Examine individual changes

'{{Refimprove|date=April 2008}} [[File:B-1B B-2 and B-52.jpg|thumb|right| Contemporary US strategic bombers; [[Boeing B-52 Stratofortress|B-52]], [[Rockwell B-1 Lancer]] and [[Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit|B-2 Spirit]].]] A '''strategic bomber''' is a [[heavy bomber]] aircraft designed to drop large amounts of [[bomb|ordnance]] onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating an enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike [[tactical bombers]], which are used in the battle zone to attack troops and military equipment, strategic bombers are built to fly into an enemy's heartland to destroy strategic targets, e.g. major military installations, factories and cities. In addition to [[strategic bombing]], strategic bombers can be used for [[tactical bombing|tactical missions]]. The [[United States]], [[Russia]] and [[China]] maintain strategic bombers; India leases four from Russia.<ref>Paul, T. V.; Wirtz, James J.; Fortmann, Michael. [http://books.google.com/books?id=9jy28vBqscQC&pg=PA332 ''Balance of power: theory and practice in the 21st century''], Stanford University Press, 2004, p. 332. ISBN 0804750173</ref> ==First and Second World Wars== The first strategic bombing efforts took place during World War I (1914-18), initially by the Germans using Zeppelins or long-range multi-engine Gotha aircraft. Both could and did reach England on bombing raids by 1915, forcing the British to create extensive defense systems including some of the first anti-aircraft guns that were often used with searchlights to highlight the enemy machines overhead. Late in the war, American fliers under the command of Brig. Gen William Mitchell were developing multi-aircraft "mass" bombing missions behind German lines, although the Armistice ended full realization of what was being planned. Study of strategic bombing continued in the interwar years. Many books and articles predicted a fearful prospect for any future war, paced by political fears such as those expressed by British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin who told the House of Commons early in the 1930s that "the bomber will always get through" no matter what defensive systems were undertaken. It was widely believed by the late 1930s that strategic "terror" bombing of cities in any war would quickly result in devastating losses and might decide a conflict in a matter of days or weeks. But theory far exceeded what most air forces could actually put into the air. Germany focused on short-range tactical bombers. Britain's Royal Air Force began developing four-engine long-range bombers only in the late 1930s. The U. S. Army Air Corps (Army Air Force as of mid-1941) was severely limited by small budgets and only barely saved the Boeing B-17 bomber that would soon be vital. The equally-important B-24 first flew in 1939. Both aircraft would provide the bulk of Allied bombing of Germany in 1943-45. At the start of the [[World War II]], initial so-called "strategic" bombing was carried out by [[medium bomber]]s, typically twin-engined ones with several gun positions, but only limited bomb-carrying capacity and range. Larger two and four-engined designs were being developed in both Britain and the U.S., however, and these began to replace the smaller aircraft by 1941-42. After American entry into the war late in 1941, the U.S. 8th Air Force began to develop a daylight bombing capacity using improved [[B-17]] and [[B-24]] four-engine aircraft. The RAF concentrated its efforts on night bombing. But neither force was able to develop adequate bombsights or tactics to allow for often-bragged "pinpoint" accuracy. The post-war U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey studies supported the overall notion of strategic bombing, but underlined many of its shortcomings as well. By the end of the Second World War in 1945, the "heavy" bomber, epitomized by the American [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29]] and [[Consolidated B-32 Dominator|B-32]] used in the Pacific Theater, showed what could be accomplished by area bombing of Japan's cities and the often small and dispersed factories within them. Under Major General Curtis LeMay, the U.S. 20th Air Force, based in the Marianna Islands, undertook low-level incendiary bombing missions, results of which were soon measured in the number of square miles destroyed. Even before the August 1945 atomic bomb missions to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, strategic bombing had withered Japan's ability to continue fighting. ==The Cold War and its aftermath== During the [[Cold War]], the United States and United Kingdom on one side and the Soviet Union on the other kept strategic bombers ready to [[take off]] on short notice as part of the [[deterrence theory|deterrent]] strategy of [[Mutual Assured