Air Force making progress on B-52 conversions under New START Treaty

The Air Force has converted 18 operational B-52s to a conventional-only configuration and, according to the head of Air Force Global Strike Command, is "on track" to meet New START Treaty requirements before its fiscal year 2018 deadline.

Under the treaty, the Air Force is required to modify 41 B-52H bombers to a conventional-only role -- 29 operational bombers and 12 of which are in storage. In written testimony provided July 14 to the House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee, Gen. Robin Rand said as of June 27 the service has converted 18 of the 29 operational bombers.

"We are on track to meet our New START Treaty commitments well before the FY-18 deadline," he said.

The New START Treaty between the United States and Russia has been in place since 2011 and calls for each country to retain no more than 800 strategic nuclear delivery systems, to include deployed and non-deployed land-based intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, submarine-launched ballistic missile launchers and heavy bombers that can carry nuclear weapons.

Each country can retain no more than 700 deployed missiles across the triad and deployed warheads are capped at 1,550 across each strategic weapons fleet.

Rand also said in his testimony that the service is moving ahead with plans to replace the B-52's aging radar and is almost finished with a cost capability analysis for the effort. The service expects to complete an analysis of alternatives sufficiency review and achieve a material development decision this year.