Pentagon unveils B-21 stealth bomber
The Pentagon revealed its new B-21 nuclear stealth bomber Friday in Palmdale, California.
It’s nice to shock China once in a while. And that’s what happened Dec. 2, when the Air Force rolled out its super-secret new B-21 Raider bomber at the plant in Palmdale, California. This $600 million aircraft has been kept under tight wraps since 2015 and not even a blurry sketch of it leaked out.
"This isn’t just another airplane," Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said of the B-21, the first new bomber in 34 years. "It’s a testament to our strategy of deterrence."
China fired back fast, calling the B-21 a "propaganda sample." "The real face of the B-21 is still very mysterious," intoned the official Communist Party mouthpiece Global Times on Monday. Cue the espionage.
The B-21 Raider was unveiled on Friday. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Fact is, Russia and China have nothing like the B-21 Raider. The sneak peek carefully showed only the front of the B-21, keeping its trailing edge under wraps for now, hiding some of the bomber’s stealth features.
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California’s high desert is the birthplace of America’s spy planes and advanced fighters, bombers and drones. Miles of Joshua trees and a few gas stations lead to Plant 42, a collection of gigantic beige hangars alongside a runway. With extreme security and impressive theatrical lighting, Northrop Grumman waited until twilight on a foggy, damp evening for the ceremony. A B-52, a B-1 and a B-2 bomber flew low over the hangar and then out came the B-21.
Like others in the audience, my reaction was: Wow. The B-21 is a strikingly beautiful aircraft. The most bird-like of all the Air Force’s warplanes, the beak nose is even more avian set against the round cockpit dome, which looks like the head of a hawk.
Engines, fuel and weapons are all tucked inside a kite-shaped center body. The B-21 resembles both the older B-2 Spirit stealth bomber and several newer unmanned drones. It’s a flying wing, so there’s no long fuselage like in airliners or fighter jets. The B-21 Raider, though, is sleeker, with technology upgrades like its low-profile engine air inlets.
Radar air defenses made by Russia and China require steady, high-rate tracking of a plane to shoot at it. A stealth aircraft like the B-21 messes up the radar wave return so the crew aiming the missile can’t get a fire-control lock. You won’t see it coming. You won’t see it going. Print the B-21 coffee mug now.
Still, "China will try everything they can to counter this aircraft…. and to break into our systems to discover its systems," Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., warned at the Reagan Forum on Dec. 3.
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An artist rendering of the proposed B-21 Raider jet above Edwards Air Force Base in California. (United States Air Force)
The Air Force has made a smart move by building the B-21 as a medium-sized bomber with a full global range. Advanced engines and the smaller payload of precision bombs have made it possible to design a long-range bomber at decent cost with huge new capabilities.
However, I am wondering about how roomy the B-21 is for the pilots. I flew in the B-2 a few years ago as the guest of the Air Force’s Global Strike Command, and saw where the B-2 pilots famously took turns napping on a lawn chair wedged behind the two cockpit seats next to the toilet cubby. Not luxurious, but restful for missions up to 44 hours long. We’ll learn more about the B-21 when it makes its first flight next year.
Of course, the B-21 will face challenges, especially in Washington, D.C. Frankly, the Air Force has done a bad job buying new planes recently. They had to keep their 1980s planes to fight counterterrorism wars so they still have a lot of old aircraft to shed. Congress and the Air Force must budget the B-21 for cost-efficient, high-rate production – I’d like to see 15 or more per year – so the Air Force can field a fleet of 100 B-21s.
An undated artist rending provided by the U.S. Air Force shows the B-21. (U.S. Air Force via AP)
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The B-21 is needed because the global nuclear threat projection is getting so scary. China is building new nuclear missile fields. North Korea wants a nuclear missile that can reach the U.S. As for Russia, "nuclear" is tied with "Nazi" as Putin’s favorite word. Arms control is in a coma.
The B-21 is a boon to the nuclear deterrence triad. Yes, missiles and submarines are important, but it’s the bombers that keep adversaries guessing and inject caution. Russia or China or whoever simply can’t count on tracking all the B-21s. That means America can always hold crucial targets at risk – and keep deterrence working.