B-2 bomber stealth aircraft are designed not to be easily spotted on radar.

But there are times when the U.S. Air Force goes to great lengths to make sure the world takes notice of these planes.

Stealth Elephant Walk

Such was the case last November when the service lined up eight Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirits on the runway at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, at the culmination of the recent Spirit Vigilance 22 training exercise.

Aircraft from the 509th and 131st Bomb Wings took part in an “elephant walk” before a series of training and readiness drills. The Spirits lined up in close formation on the runway before taking off at short intervals. The routine showcased the availability of the aircraft and served as a demonstration of power.

Given that just twenty B-2s are in service, the display included about 40% of the total Spirit fleet. With eight bombers on the runway at roughly $2 Billion a piece, it drew approximately $16 Billion in stealth bombers to a single location. 

That is something no other nation on Earth can do at the moment, and it made for quite the photo-op.

"This is a reminder that the B-2 Spirit bomber is the visible leg of the nuclear triad," said Col. Geoffrey Steeves, 509th Operations Group commander at the time. "Simply put, the B-2 is the world’s most strategic aircraft. It is the only aircraft on the planet that combines stealth, payload, and long-range strike. We are charged with delivering the nation’s most powerful weapons for our most important missions."

B-2 Spirit Vigilance

Capt. Richard Collier, 509th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron director of operations, explained that the Spirit Vigilance exercise was designed to test aircrews and airmen under difficult conditions.

"We are displaying a capability here to rapidly generate and deploy [the B-2] under greater scrutiny and time restraints than the normal day-to-day flying mission," Collier noted. "Here we demonstrate to our near peer adversaries, as well as to ourselves, how well we can perform."

Spirit Vigilance is one of a series of routine training and readiness exercises held by bomb wings across the Air Force Global Strike Command. The Vigilance series comprises regularly planned, multi-annual exercises conducted to continuously evaluate and enhance U.S. deterrence capabilities.

B-2 Spirit Temporary Grounded

The display of $16 billion in bombers came just weeks before the entire U.S. Air Force fleet of B-2 Spirit strategic bombers of the 509th Bomb Wing were grounded at Whiteman AFB after one of the aircraft experienced an in-flight malfunction and was forced to carry out a successful emergency landing on the base's only runway.

A fire erupted aboard the stealth bomber after landing, damaging the aircraft and closing the runway temporarily.

It was only in May that the fleet was cleared to resume normal operations — more than five months after they were grounded. However, throughout the safety pause, the service said that the bombers could still be employed if absolutely necessary.

The return to flight was approved by Gen. Thomas A. Bussiere, head of the Air Force Global Strike Command, after a roughly six-month pause.

"The B-2 fleet safety pause is officially lifted," Maj. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, commander of the 8th Air Force, which controls the nation’s strategic bomber fleet, told Air & Space Forces Magazine. "Gen. Bussiere, at my recommendation, made a final determination on the necessary actions taken and approved a return to flight."

We should expect another show of force with the Spirit.

Peter Suciu: Author Experience and Expertise

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.

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