Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider

Type of aircraft
"B-21" redirects here. For other uses, see B21 (disambiguation).

B-21 Raider
B-21 Raider in a hangar at Plant 42, Palmdale, California
B-21 in a hangar at Plant 42 in Palmdale, California
Role Stealth strategic bomber
National origin United States
Manufacturer Northrop Grumman
First flight 10 November 2023
Status In development
Primary user United States Air Force
Number built 1

The Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider is an American strategic bomber under development for the United States Air Force (USAF) by Northrop Grumman. As part of the Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) program, it is to be a long-range, stealth intercontinental strategic bomber for the USAF, able to deliver conventional and thermonuclear weapons.[1][2][3] The Air Force intends the B-21 to replace the Rockwell B-1 Lancer and Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit by 2040, and possibly the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress after that.[4]

The Air Force began planning for the B-21 in 2011[5] and awarded the major development contract in 2015.[6] The B-21 made its first flight on 10 November 2023; it is expected to enter service by 2027.[7][8][9]

Many aspects of the B-21 program are highly classified; the program is designated as a special access program.[4] The Congressional Research Service noted in 2021 that the B-21's technical details and specifications, such as speed, enabling systems, "size, required stealth, structure, number and type of engines, projected weapons, and onboard sensors remain classified" although some information about various other aspects of the program have been made public since 2015.[4] The first photos of the aircraft were released on 2 December 2022, taken during a rollout ceremony at Northrop Grumman's production facilities in Palmdale, California.[10]

Design and development

Main articles: Next-Generation Bomber and Long Range Strike Bomber
Artist's rendering of the B-21 from February 2016. During the 2022 unveiling, the aircraft was shown to have a light gray color instead.

The classified Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) program began in 2011,[5] and the Air Force issued a request for proposal to develop a LRS-B aircraft in July 2014.[5][11] A development contract was awarded to Northrop Grumman in October 2015.[6] Boeing and Lockheed Martin, who submitted losing bids for the project, filed bid protests;[12] in October 2016, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) rejected the challenges and sustained the USAF's decision to award the LRS-B contract to Northrop Grumman. The GAO report revealed that cost was the deciding factor in selecting Northrop Grumman over the Boeing-Lockheed Martin team.[13][14]

Management and acquisition of the B-21 program is being overseen by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, rather than through the traditional military-procurement process.[4] However, the B-21 program remains subject to the Nunn–McCurdy reporting requirements to Congress.[4]

A 2015 media report said the Air Force wanted the bomber to also function as an intelligence collection platform, battle manager, and interceptor aircraft.[6] In 2016, then–Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said that the B-21 would be a "fifth-generation global precision attack platform" with networked sensor-shoot capability.[15] Northrop Grumman describes the B-21 as "the world's first sixth-generation aircraft."[16]

Richard E. Cole (left), then the last living Doolittle Raider, announces the name of the B-21 with Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James (right), during the Air Force Association conference on 19 September 2016.

At the 2016 Air Warfare Symposium, Air Force officials announced that the LRS-B would be formally designated "B-21" because the aircraft would be the 21st century's first bomber.[17] In September 2016, Air Force officials announced that the B-21 would be named "Raider" in honor of the Doolittle Raiders.[18] Retired Lt. Col. Richard E. Cole, then the last living member of the Doolittle Raiders, was present at the naming ceremony at the Air Force Association conference.[19]

In March 2016, the USAF announced seven tier-one suppliers for the program: Pratt & Whitney, BAE Systems, Spirit AeroSystems, Orbital ATK, Rockwell Collins, GKN Aerospace, and Janicki Industries.[20][21]

In 2016, the F-35 program manager Chris Bogdan said the B-21's engines would be similar enough to the F-35's Pratt & Whitney F135 engine to reduce its cost.[22]

The program completed its critical design review in December 2018.[23]

In January 2020, Air Force officials released new B-21 renderings, showing the distinctive flush and blended inlets and the two-wheel main landing gear design. The drawing appeared to show a smaller, lighter aircraft than the B-2.[24][25]

The cockpit windows of the B-21 are unique to the aircraft, and designed to eliminate joints and seams to minimize its radar cross-section.

