The US Air Force and aerospace manufacturer Northrop Grumman introduced a brand-new stealth bomber-the B-21 Raider, at a ceremony broadcast live online from the Californian Edwards Air Force Base on Friday.
After a few years, Northrop Grumman's new bomber will lead the Air Force's bomber force. It will also provide an early glimpse of cutting-edge aircraft technologies that will eventually become the norm in the following decades, according to a report from Space.com.
"The B-21 Raider is the first strategic bomber in more than three decades," US Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin remarked during the occasion. He added that the highly sophisticated aircraft is a "testament to America's enduring advantages in ingenuity and innovation" and "proof" of the government's commitment to advancing US defense capabilities.
Kathy Warden, CEO and President of Northrop Grumman, noted that the B-21 Raider is the "most capable stealth bomber ever developed."
According to Warden, the US is ushering in a new age in national military technology with the B-21 Raider stealth bomber, which was "digitally designed, enabled, and maintained."
The US Air Force and Northrop Grumman dramatically unveiled the new bomber during the B-21 Raider videos, with the aircraft emerging from its hangar with a blue light behind it as the shroud slipped away.
The ceremony's illumination cast shadows on several aspects of the bomber, but the spectators could see its futuristic, flying-saucer design.
Not Just Another War Plane
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin noted that the B-21 Raider is not "just another aircraft."
"It's the embodiment of America's determination to defend the republic that we all love," he noted.
The Pentagon is modernizing all components of its nuclear triad, which involves silo-launched nuclear missile systems and submarine-launched warheads, to offset China's fast phasing of its military development.
According to the Pentagon's annual China report released this week, China is on course to have 1,500 nuclear weapons by 2035, and its advances in hypersonic technology, cyber warfare, and space capabilities pose the most significant and structural danger to US national security and the free and open international order.
When the Raider contract was announced in 2015, Deborah Lee James, the secretary of the US Air Force, said that the US needed a "new bomber for the 21st century" to take on far more difficult threats, including the dangers that America will one day face from China and Russia, per CBS News.
Other modifications in the US Air Force Stealth Bomber include the employment of cutting-edge materials in coatings to make the bomber more evasive, according to Austin.
Full Capability of the B-21 Stealth Bomber Not Yet Revealed
According to various military specialists, the employment of new propulsion technologies, and new methods for controlling electronic emissions, might enable the bomber to fool enemy radars and pass for another object.
However, according to the Associated Press, almost all of the B-21's capabilities and specifications are undisclosed by the US Air Force. The B-21's wingspan is unknown. Based on the landing gear visible at the unveiling, it seems more undersized than its forerunner, the B-2 Spirit, whose wingspan measures 172 feet (52 meters).
According to BBC, the first B-21 flight is anticipated to occur next year.
The fleet's anticipated development, acquisition, and operating costs over 30 years are $203 billion, according to Bloomberg, and it will ultimately replace the B-1 and B-2 variants.
The company said that six US Air Force stealth bombers are now being produced and that they will have the "next generation of stealth" as well as some "new manufacturing processes and materials."
At least 100 of the bombers will be purchased by the US Air Force.
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