Destruction]] (MAD). Most strategic bombers of the two [[superpower]]s were designed to deliver [[nuclear weapon]]s. For a time, some squadrons of [[Boeing B-52 Stratofortress]] bombers were kept in the air around the clock, orbiting some distance away from their [[fail-safe]] points near the Soviet border. The [[Royal Air Force]]'s [[Great Britain|British]]-produced "[[V-bomber]]s" were designed and designated to be able to deliver British-made nuclear bombs to targets in European Russia. These bombers could have been able to reach and destroy cities like Kiev or Moscow before American strategic bombers. Red China produced an unlicensed version of [[Tupolev Tu-16]] named [[Xian H-6]], and the Soviet Union produced hundreds of unlicensed units of the American [[B-29 Superfortress]], which the [[Soviet Air Force]] called the [[Tupolev Tu-4]]. During the 1970s, France produced its [[Dassault Mirage IV]] nuclear-armed bomber for the [[French Air Force]] as a part of its independent nuclear strike force: the [[Force de frappe|Force de Frappe]] utilizing French-made bombers and [[IRBM]]s to deliver French-made nuclear bombs. These served in the bomber role through 1996, in reconnaissance through 2005. The French Government appears decided to move all of its strategic armaments to a squadron of four [[nuclear power|nuclear-powered]] [[ballistic missile submarines]], with 16 IRBM tubes apiece. More recent strategic bombers such as the [[Rockwell International]] [[B-1B Lancer]] bomber, the [[Tupolev Tu-160]], and the [[Northrop Grumman]] [[B-2 Spirit]] bomber incorporate various levels of [[stealth technology]] in their designs in an effort to avoid detection, especially by [[radar]] networks. Non-stealthy strategic bombers, e.g., the venerable B-52 (last produced in 1962) or the equally venerable Tupolev [[Tu-95]] are still relevant through their carrying of air-launched [[cruise missile]]s and other "[[stand-off]]" weapons like the [[JASSM]] and the [[JDAM]]. Indeed, it is likely that the USAF's B-52 fleet will, with continual upgrades, outlive its squadrons of B-1Bs. However, the USAF has recently launched a program to study the production of a new strategic bomber to complement the current fleet. It is likely that this bomber would also serve as a replacement for both the B-52 and B-1. In the case of the [[Russian Air Force]], new Tu-160 strategic bombers are expected to be delivered on a regular basis over the course of the next 10 to 20 years. In additionally, the current Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers will be periodically updated, as it was seen during the 1990s with the Tu-22M bombers. [[File:B1s.jpg|thumb|right|[[USAF]] [[B-1 Lancer]] [[supersonic]] strategic bomber]] During the Cold War, strategic bombers were almost certainly armed with nuclear weapons. However, since the end of the Cold War, bombers originally intended for strategic use have been exclusively employed using non-nuclear, [[high explosive]] weapons. During [[Operation Desert Storm]], the [[war in Afghanistan (2001–present)|military action in Afghanistan]], and the [[Invasion of Iraq in 2003]], American B-52s and B-1s were employed in mostly tactical roles. During the [[Soviet-Afghan war]] in 1979–88, Soviet Air Force Tu-95 carried out several mass [[strategic bombing|air raid]]s in various regions of that country. ==Notable strategic bombers== These were the bombers used in the main or that represented a shift in heavy bomber design. With (Maximum bomb load). In practice, the bomb load carried was dependent on factors such as the distance to target and the type or size of the bombs used. ===World War I=== * {{flagicon|Italy}} [[Caproni Ca.1 (1914)|Caproni Ca.1]] * {{flagicon|Italy}} [[Caproni Ca.3]] (1,700 lb) * {{flagicon|German Empire}} [[Gotha G.IV]] (1,100 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Handley Page Type O]] (2,000 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Handley Page V/1500]] (7,500 lb) * {{flagicon|RUS}} [[Sikorsky Ilya Muromets]] (1,100 lb) * {{flagicon|German Empire}} [[Zeppelin Staaken R.VI]] (4,400 lb) * {{flagicon|German Empire}} [[Zeppelin]] (about 5,000 lb) ===World War II=== * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-17 Flying Fortress]] (17,410 lb)<ref>theoretical maximum</ref> * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-24 Liberator]] (8,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-29 Superfortress]] (20,000 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Handley Page Halifax]] (13,000 lb)<ref>for the Mark III</ref> * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Avro Lancaster]] (22,000 lb) * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany}} [[Heinkel He 177]] (15,870 lb) * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Petlyakov Pe-8]] (11,000 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Short Stirling]] (18,000 lb) ===Cold War=== Weapons loads can include nuclear-armed missiles as well as aerial bombs [[Image:Avro Vulcan Bomber RAF.JPEG|thumb|[[RAF]] [[Avro Vulcan]].]] [[Image:Tu-142MR-1990.jpg|thumb|right|[[Tupolev Tu-95]]]] [[File:Kremlin Tupolev Tu-160.jpg|thumb|[[Tupolev Tu-160]]]] * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Avro Lincoln]] (22,000 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Avro Vulcan]] (21,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[P2V Neptune]] – nuclear-armed, based on [[aircraft carrier]]s * {{flagicon|USA}} [[A3D Skywarrior]] – nuclear-armed, based on [[aircraft carrier]]s * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-36 Peacemaker]] (72,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-45 Tornado]] (22,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-47 Stratojet]] (25,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-50 Superfortress]] (28,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-58 Hustler]] (19,450 lb) * {{flagicon|FRA}} [[Dassault Mirage IV|Mirage IV]] (16,000 lb) (withdrawn from service in 1996) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[FB-111]], the somewhat-enlarged strategic-bomber version of the [[F-111 Aardvark]] tactical bomber * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Handley Page Victor]] (35,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Myasishchev M-4]] (52,910 lb) * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Tupolev Tu-4]], reversed engineered version of B-29 Superfortress * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Tupolev Tu-16]] (20,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Tupolev Tu-95]] (33,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USSR}} [[Tupolev Tu-22M]] (46,300 lb) * {{flagicon|UK}} [[Vickers Valiant]] (21,000 lb) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-1 Lancer]] (75,000 lb use of external hardpoints restricted by [[START I]] ) * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-52 Stratofortress]] (70,000 lb) * {{flagicon|RUS}} [[Tupolev Tu-22M]] (46,300 lb) * {{flagicon|RUS}} [[Tupolev Tu-95]] (33,000 lb) * {{flagicon|RUS}} [[Tupolev Tu-160]] (88,200 lb) ===Post Cold War=== [[Image:B-2 Spirit original.jpg|thumb|[[B-2 Spirit]]]] * {{flagicon|USA}} [[B-2 Spirit]] (40,000 lb) ===Future=== * {{flagicon|USA}} [[New Generation Bomber]]. A future stealth bomber to at least complement the current fleet or supplant a portion or all of the B-52 or even B-1 fleet. A deployment time frame goal of 2018 has been established.<ref>[http://www.physorg.com/news73195391.html New Long-Range Bomber On Horizon For 2018]</ref> * {{flagicon|USA}} [[2037 Bomber]]. A stealth, supersonic, long-range, heavy-payload, possibly unmanned strategic bomber to replace the [[B-52 Stratofortress]] with a deployment time frame goal of 2037.<ref>Air Force Assoc. Feb. 2007, p. 11.</ref><ref>Tirpak, John A. [http://www.airforce-magazine.com/MagazineArchive/Pages/1999/June%201999/0699bomber.aspx "The Bomber Roadmap"], Air Force Magazine, June 1999.</ref> * {{flagicon|RUS}} [[PAK DA]] ==See also== * [[Carpet bombing]] * [[Level bomber]] ==References== Brown, Michael E. Flying Blind: The Politics of the U.S. Strategic Bomber Program. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1992. Cross, Robin. The Bombers: The Illustrated Story of Offensive Strategy and Tactics in the Twentieth Century. New York: Macmillan, 1987. Green, William. Famous Bombers of the Second World War. New York: Doubleday, 1959, 1960 (two vols). Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York: Doubleday, 1970. Haddow, G. W., and Peter M. Grosz The German Giants: The German R-Planes 1914-1918. London: Putnam, 1969 (2nd ed.) Hastings, Max. Bomber Command. New York: Dial Press, 1979 Jones, Lloyd S. U.S. Bombers 1926 to 1980s. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1980 (3rd ed.) Neillands, Robin. The Bomber War: The Allied Offensive Against Nazi Germany. Woodstock, NY: Overlook, 2001. Robinson, Douglas H. The Zeppelin in Combat: A History of the German Naval Airship Division, 1912-1918. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 1994. United States Strategic Bombing Survey. Over-all Report (European War). Washington: Government Printing Office, September 30, 1945. {{reflist}} [[Category:Bomber aircraft]] [[Category:Russian inventions]] [[ar:قاذفة قنابل استراتيجية]] [[cv:Стратеги авиацийĕ]] [[de:Strategischer Bomber]] [[es:Bombardero estratégico]] [[fa:بمب‌افکن استراتژیک]] [[it:Bombardiere strategico]] [[lt:Strateginis bombonešis]] [[nl:Strategische bommenwerper]] [[ja:戦略爆撃機]] [[pl:Bombowiec strategiczny]] [[pt:Bombardeiro estratégico]] [[ro:Bombardier strategic]] [[ru:Стратегический бомбардировщик]] [[sl:Strateški bombnik]] [[sr:Стратешки бомбардер]] [[uk:Стратегічний бомбардувальник]] [[vi:Máy bay ném bom chiến lược]] [[zh:战略轰炸机]]'