In September 2022, the USAF announced that the B-21 was to be unveiled in early December 2022 at Northrop Grumman's production facilities in Palmdale, California.[26] The ceremony took place on 2 December 2022.[27][28] At the unveiling, Northrop CEO Kathy Warden said that the B-21 is designed with modular, open systems architecture to allow easy upgrades[lower-alpha 1] and, potentially, the ability to export components to foreign buyers.[30] Warden said that the B-21's internal operations were "extremely advanced compared to the B-2" and that the B-21 was slightly smaller than the B-2, with a longer range.[27]

Production and assembly

B-21 three-quarters view
The first B-21 at Northrop's Plant 42 in Palmdale, California in November 2022

In February 2016, the head of the Air Force Global Strike Command said he expected the service would place an initial order for 100 B-21s and build up to a full fleet of 175 to 200.[31][32][33] In 2017, two USAF studies suggested that Air Force could increase its initial purchase from 80-to-100 to 145 aircraft.[34]

Assembly of the B-21 takes place at the United States Air Force Plant 42 near Palmdale, California, at the same facility Northrop Grumman used during the 1980s and 1990s to build B-2 bombers.[4][35]

In January 2017, Northrop Grumman was awarded a $35.8 million contract modification for a large coatings facility at Plant 42, to be completed by the end of 2019. The contract announcement did not specifically mention B-21, but the facility was likely meant for B-21 stealth coating.[36] By the summer of 2019, it was reported that construction of the first aircraft was underway.[37] In early 2021, several media outlets reported that as completion of the first B-21 approached, construction on the second unit had begun.[38][39]

At a congressional hearing in June 2021, Darlene Costello, the acting Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Acquisition, Technology & Logistics, confirmed that the first two B-21s were under construction at Plant 42.[40][41]

By February 2022, six B-21s were under construction.[42][43] The first B-21 was moved to a calibration facility the following month.[44] About 8,000 Northrop Grumman employees had worked on the program with more than 400 suppliers from at least 40 states.[16]

In September 2023, program officials said fueling and engine tests were proceeding ahead of the anticipated first flight by year's end.[45]

Program costs

In July 2016, the USAF said it would not release the estimated cost of Northrop's B-21 contract, asserting that the number would reveal too much information about the classified project to potential adversaries. The Senate Armed Services Committee also voted to not publicly release the program's cost, restricting the information to congressional defense committees over the objections of a bipartisan group of legislators led by the committee's chairman, Senator John McCain.[46] McCain's proposed revisions to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 would have reduced authorization for the B-21 program by $302 million "due to a lower than expected contract award value", while requiring "strict ...program baseline and cost control thresholds", "quarterly program performance reports", and "disclosure of the engineering and manufacturing development total contract award value".[47] The versions of the 2017 NDAA as initially passed by the House and Senate would have required public disclosure of the total cost of the B-21, but this provision was removed in the final conference report version.[4]

In December 2022, the cost of a B-21 aircraft was estimated to be $700 million.[48] At the time, Air Force officials estimated that they would spend at least $203 billion over 30 years to develop, purchase, and operate a fleet of 100 B-21s.[35]

Maintenance, sustainment, and operation

Maintenance and sustainment of the B-21[lower-alpha 1] will be coordinated by Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, while Edwards Air Force Base, California, will lead testing and evaluation.[49] The B-21 is expected to operate from bases that currently host heavy bombers, such as Dyess Air Force Base, Texas; Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota; and Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.[50] In March 2019, Ellsworth was selected as the base to host the first operational B-21 unit, as well as the first training unit.[51]

Planned role in fleet

The B-21 is slated to, by 2040, replace the U.S. Air Force's 45 B-1 strategic bombers, which date from the 1980s, and 20 B-2 strategic bombers, which date from the 1990s. The B-21 may also eventually replace the B-52, which is slated to remain in service for many decades.[4][52]

Potential related projects

File:B-21 Plant 42 hangar.jpg
Front of the B-21

In March 2022, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall III raised the possibility of a bomber drone to work with the bomber,[53][54] but the idea was later dropped because it would not save much money to produce such a large unmanned aircraft.[55]

The USAF is also planning to acquire a new long-range fighter from its Next Generation Air Dominance program, known as the F-X or "Penetrating Counter-Air", to escort the B-21 deep into enemy territory and help it survive enemy air defenses and intercepting fighters.[56][57][58]

Possible Australian interest

In December 2022, an Australian Strategic Policy Institute report advocated the acquisition of a number of B-21 Raiders to enable Australia to have a greater long-range strike capability.[59]

The report states that a B-21 could fly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) without refueling while carrying more munitions as compared to the maximum 930 miles (1,500 km) range of the RAAF's F-35 fighter jets, which require air-to-air refueling. A single B-21 can also deliver the same impact as several F-35As. Additionally, the B-21 can attack targets from secure air bases located in Australia's south, with greater proximity to more personnel, fuel, and munitions.[60]

During bilateral talks held in August 2022, it was reported that the US might allow Australia to procure the B-21. When asked if the US would consider allowing Australia to join in developing the B-21 bomber, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall stated, "I don't think that there's any fundamental limitation on the areas in which we can cooperate. If Australia had a requirement for long-range strike, then we'd be willing to have a conversation with them about that."[61] However, the Defence Strategic Review released by the Australian government on 24 April 2023 stated that the B-21 was not considered a suitable option for acquisition.[62] Australia will instead invest in the upgrading of its F-35As and F/A-18Fs to the latest Block 4 and Block III configurations, respectively, to enable both aircraft to be capable of launching the AGM-158C LRASM and the Joint Strike Missile.[63]

See also

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Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 On 29 November 2022, Northrop Grumman announced that it would use a cloud-based digital twin to support B-21 operations and sustainment.[29]

References

  1. ↑ Gulick, Ed (12 July 2014). "AF moves forward with future bomber". U.S. Air Force.
  2. ↑ Petersen, Melody (7 February 2015). "New stealth bomber contract likely to be boon for Antelope Valley". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ↑ Osborn, Kris (28 March 2017). "The Northrop Grumman B-21 Stealth Bomber: Simply Unstoppable?". The National Interest.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 John R. Hoehn & Jeremiah Gertler (22 September 2021). "Air Force B-21 Raider Long-Range Strike Bomber". Congressional Research Service. B-21s would initially replace the fleets of B-1 and B-2 bombers, and could possibly replace B-52s in the future.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Dave Majumdar (10 July 2014). "Air Force Releases Request for Proposal for Secretive Long Range Bomber". USNI News. United States Naval Institute.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Weisgerber, Marcus (13 September 2015). "Here Are A Few Things the New Air Force Bomber Will Do Besides Drop Bombs". Defense One. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  7. ↑ D'Urso, Stefano (17 January 2021). "Second B-21 Raider Under Construction As The First One Approaches Roll-Out In Early 2022". The Aviationist. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  8. ↑ Tirpak, John A. (20 May 2022). "B-21 Raider First Flight Now Postponed to 2023". Air Force Magazine. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  9. ↑ Decker, Audrey (10 November 2023). "B-21 takes flight, heads to Edwards AFB for more tests". Defense One. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  10. ↑ Greg Hadley and John A. Tirpak (12 Sep 2023) CSAF Shows Off New Images of the B-21; Raider Begins Engine Runs
  11. ↑ "USAF Global Strike chief seeks beefed-up bomber force". Flight Global. 26 February 2016.
  12. ↑ Hillis, Amy (6 November 2015). "LRSB: (Yet Another) Tale of Two Protests". Aviation Week. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  13. ↑ "Game Over: GAO Protest Reveals Cost Was Deciding Factor in B-21 Contest". Defense News. 25 October 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  14. ↑ B-412441 report Archived 26 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine. 16 February 2016.
  15. ↑ "USAF reveals Northrop's B-21 long-range strike bomber". Flight Global. 26 February 2016.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "10 Facts About Northrop Grumman's B-21 Raider". Northrop Grumman Newsroom. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  17. ↑ "Air Force reveals B-21 Long Range Strike Bomber". USAF. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  18. ↑ "The B-21 has a name: Raider". USAF. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  19. ↑ Giangreco, Leigh (19 September 2016). "Last surviving Doolittle Raider rises to name Northrop B-21". Flight Global. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  20. ↑ "USAF names seven top-tier Northrop B-21 suppliers". Flight Global. 8 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  21. ↑ "Spirit's work on new B-21 Bomber will require new jobs". The Wichita Eagle. 2 June 2017. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  22. ↑ Shalal, Andrea (10 March 2016). "U.S. F-35 chief expects savings after Pratt's B-21 bomber win". Reuters. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  23. ↑ Pappalardo, Joe (6 December 2018). "New B-21 Secret Bomber Passes Crucial Milestone". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  24. ↑ Rogoway, Tyler (31 January 2020). "Here's Our Analysis of the Air Force's New B-21 Stealth Bomber Renderings". The Drive.
  25. ↑ Tirpak, John (31 January 2020). "B-21 Images Show New Details of Secret Bomber". Air Force Magazine.
  26. ↑ "Northrop Grumman to Unveil the B-21 Raider". Northrop Grumman (Press release). GlobeNewswire. 20 September 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 "Pentagon debuts its new stealth bomber, the B-21 Raider". AP NEWS. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  28. ↑ Tirpak, John (20 October 2022). "First B-21 Bomber to Roll Out of Northrop Grumman's Palmdale, Calif., Plant on Dec. 2". Air & Space Forces Magazine. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  29. ↑ John A. Tirpak (29 Nov 2022) Northrop Grumman Offers New B-21 Raider Details Ahead of Rollout digital twin
  30. ↑ Weisgerber, Marcus (2 December 2022). "Air Force Unveils New B-21 Stealth Bomber After Seven Years in the Making". Defense One. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  31. ↑ Drew, James (20 April 2016). "USAF basing revised bomber count on 'minimum' of 100 B-21s". Flight Global. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  32. ↑ "USAF Global Strike chief seeks beefed-up bomber force". Flight Global. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  33. ↑ Clark, Colin (6 February 2017). "Coatings Plant Offers Hints on B-21 Production".
  34. ↑ Pat Host (26 May 2017). "US Air Force could substantially increase B-21 buy". Jane's Defence Weekly. Archived from the original on 26 May 2017.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 W.J. Hennigan, Exclusive: The Making of the U.S. Military's New Stealth Bomber, Time (December 3, 2022).
  36. ↑ "New Northrop facility deal likely meant for B-21 stealth coating". Defense News. 1 February 2017.
  37. ↑ Gady, Franz-Stefan. "US Air Force Is Building First B-21 Stealth Bomber". thediplomat.com. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  38. ↑ D'Urso, Stefano. "The Air Force's 2nd B-21 bomber is under construction as the first one starts 'to look like a bomber'". Business Insider.
  39. ↑ Tirpak, John A. (15 January 2021). "Second B-21 Under Construction as Bomber Moves Toward First Flight". Air Force Magazine. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  40. ↑ "Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces Hearing: 'Air Force Projection Forces Aviation Programs and Capabilities Related to the 2022 President's Budget Request'". House Armed Services Committee. 8 June 2021. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  41. ↑ Costello, Darlene; Nahom, David S.; Hinote, S. Clinton. "Hearing date/time: June 8 2021, 1100 Presentation to The House Armed Services Committee Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces" (PDF). House of Representatives. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  42. ↑ Newdick, Thomas (3 March 2022). "First B-21 Raider Is Now Undergoing Calibration Tests As Official Rollout Approaches". The Drive. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  43. ↑ Hadley, Greg (9 February 2022). "Six B-21s in Production, Fuel Control Software Already Tested". Air Force Magazine. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  44. ↑ Tirpak, John A. (3 March 2022). "First B-21 Moves to New Hangar for Loads Calibration". Air & Space Forces Magazine. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  45. ↑ Decker, Audrey (13 September 2023). "B-21 starts engine tests as bomber preps for first flight". Defense One. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  46. ↑ Cohen, Zachary (5 July 2016). "New stealth bomber's cost is under the radar". CNN. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  47. ↑ "Proposed National Defense Authorization Act For Fiscal Year 2017" (PDF). U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  48. ↑ Helmore, Edward (3 December 2022). "Pentagon unveils first strategic bomber in over 30 years to counter China". The Guardian.
  49. ↑ "Air Force announces bases to support B-21 Raider mission". Tinker AFB. Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs. 16 November 2018. Retrieved 11 February 2019. The Air Force has selected Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, to coordinate maintenance and sustainment of the B-21 Raider and Edwards AFB, California, to lead testing and evaluation of the next generation long-range strike bomber.
  50. ↑ "Air Force selects locations for B-21 aircraft". Ellsworth Air Force Base. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  51. ↑ "Air Force announces Ellsworth AFB as first B-21 base". U.S. Air Force. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  52. ↑ Dan Lamothe, Pentagon reveals secretive B-21 bomber in California, Washington Post (December 2, 2022): "The Pentagon intends for the Raider to replace aging B-2 Spirit and B-1B Lancer bombers, phasing out the older aircraft by the 2040s. B-52 bombers, many decades old, also could be replaced by the B-21 in coming years."
  53. ↑ Trevithick, Joseph (8 March 2022). "Stealth Bomber Drone To Complement The B-21 Raider Could Be Pushed Into Development Soon". The Drive. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  54. ↑ Reim, Garrett (10 December 2021). "US Air Force 'commits' to fielding loyal wingman UAVs". FlightGlobal. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  55. ↑ Suciu, Peter (18 July 2022). "B-21 Raider Stealth Bomber: Built To Strike "Anywhere In The World"". 19FortyFive. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  56. ↑ "The Air Force Wants a New Fighter to Accompany Its New Stealth Bomber". 20 September 2016.
  57. ↑ Clark, Colin (19 September 2016). "B-21 Bomber Estimate by CAPE: $511M a Copy". Breaking Defense.
  58. ↑ Farley, Robert. "A Raider and His 'Little Buddy': Which Fighter Will Accompany the USAF's B-21?". The Diplomat.
  59. ↑ Marcus, Hellyer; Nicholls, Andrew (12 December 2022). "Australia should examine Plan B-21 as it weighs up long-range strike options". aspistrategist. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  60. ↑ Tillett, Andrew (12 December 2022). "Buy 12 stealth bombers at $28b to counter China: ASPI". Financial Review. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  61. ↑ Saballa, Joe (25 August 2022). "US Considering Supply of B-21 Bombers to Australia". The Defense Post. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  62. ↑ "Australian Defence Strategic Review". Australian government. 24 April 2023.
  63. ↑ Salerno-Garthwaite, Andrew (24 April 2023). "Australia's Defence Strategic Review rejects B-21 Raider". airforce-technology.com. Retrieved 5 May 2023.

External links

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