New images show America’s top-secret $745 million stealth nuclear bomber taking off for what is apparently its first publicly acknowledged flight test.
The B-21 Raider was unveiled in December 2022, but the US government has so far been coy about showing off this cutting-edge, radar-evading aircraft.
The sleek bomber was shown flying for the first time while undergoing flight testing, in images released on Wednesday, a crucial step before a minimum first order of 100 of the stealth craft can be approved for production.
The B-21 has been described as a “dual-capable bomber,” capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear devices.
This photo, released by the U.S. Air Force on May 22, 2024, shows a B-21 Raider conducting ground testing, taxiing and flight operations at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
The US Air Force’s B-21 stealth bomber aircraft is touted as virtually “invisible” to all enemy stealth radars and will include the latest features in military technology.
During testimony before the Senate Armed Services committee this month, Andrew Hunter, assistant secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, said B-21 flight testing is currently on schedule.
“We are in the flight test program and the flight test program is progressing well,” he said.
“It’s doing what flight test programs are designed to do, helping us learn the unique characteristics of this platform, but in a very, very effective way.”
Undersecretary Hunter later explained that this is the first aircraft that is more digital than not, helping the program meet requirements.
The U.S. Air Force’s new stealth bomber was first caught in action by eagle-eyed plane spotters last November, but took a more official test flight in May.
The B-21 is a highly survivable, long-range, penetrating attack stealth bomber that will gradually replace the B-1 and B-2 bombers and play an important role in supporting national security objectives and assistance to US allies and partners around the world.
The B-21 weapons 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,” according to the US Air Force.
“The aircraft is expected to enter service in the mid-2020s with a production target of a minimum of 100 aircraft,” the military branch continued in its statement.
The B-21 taxiing at Edwards Air Force Base, California
The B-21 Raider is a nuclear-capable ship and the first of its kind to be introduced since the end of the Cold War.
While press releases described the recent test flights as the first for the B-21, it was previously seen conducting a test flight in California late last year, Air Force officials confirmed.
aviation photographer Matt Hartman Captured the new fighter jet in action at Northrop Grumman’s Palmdale facility in November 2023. Video recording of this less public test flight. from a road near Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California.
Aviation photographer Matt Hartman captured the new fighter jet in action at Northrop Grumman’s Palmdale facility last November, recording video of a less official test flight.
Their footage shows the uniquely shaped B-21 Raider roaring through the sky, flanked by another aircraft, before taking a sharp turn.
Aerospace company Northrop Grumman is producing six test planes, each expected to cost $750 million.
It is touted as virtually “invisible” to all enemy stealth radars and will be equipped with the latest features in military technology.
The B-21 Raider weighs about 30,000 pounds, has a wingspan of 172 feet, and can reach top speeds of 621 miles per hour.
Air Force Global Strike Commander Thomas A. Bussier called the ship the “future backbone of the bomber fleet” at a ribbon-cutting event in November.
In the long term, the US Air Force hopes to have at least 220 of them to replace the aging B-1 and B-2 bombers.
The service has estimated that the program will likely cost at least $203 billion over 30 years to develop, purchase and maintain the B-21 fleet.
The B-21 is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to modernize all three legs of its nuclear triad, which also includes silo-launched nuclear ballistic missiles and submarine-launched warheads, as it moves from the counterterrorism campaigns of recent decades to doing in the face of China’s rapid military response. modernization.
