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Photo essay: B-2 Spirit performs during Scott AFB airshow

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol
  • Air Mobility Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  An aircrew flies a B-2 Spirit from Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., over the airfield as part of an aerial demonstration for the 2010 Airpower Over The Midwest Airshow on Sept. 11, 2010, at Scott AFB, Ill.

Tens of thousands of people attended the two-day airshow.

According to its Air Force fact sheet, the B-2 Spirit is a multi-role bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions.

"A dramatic leap forward in technology, the bomber represents a major milestone in the U.S. bomber modernization program," the fact sheet states. "The B-2 brings massive firepower to bear, in a short time, anywhere on the globe through previously impenetrable defenses."
 
The first B-2 was publicly displayed on Nov. 22, 1988, when it was rolled out of its hangar at Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, Calif. Its first flight was July 17, 1989. The B-2 Combined Test Force, Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., is responsible for flight testing the engineering, manufacturing and development aircraft on the B-2.

Whiteman AFB, Mo., is the only operational base for the B-2. The first aircraft, Spirit of Missouri, was delivered Dec. 17, 1993. Depot maintenance responsibility for the B-2 is performed by Air Force contractor support and is managed at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker AFB, Okla.