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Military

B-21 Raider nuclear bomber to be unveiled in December

By David Szondy
September 22, 2022
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The B-21 will be unveiled in December
Northrop Grumman
The B-21 will be unveiled in December
Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman and the US Air Force have announced that the B-21 Raider strategic heavy nuclear strike bomber will make its public debut at an invitation-only event in the first week of December at Northrop's Palmdale, California facility.

Since 2015, when the United States Department of Defense awarded the contract to Northrop to design and build the B-21 as a replacement for the B-52 Stratofortress, B-1 Lancer, and B-2 Spirit bombers, the project has been marked by its secrecy. Even though six prototypes are under construction, little is known for certain about the bomber.

What is known is that the subsonic B-21 is being developed using digital engineering and incorporates advanced stealth design, including a new radar-absorbent coating that is easier and cheaper to maintain than that of the B-2. When it enters service around 2027, it will augment the third leg of the US nuclear deterrent force and eventually replace the entire strategic bomber fleet as the older aircraft are retired from service in the middle of the century.

According to Northrop and the Air Force, the maiden flight of the B-21 is scheduled for 2023, though the official date will be based on the outcome of planned ground tests that include powering up the aircraft, flight subsystems tests, applying the special radar-absorbing coatings and paint, and low- and high-speed taxi tests.

"The B-21 is the most advanced military aircraft ever built and is a product of pioneering innovation and technological excellence," said Doug Young, sector vice president and general manager, Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems. "The Raider showcases the dedication and skills of the thousands of people working every day to deliver this aircraft."

Source: Northrop Grumman

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MilitaryUS Air ForceNuclear weaponsAircraftNorthrop Grumman
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David Szondy
David Szondy is a playwright, author and journalist based in Seattle, Washington. A retired field archaeologist and university lecturer, he has a background in the history of science, technology, and medicine with a particular emphasis on aerospace, military, and cybernetic subjects. In addition, he is the author of four award-winning plays, a novel, reviews, and a plethora of scholarly works ranging from industrial archaeology to law. David has worked as a feature writer for many international magazines and has been a feature writer for New Atlas since 2011.
10 comments
epochdesign
Yeah this is brilliant... not.
Nelson Hyde Chick
It is so reassuring to know that we are working so diligently on whay to destroy us and the Earth.
Smokey_Bear
As a military/Aviation enthusiast, I'm really looking forward to seeing it. Hope they build it in far for numbers then the B-2. I can definitely see it replacing the B-2, but the B-1 is supersonic...and speed is just as important as stealth. So it'll be tough for this to replace it, perhaps partially though. The B-52 is very very old, and if this can be built in enough numbers, without breaking the bank (high numbers will help with that), then this could/should be able to finally phase out old Stratofortress.
FB36
IMHO, we absolutely need "Mutually-Assured Destruction" to keep preventing WW3 but we also absolutely need to try to keep minimizing the probability of accidentally triggering it!
& so, IMHO, M.A.D should/must be always kept in place/effect by using the safest way(s) possible!
& so, IMHO, only secret immobile/underground ((thermo-)nuclear) ICBMs should/must be allowed to stay/exist!!
& ALL (accident/breakdown-prone) mobile ((thermo-)nuclear) ICBM/missile/bomb carrier (land/sea/air/space) vehicle(s)/patrols should/must be absolutely/permanently banned!!
Eggbones
Excellent! It's important to have the coolest bomber while engaging in worldwide mutually assured destruction.
stevendkaplan
Interesting. I read previously that a new ceramic radar absorbing coating had been developed that was both more durable and better at absorbing radar signatures than the earlier polymer based ones. I’m guessing that’s what they are using here. One thing that still puzzles me though is why none of our stealth bombers are supersonic? The F-22 raptor fighter is supersonic and yet it’s still stealthy, so then why can’t we make our bombers like that?
vince
We need more common sense and less bombers. Bombers are history and ineffective in a super speed missile era.
epochdesign
There is at least one glaring flaw to the MAD theory presented here. Some bat $h*t crazy political leader (or other operator) with nukes who has a secret bunker somewhere miles under the ground and could give a hoot about collateral damage (that's us) will not care about MAD, and might push the button out of rage, spite, ego, insanity, or why not all 4. Having batman's wet dream to carry a nuke slightly faster than the rest (that have likely already left the silo at that point) won't do diddly to save anyone, anywhere. So what is the point? MAD is a fantasy created by those who build weapons. Full-on nuclear war will no be won or lost by a faster delivery of the bombs. EVERYONE LOSES, PERIOD. Even if your city is not directly hit with one, your life that that of everyone around you, and anyone else on earth that survives, will be permanently altered, forever. We have brought the world to such a precarious point ecologically, that perhaps a only a handful of nukes (let alone a couple hundred or a thousand, cause at that point who is even counting anymore) may throw the earth into a tailspin that will result in >80% of the population dying within 10 years or less. The people of the planet don't hate each other. It's sad that humans haven't evolved beyond this kind of behavior. MAD is exactly what it will be. I'm not religious, but the thought of it makes my pray just the same.
christopher
@stevendkaplan speed = heat = zero-stealth.

Missiles are too fast to outrun, so there's no point anything being supersonic anymore - the only way to survive is to outsmart or defeat the missiles.
Matthew Persico
"the B-21 as a replacement for the B-52 Stratofortress, B-1 Lancer, and B-2 Spirit bombers"

Wanna make a bet that on Apr 15, 2052, there will still be B-52s in service? 100 years after their first flight?
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