USAF accelerates B-21 Raider production, aims for operational fielding in 2027

The USAF and Northrop Grumman agreed to boost B‑21 production capacity by about 25% using roughly $4.5 billion in already-authorized U.S. funding. This expansion is intended to compress delivery timelines and speed up fielding without undermining cost or performance discipline. 

The bomber is currently in low-rate initial production, with final assembly underway at Northrop Grumman’s Palmdale, California facility. Multiple aircraft are undergoing production and test activity. 

According to recent official releases, the **first operational B‑21 Raider remains on track to arrive at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota in 2027, supporting the Air Force’s plan to begin fielding the next-generation stealth bomber that year.

Unlike legacy bomber programs, the B-21 was designed from the outset with digital engineering, modular sustainment, and production scalability in mind. 

The Air Force intends the B-21 to replace the B-1 Lancer and the B-2 Spirit by 2040, and potentially the B-52 Stratofortress thereafter.

Currently in flight testing, this long-range penetrating strike aircraft is designed to operate in the most contested environments and to hold any target at risk. The B-21 integrates advanced stealth, resilient networking, and a modern, data-driven command-and-control architecture, ensuring the Joint Force retains a decisive advantage on an increasingly complex battlefield.

B-21 Raider Enters Production Phase Following Pentagon Approval

The Pentagon has formally approved the production of the B-21 Raider, the Air Force's newest stealth bomber. Following the successful first flight of the bomber, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Sustainment William LaPlante confirmed that the B-21 Raider program is moving forward with production. The decision was based on the results of ground and flight tests, as well as the maturity of plans for manufacturing.

The B-21 Raider, designed to replace both the B-2 Spirit and B-1 Lancer, is a nuclear-capable stealth bomber intended for long-range missions, equipped with features to navigate through enemy air defenses. The Air Force aims to acquire at least 100 of these bombers, with plans to deploy them in the mid-2020s.

Details about the contract award value and delivery dates are not immediately available. The Pentagon tied the low-rate initial production contract award to the bomber's first flight, which occurred in November, followed by subsequent test flights. Northrop Grumman, the manufacturer of the B-21 Raider, acknowledged the low-rate initial production status and emphasized the aircraft's significance as the world's first six-generation aircraft, providing advanced integration of data, sensors, and weapons.

Northrop Grumman will report its 2023 year-end earnings on January 25, where investors may seek updates on the LGM-35A Sentinel ICBM, another nuclear modernization program that recently experienced a "critical" cost breach according to disclosed information.

Next-Gen Bomber B-21 Raider Stealth Aircraft Completes Second Flight

The second confirmed flight of the B-21 Raider bomber took place on January 17 at Edwards Air Force Base, California, just over two months after its inaugural flight. The event was detected by numerous aviation trackers who observed potential escort planes on flight tracking websites.

Manufactured by Northrop Grumman, the B-21 Raider is a developmental penetrating strike bomber designed to deploy both conventional and nuclear munitions. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has refrained from disclosing details of the B-21 flight for operational security reasons. The USAF plans to acquire a minimum of 100 B-21s to replace the B-1 and B-2 fleets over the next decade.

Similar to its first flight, the latest test flight was not pre-announced, and no official images of the event have been released. The manufacturing and procurement contract for the B-21 was awarded in 2015, with an expected unit cost of around $700 million. The aircraft has officially been named "Raider" in honor of the Doolittle Raiders from World War II, who conducted the first aerial attacks on Japan.

The B-21 Raider is integral to the U.S. Air Force's modernization efforts, aiming to maintain an advanced and effective strategic fleet in the 21st century. The new bomber is anticipated to possess enhanced capabilities in terms of range, stealth, and versatility compared to its predecessors, such as the B-1 and B-2.

The decision not to disclose specific details about the testing program, including the total number of flights, underscores the significance of operational security and confidentiality surrounding the new aircraft. Secrecy in the development of new weapon systems is common to safeguard classified information and prevent providing strategic advantages to potential adversaries.

