle fighter from a height of approximately 7,600 m. The bomb can already be carried by strategic bombers B-52 Stratofortress and B-2 Spirit, as well as fighters F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-22 Raptor. In the future, it is planned to arm the F-35A Lightning II and the B-21 bomber (LRS-B), the first flight of which is expected in 2021.
- In November 2020, Sandia National Laboratory, in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force, completed a series of flight tests of the new nuclear-armed F-35A Lightning II fighter. In particular, experts checked the dropping of a B61-12 nuclear bomb by a fighter jet.