US B-52s and fighters from what may soon be NATO's newest member teamed up for a first-of-its-kind operation

• Four US Air Force B-52 bombers arrived in the UK on Thursday for a Bomber Task Force deployment.
• During their flight to the UK, the bombers trained with Norwegian and Swedish fighter jets.

US Air Force B-52 bombers arrived in Europe for a Bomber Task Force deployment on Thursday after training with Norwegian and Swedish fighter jets before landing at RAF Fairford air base in England.

The exercise yielded first-of-their-kind photos of the countries training together, reflecting an already close military relationship that is growing closer as Sweden moves to join NATO and the alliance increases its focus on the high north.

While flying from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota to the UK, the four B-52H bombers — accompanied by support equipment and airmen — were joined by two Swedish JAS Gripen fighter jets and two Norwegian F-35s west of Andøya in northern Norway, the Norwegian military said.

One of the B-52s trained with Norway's army at the nearby Setermoen firing range.

"Operations like these require thorough tactical cooperation between the nations, aircraft types and the participating ground forces," the Norwegian military said, adding that it was the first time it had released photos of the countries' aircraft "on a mission like this."

B-52s also flew into Sweden's airspace to train with the Gripens. They exercised conducting airstrikes, with the B-52s dropping three GBU-31 bombs on targets identified by Swedish ground forces, according to Sweden's military, which said it was the first US-Swedish exercise of its kind to use live munitions.

The training took place at the Vidsel firing range in northern Sweden and was the first US bomber flight over the country since it applied to join NATO this summer. It involved one nuclear-capable B-52 and one that is "denuclearized," said Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists.

Sweden has been a NATO partner for decades and has trained closely with the alliance, as has Finland. Their membership, which NATO members are now voting on, would extend additional benefits, including the alliance's mutual-defense protections.

"Witnessing our nation's JAS Gripen fighter aircraft flying alongside several of America's most powerful military aircraft visually depicts the strength and solidarity of NATO," said Maj. Gen. Carl-Johan Edström, commander of the Swedish Air Force.

"These moments truly capture the military power that exists within NATO — as individual nations, but, more importantly, as a unified alliance," Edström added.

Stockholm and Helsinki sought NATO membership in response to Russia's attack on Ukraine. That war has shown the value of being able to conduct long-range operations, Edström said in a separate release, adding that Thursday's drills increase Sweden's defense capability "considerably."

Sweden and Finland would bring some 250 modern combat aircraft into NATO, including Sweden's advanced Gripens and the F-35s that Finland will receive in the coming years — additions that NATO officials are enthusiastic about.

Sweden's participation on Thursday "is vital" and its NATO membership "will give us increased joint combat power," said Maj. Gen. Rolf Folland, chief of the Norwegian air force. "The air dimension is unique in military operations. Air control has great advantages and gives land and sea forces the prerequisites for success."

Norway's air force is already looking into setting up "a joint Nordic air operations center," which would support planning and "significantly strengthen our collective defence," Folland added.

Tensions in Europe have remained heightened since Russia's 2014 attack on Ukraine. Fraught relations with Moscow, coupled with changes caused by climate change, have drawn increasing military attention to the Arctic, where Russia has a major military presence.

The US Navy and other NATO navies have spent more time in the Norwegian and Barents seas to build proficiency in Arctic waters, where they haven't spent much time since the Cold War.

US bombers have also been more active over the Arctic.

In early 2021, B-1Bs deployed to central Norway and operated from Norwegian soil for the first time. In September last year, B-2s deployed to Iceland for the first time, operating from what is seen as a valuable outpost in the North Atlantic. B-52s also make regular flights over the Arctic, often during Bomber Task Force deployments.

Bombers on past BTF deployments flew close to Russian borders, but during the Biden administration those flights have been less "in your face," Kristensen told Insider this spring.

US bombers are still a visible presence over Europe, and their deployments "provide a great opportunity to improve our combined readiness, promote interoperability, and demonstrate our global power projection alongside our allies," Gen. James Hecker, commander of US Air Forces in Europe, said Thursday.

"Our ultimate strength in the European area of operations is a joint-force lethality — our ability to train and operate with our allies and partners as one layered, capable, and credible combat team," Hecker said.