PUBLISHED on August 10, 2025, 08:18 AM EDT – Key Points and Summary – The U.S. Air Force’s 9th Bomb Squadron recently debuted a “hybrid” operations strategy during a Red Flag combat exercise. B-1B Lancer bombers flew daily round-trip missions from their home base in Texas to the Nevada training range, while their mission planning cells were forward-deployed at the exercise’s headquarters at Nellis Air Force Base.
-This new model is a practical application of the Pentagon’s Dynamic Force Employment (DFE) concept, which is designed to make U.S. military operations strategically unpredictable to adversaries by rapidly deploying forces in new and unexpected ways.
B-1B Lancer Bomber National Security Journal Photo.
Air Force Attempts “Hybrid” B-1B Lancer Exercise in Texas
The U.S. Air Force’s 9th Bomb Squadron has wrapped up its first appearance in the Red Flag combat training exercise in three years, debuting a “hybrid” operations strategy designed to prove the squadron and the 7th Bomb Wing’s ability to execute Dynamic Force Employment (DFE) concepts.
From July 21-25, 2025, B-1B Lancer bombers flew daily round-trip sorties from their home station at Dyess Air Force Base (AFB) in Texas to the Nevada Test and Training Range. Unlike standard deployments, the bombers remained in Texas while their mission planning cells were positioned at Nellis AFB in Nevada, where the exercise was headquartered.
The arrangement placed crews in a contested, high-threat training environment that required precise coordination across locations and integration with U.S. and allied units.
9th Bomb Squadron commander Lt. Col. Ashley Cook reportedly described the latest Red Flag exercise as a “milestone” achievement.
During the exercise, crews practiced missions in contested airspace, integrated with other services and allied forces, and alternated between friendly (“Blue Air”) and simulated adversary (“Red Air”) roles.
B-1B Lancer Bomber. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Dynamic Force Employment Explained
The concept of Dynamic Force Employment was outlined in the 2018 National Defense Strategy, defining it as a method for keeping U.S. forces strategically unpredictable.
The strategy applies across the Joint Force – including the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy, and Army – and aims to maintain readiness for major combat while simultaneously enabling rapid and scalable deployments.
By rapidly moving military units to unexpected locations and specifically tailoring mission size, DFE, as a military concept, is designed to complicate an adversary’s ability to anticipate and counter U.S. military actions.
For the Air Force, DFE often means changing where and how aircraft operate. In the recent Red Flag 25-3 exercise, B-1B Lancer bombers from Dyess AFB flew daily missions to Nevada.
In contrast, their mission planning cells were forward-based, meaning they were positioned closer to a potential combat zone, staging area, or support zone, at Nellis AFB.
The “hybrid operations model” deployed during the exercise was designed to test the Air Force’s ability to launch from one location while coordinating with planners and allied units located elsewhere.
The 2018 National Defense Strategy described DFE as an operational concept that works inside the framework of a four-layer global operating model.
The model positions U.S. forces to deter and influence rivals through day-to-day presence and engagement without initiating conflict (Contact Layer), delay or disrupt enemy attacks (Blunt Layer), “surge” reinforcements to win wars (Surge Layer), and defend the homeland (Homeland Layer).
About the Author:
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society. His latest book is The Truth Teller: RFK Jr. and the Case for a Post-Partisan Presidency.
More Military
America Almost Had to Invade Japan
