- The US Air Force says the F-35 project ran into trouble before it was operational.
- B-21 Raider will not exceed the timeframe, but a conservative rollout will be pushed.
- USAF secretary assures problems associated with the F-35 program will not happen to the Raider.
A recent statement by the US Air Force indicates the B-21 raider will avoid the troubles of the F-35 project suffered before and up to now. These difficulties, like cost overruns and delays, created challenges from the start.
B-21 raider Will Not Become Another F-35 Project
US Air Force (USAF) Secretary Frank Kendall remarked that the expected delay of the B-21 stealth bomber (Northrop Grumman) is normal but not a sign of deadline setbacks, overspending that is normal for defense spending programs, reported Eurasian Times.
They added the new bomber rolling out in 2023 will be late by a few months and still with the baseline schedule. It's both agreed on by the US government and Northrop Grumman aerospace. Kendall vowed that the program would not experience the snafus of the F-35 Lightning, which suffered high costs and development problems along the way, per Airforce Technology.
On December 2 last year, it was revealed to the public for the first time. It will be used to attack Chinese A2-AD or anti-area and access denial via its missile coverage in several depths, states Real Clear Defense.
It is designed to bypass Chinese SAM batteries integrated into the A2/AD shield. The US claims the Raider's systems are from electronic jamming, data links, recon, and surveillance to reach and attack targets. It uses a variety of ordnance for standoff or direct attack.
The cost of developing the bomber is $203 billion, and to operate with 100 planes to be bought in 30 years, said a source. Per bomber will cost $550 million with some adjustments Northrop will make.
US Air Force Underscores the Bomber
Kendall in Washington added that the original schedule had to be amended after a delay was cited. Remarked the schedule needs to be managed to make people move faster, but theirs is a delay in the schedule. The official claim they were late but did not indicate though admitted the internal schedule is already delayed.
In an earlier media conference at the Air and Space Forces Association conference, Kendall said the snafus of stealth fighters wouldn't be redone.
According to Northrop Grumman, the F-35 has a digital twin in its computer systems to assess all upgrades to the airplane. The Lightning II platform can be upgraded and modified by the air force.
Details revealed the F-35 costs hit up to $412 billion from $398 billion mentioned in a report from the US DoD in September of 2021. A total of 875 JSFs have been delivered abroad and are operational with 12 air forces.
The upgrade cost for the JSFs cockpit computer was $680 million in December 2022. It doubles the original contract of $712 million in 2018. Such upgrades would take longer and are scheduled to be finished by July 2023.
Other expenses are the expensive sustainment costs, mission availability, and even spare engines. Pentagon officials had a problem with the production processes of the plane.
The US Air Forces assures the B-21 Raider will be more manageable than the F-35 projects, which have drawn flak for these concerns.
Related Article: USAF Shelves 1st Flight Schedule of the B-21 Raider Due To Problems
