USAF B-1 Lancer Squadron Deploying To Norway

Library image of a CONUS-based B-1B Lancer during a long-duration Bomber Task Force mission to conduct interoperability training with Danish fighter aircraft and Estonian joint terminal attack controllers, May 2020 [Courtesy photo by Danish Air Force]

US Air Force personnel will arrive for the first-ever Norway deployment of an an expeditionary B-1 Lancer bomber squadron.

Press Release, Stuttgart, 02 February 2021: For the first time in Norway, more than 200 US Air Force personnel from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, with an expeditionary B-1 Lancer bomber squadron, will arrive to support upcoming Bomber Task Force (BTF) missions out of Ørland Air Base, Norway.

The airmen will be a part of the advance team for scheduled missions in the coming weeks which will occur for a limited time. Training for the US Air Force personnel will include a variety of areas ranging from operating in the high north to improving interoperability with allies and partners across the European theatre.

“Operational readiness and our ability to support Allies and partners and respond with speed is critical to combined success,” said Gen. Jeff Harrigian, US Air Forces in Europe and Africa commander. “We value the enduring partnership we have with Norway and look forward to future opportunities to bolster our collective defence.”

In keeping with force health protection measures aligned with the Department of Defense, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Norwegian policy, all US Air Force personnel will immediately practice a ten-day COVID-19 Restriction of Movement (ROM). All personnel were medically screened in Texas prior to arriving in Norway.

While details of specific missions or numbers of events are not discussed as part of routine operational security standards, US Air Forces in Europe routinely host a variety of US aircraft and units across the theatre in support of USEUCOM objectives.

US European Command (USEUCOM) is responsible for US military operations across Europe, portions of Asia and the Middle East, the Arctic and Atlantic Ocean. USEUCOM is comprised of more than 64,000 military and civilian personnel and works closely with NATO Allies and partners. The command is one of two US forward-deployed geographic combatant commands headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany.