The US Air Force’s New Stealth Bomber

The U.S. Air Force’s (USAF) first new stealth bomber is at the center of the service’s accelerated push to deploy a new long-range aviation platform capable of overcoming the burgeoning arsenal of modern Chinese and Russian air defenses in the purported new era of “great power competition.” Named after the “Doolittle Raiders” that bombed Tokyo in April 1942, the B-21 Raider will be the first new USAF bomber since the unveiling of the B-2A Spirit in 1988 and is expected to eventually replace the USAF’s fleet of B-1B Lancers, B-2A Spirits, and B-52H Stratofortress bombers.

Similar to the B-2, the B-21 features a flying wing design, which blends fuselage and wings, and is based on advances in low-observable aircraft design. In January, the USAF and U.S. defense contractor Northrop Grumman released the first photorealistic renderings of the B-21 tucked away in hangars at USAF bases across the United States. The images show a cleaner and simpler trailing edge and a shorter aft fuselage in comparison to the B-2. The B-21 also appears to be smaller and lighter than the older bomber. Some analysts estimate that the B-21 is about two-thirds lighter and smaller than the B-2.

This is in line with a set of requirements established at the beginning of the B-21 program that allows the use of existing and mature technologies, in addition to new innovations, as a cost saving measure and to expedite production of the new aircraft. This also entails that the bomber will be much easier to upgrade and retrofit than previous bomber designs. Using open systems architecture, new software, sensors, weapons, computers, and avionics can be installed and integrated much faster and at much lower cost than in the past. The three renderings released this January were the first images of the B-21 since its name was announced at the Air Force Association Air, Space & Cyber Conference in September 2016.

The B-21 has its origins in the USAF’s Next-Generation Bomber Program, which kicked off in 2004. A request for proposals for the new stealth bomber was issued in July 2014 and a $21.4 billion contract to develop and build the B-21 was awarded to Northrop Grumman in October 2015. The U.S. defense contractor, known for its expertise in flying wing designs and the prime contractor for the B-2A, was chosen over a Boeing-Lockheed Martin team. The contract covers the so-called Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, in addition to the first five production lots to cover the manufacturing of the first batch of 21 bombers. The EMD phase includes developing and designing the aircraft, and also covers completing full system integration, prior to entering into production.

In its latest request, the USAF asked for $2.84 billion in funding for the B-21 in the new fiscal year. During fiscal year 2020, the USAF was provided with $2.98 billion. The USAF plans to procure an estimated 100 B-21s, at a cost of $656 million each in 2019 dollars – a per-unit price tag that is slated to rise in the coming years. Total acquisition costs could exceed $100 billion.

Many aspects of the B-21 design remain highly classified. The USAF has said publicly in the past that the B-21 will depend on a number of new enabling technologies and the aircraft is part of a family of systems. It is unclear whether the cost for these technologies, including other airframes, munitions, electronic warfare and ISR platforms, will be reflected in the B-21 budget. Notably, the USAF does not have a good track record in keeping within budget when it comes to spending on its bombers: Both the B-1 and B-2 programs went over budget.

The bomber’s precise capabilities, including its operational range, remain classified. It is supposed to be capable of operating with an onboard crew or remotely piloted at subsonic speeds. The B-21 will also have the capability to carry both conventional and nuclear payloads. Armaments will likely include the Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb, the B-61-12 thermo nuclear gravity bomb, and the Long-Range StandOff (LRSO) nuclear-capable cruise missile.

When will the first bomber be delivered to the USAF? The construction of the first prototype is currently taking place at the Air Force Plant 42 outside Palmdale, California. Last year, USAF Vice Chief of Staff General Stephen Wilson suggested that the B-21 will make its maiden flight in December 2021. This date was later questioned by the head of the USAF’s Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO), Randy Walden, although USAF Chief of Staff General David Goldfein said in 2019 that the B-21 program is still on schedule. The USAF aims for an initial operating capability (IOC) of the B-21 by 2025.

According to the service, unmanned operations will be possible “several” years after achieving IOC, while the B-21’s nuclear capability will be achieved two to three years following IOC. It can be assumed with high confidence that the B-21 will also be capable of executing strike missions autonomously within the next decade.