First Flight Successfully Completed by the B-21 Raider

 

The historic event was captured on video in Palmdale, California, near the U.S. Air Force Plant 42, during the morning of Friday, November 10. In the footage, the B-21 Raider can be seen with its landing gear deployed (a typical procedure for the initial flights of an aircraft), escorted by an F-16 aircraft.

The aircraft was unveiled by Northrop Grumman Corporation and the United States Air Force (USAF) on December 2, 2022, where it was described as the world's first sixth-generation combat aircraft. The B-21 is the latest addition to the United States' nuclear triad.

The B-21 is a stealthy, long-range bomber with significant survivability capabilities, capable of carrying a combination of conventional and nuclear munitions. It was developed with future modernization in mind, ensuring that the aircraft and technology can evolve over time to adapt to changing threats.

New Engines for B-52s will keep them flying until the 2050s

The U.S. Air Force’s rollout of its new B-21 Raider stealth bomber was one piece of the puzzle in creating a future two-bomber fleet, B-21s + B-52s.

Rolls-Royce and Boeing are working on a major upgrade to the service’s fleet of 76 Cold War-era B-52s that will give them a new slate of F130 engines and keep them flying into the 2050s, alongside at least 100 B-21s.

At some point in the 2030s, when the combined Raider-Stratofortress bomber fleet is ready, the Air Force will finish retiring the remaining B-1 Lancer and B-2 Spirits.

The B-52 will obtain its new engines under the $2.6 billion Commercial Engine Replacement Program.

The Commercial Engine Replacement Program recently finished its preliminary design review.

The B-52 fleet will fly until they’re nearly a century old .Their current TF33 engines dates from the early 1960s, and is expected to reach the end of their life spans by the close of the 2020s.

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B-21 bomber to be unveiled first week in December

The USAF confirmed today it plans to reveal the B-21 Raider in the first week of December during an unveiling ceremony hosted and sponsored by the Northrop Grumman Corporation at its production facilities in Palmdale, California.

The B-21 is a long-range, highly survivable, penetrating strike stealth bomber that will incrementally replace the B-1 and B-2 bombers, becoming the backbone of the U.S. Air Force bomber fleet.

After unveiling, the B-21 program will continue testing campaign with a combined team of professionals from the Air Force Test Center, Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center, and Northrop Grumman. 

The B-21 weapon system is manufactured under the Air Force's contract with Northrop Grumman. It is designed with an open systems architecture, enabling rapid insertion of mature technologies, and allowing the aircraft to remain effective as threats evolve over time.

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NEWS 2022 March, 16

USAF F-35 have encountered with PLAAF's J-20 over East China Sea 

A top USAF general said that F-35s have had at least one encounter with Chengdu J-20s, and that the Shaanxi KJ-500 airborne early warning & control (AEW&C) aircraft has a key role in long-range air-to-air kill chains. He did not, however, told when the F-35/J-20 encounter took place.

“It’s a bit early to say what they intend to do with the J-20, so really all we’ve seen it do is air superiority,” he said.

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USAF B-21 'Raider' begins ground test phase

The first B-21 'Raider' has entered the ground test phase, paving the way for its expected rollout this year and subsequent first flight.

Northrop Grumman has six of the stealthy aircraft in various stages of production

The next step will involve getting the B-21 ready for flight. This includes carrying out engine runs as well as low-speed and then high-speed taxiing.

After that, the actual first flight from Plant 42 to Edwards Air Force Base in California will take place. Formal flight testing will be held at Edwards.

