The United States Air Force has five B-21 Raider bombers in final production at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Palmdale, Calif. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall announced this news on Sept. 20 in a keynote speech during the Sea-Air-Space conference put on by the Air Force Association.
Until now, it was believed that only two of these next-generation stealth bombers were in construction. The B-21 Raider is expected to replace the aging B-1 and B-2 bombers to become “the backbone of the Air Force bomber fleet,” Kendall said. Of course, modernization of the bomber fleet with the B-21 has been among the very top priorities of the Air Force, seeking to nail at least 100 of these bombers, with some expected to enter service by the middle of the 2020s.
The Pentagon has kept tight-lipped on the development of Raider. In July, a Congressional Research Service report pegged the Biden administration’s request for further development of the program in the fiscal year 2022 budget to $2.98 billion, up from $2.84 billion last year.
Kendall underlined the importance of the investment, explaining, “This investment in meaningful military capabilities that project power and hold targets at risk anywhere in the world addresses my number one priority.” Concentrating on how the Air and Space Forces can be more capable of deterring and defeating the most dangerous threats during his first six months in office.
Kendall said that without advanced capabilities in the Air and Space Forces, other service missions would become “inexecutable.” “If our one-team… is going to win the one fight to keep our freedom, it will be because of the success of our Air and Space Forces.”
While Kendall added that responding quickly to adversary technological advances is essential, he emphasized a need for innovation to be more resource-efficient and focused on actual improvements that benefit the military user. Kendall panned ABMS for its focus on generalities rather than discrete, measurable operational outcomes.
Offsetting that pessimism, Kendall highlighted other programs demonstrating some promise, including the Space Force’s use of satellites for GMTI, and work on AI and data analytics.
Reflecting on the urgency of those developments, Kendall said, “Several years ago, I messaged members of Congress and to anyone who would listen and said, ‘We are running out of time.’ Today, we are out of time.”
The development of the B-21 Raider is vital to this competition for the United States to maintain its strategic advantage. In 1989, the Air Force’s bomber fleet of B-52s, F-111s, and B-1s showed how decisive airpower could be in a conflict like Operation Desert Storm. The B-52s alone flew 1,741 combat sorties, delivering 27,000 tons of weapons on Iraqi targets-a testament to the capability long-range bombers uniquely possess: striking any target anywhere around the world.
It is in that light that the era of the B-21 Raider promises the continuance of that very legacy which has kept the United States Air Force second to none against emerging global threats.