B-1 bombers won’t be as common over the skies of Western South Dakota this summer.
All bombers at Ellsworth Air Force base are ordered to stand down until October. Federal budget cuts mean 45-thousand fewer training hours for the nations fleet of military aircraft. This means B-1 training missions won’t take place until the end of the fiscal year.
Officials at the base say the B-1's currently deployed in combat overseas will remain in the air until they return home later this summer.
In a press release officials say the curtailment of training impacts the base’s combat readiness and aviator qualifications.
The reduction in training is needed to keep other parts of the Air Force combat ready.
Ellsworth Air Force Base holds half the nation’s fleet of B-1’s.
We’ll have more on this story as the information is made available.