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USAF Next-generation B-21 bomber will be headed to 3 bases

The Air Force has identified Ellsworth, Dyess and Whiteman Air Force Bases as the upcoming homes for the in-development B-21 Raider long-range stealth bomber.
The U.S. Air Force says bases in Missouri, South Dakota and Texas will receive the next-generation B-21 bomber to replace existing aircraft starting in the mid-2020s.
The Air Force said Wednesday that Dyess Air Force Base in Texas, Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota and Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri have been chosen as “reasonable alternatives ” to host the new B-21 bomber.
Officials are expected to make a final basing decision in 2019 after compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and other regulations. The B-21 is to replace B-1 and B-2 aircraft.
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B-21 bomber finishes preliminary design review

A U.S. Air Force official told a Senate subcommittee Wednesday that the new B-21 bomber has completed its preliminary design review and that he was “comfortable” with the progress made by builder Northrop Grumman Corp.
The bomber is now on its way to critical design review, said Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch Jr., the military deputy of the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition.
Citing the “nature of the work,” Bunch declined to go into further detail about how the Air Force planned to spend the $2.3 billion it requested for the bomber program for fiscal year 2019 when asked by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). However, he said the program was “continuing engineering manufacturing development” and “some of those risk reduction areas.”
SAMANTHA MASUNAGA | The Los Angeles Times (Tribune News Service)stripes

The Air Force may not get B-21 bombers on time

he Air Force’s B-21 Raider program could stagnate under a year-long continuing resolution, as the lower funding stream would slow development and possibly even delivery of the new bomber, the service’s number-two civilian warned Thursday.
Congress is rushing to avoid a government shutdown, which will occur unless lawmakers pass a short-term funding stopgap by Friday. But the Air Force is getting increasingly worried that even the best case scenario — another CR — could curb key modernization efforts like the B-21, its Undersecretary Matt Donovan said.
“A long-term CR will limit execution of the engineering, manufacturing and development phase, the EMD phase, of the B-21,” he said at an Air Force Association event. “We would be limited to the FY17 funding level, which is far below the FY18 budget request. This will have the effect of postponing delivery of the critical strategic capability to the joint warfighter.”
The Air Force allotted $2 billion in its unclassified FY18 budget request for continued EMD activities, up from $1.3 billion the previous year. While the B-21 program currently remains on track, Donovan stated the program will be negatively affected as early as April if the Defense Department remains entangled in a CR.
Northrop Grumman won the B-21 contract in 2015 after a protracted battle with a Boeing-Lockheed Martin team. The Air Force currently intends to buy at least 100 B-21s, with the fielding of the first bombers planned for the mid-2020s.
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USAF basing revised bomber count on 'minimum' of 100 B-21s

US Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) expects to complete an analysis of its bomber force numbers by the end of this calendar year, but already says that number will be based around a “minimum” operational requirement for 100 Northrop Grumman B-21s.
The major command’s chief Gen Robin Rand said at the Air Warfare Symposium in February that America’s needs somewhere between “175 and 200” combined strategic and conventional bombers.
The command counts 159 bombers in its inventory today including the B-1B, B-52H and B-2A.
“AFGSC continues to analyse the required future bomber force structure which includes successfully fielding a minimum of 100 B-21s,” an AFGSC spokeswoman says in an email. “AFGSC is very focused on ensuring we are ready with properly trained operators and maintainers for the B-21. The minimum of 100 B-21s that we intend to field will fly with a mix of legacy bombers and the total number of bombers required is still being evaluated.”
The air force has moved forward with its $80 billion bomber acquisition after teammates Boeing and Lockheed Martin unsuccessfully challenged the selection of Northrop.
The secretive B-21 aircraft, powered by an undisclosed Pratt & Whitney engine, will enter service sometime in the mid-2020s. It will replace the B-1 and B-52, and eventually the Northrop B-2.
flightglobal

USAF Unveils New B-21 Bomber

The US Air Force secretary unveiled the first official rendering of the new Long Range Strike Bomber and revealed its official designation: the B-21.
In a speech at the Air Force Association's Air Warfare Symposium on Feb. 26, Secretary Deborah Lee James shared an artist's concept design of the next-generation bomber, which will be built by Northrop Grumman. She also announced the plane's long-awaited designation, calling it the B-21.
However, the Air Force still has not decided on a name for the new B-21, James said. She called on airmen to send in suggestions.
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