WASHINGTON — Development of the U.S. Air Force’s newest long range bomber received a lift this week with the release of new background details and a target time for its first test flight.
The future stealth heavy bomber is the B-21 Raider with a mission to replace the Air Force’s aging bomber fleet in a few years. The aircraft will serve as a replacement for the B-1 Lancer and the B-2 Spirit bombers.
The first two B-21 test aircraft are in production at Northrop Grumman’s manufacturing facility in Palmdale, Calif. They are expected to be completed for testing during 2022.
The first test flight of B-21 number 1 is expected to fly before autumn of next year. The program is expected to be operational by 2026.
Named to honor the historic Doolittle Raiders of World War II, the B-21 Raider will perform long range conventional and nuclear missions. The newest bat wing aircraft will also perform intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions.
“Nuclear modernization is a top priority for the Department of Defense and the Air Force, and B-21 is key to that plan,” Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office director Randall Walden said. “The built-in feature of open systems architecture on the B-21 makes the bomber effective as the threat environment evolves.”
B-21 Raider Moving Toward First Test Flight
Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates directed the B-21 program to complete no fewer than 100 aircraft. Northrop Grumman believes funding for nearly 200 B-21s may see the light of day before the factory is closed.
According to the Air Force, the average unit procurement cost is $639 million (2019 base). The FY 2021 defense appropriations bill gave the B-21 program $2.84 billion. The current FY 2022 budget request is for nearly $3 billion.
California’s Edwards AFB’s 420th Flight Test Squadron will serve as center stage for ground and flight testing of each B-21. The 420th is actively preparing to support the first test flight next summer.
“The second (B-21 built) is really more about structures, and the overall structural capability,” Walden added. “We’ll go in and bend it, we’ll test it to its limits, make sure that the design and the manufacturing and the production line make sense.”
In June, the Air Force selected the 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota to receive the first operational B-21. Ellsworth will also serve as a formal training unit for the aircraft’s pilots and maintainers.
“We are excited to be selected as the first B-21 main operating base,” 28th Bomb Wing commander Col. David Doss expressed. “Our selection is a testament to the strategic role the base continues to play in the defense of our nation coupled with the robust relationship we have with our community stakeholders and neighbors.”
Following Ellsworth, Whiteman AFB in Missouri and Dyess AFB in Texas will then begin to receive the new bomber.
B-21s will be crewed during the first years of operation. The Air Force hopes to fly an uncrewed B-21 by 2030 — based on the current operational timeline.
(Charles A. Atkeison reports on aerospace and technology. Follow his updates via social media @Military_Flight.)
