B-21 Raider Stealth Bomber: Could Cost Be a Problem?

Whoa? The U.S. Air Force’s new B-21 stealth bomber This will run you around Each $751 million in today’s dollars. That’s a price tag that could be prohibitive for Congress and the Pentagon.

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The Air Force would need to buy 100 bombers. If you move that decimal place, it will result in a $75 billion investment.

Defense officials and politicians have stated that the bomber arrived on time and was within budget. But, this could change, as acquisition programs can become overloaded and delayed at any stage.

B-21 – Don’t Worry; Everything Is Under Control

During the airplane’s initial unveiling last December, Andrew HunterAir Force assistant undersecretary to acquisition, technology and logistics told journalists that the program has been successful so far. “tracking well” Cost and schedule. Hunter stated that the Air Force will maintain a firm price ceiling You can fly on an airplane and keep the cost down.

Senator Mike Rounds, from South Dakota, stated the same thing last summer. Rounds received a classified briefing about the status of B-21 in July 2022. “I had a good review of what will be the assembly line and had a good chance to see the platform itself,” Rounds spoke to a local media outlet. “I’ve been assured it is on time and budget.”

Air Force Acquisition: Juggling Airplanes 

The Air Force is responsible for delivering future platforms and programs, but it has a lot of work. The F-35 Each day, it is being built. The F-15EX It is currently being produced. The Plus Next-Generation Air Dominance fighter is in development. Air Force acquisition honchos and their overseers in Congress have much on their plate when it comes to making sure the price and the schedule go according to plan for these programs.

The Pentagon’s Acquisition Team Is Busy Too

But this is just for the Air Force, when you factor in the Pentagon’s wish for new ships and nuclear missile upgrades, not to mention modernization efforts for the Marine Corps, you are talking serious competitions for scarce dollars and resources.

B-21s Can Bring the Mail Stealthily 

One hundred or more B-21s would be great as the B-21 has the ability to penetrate contested air space without recognition and drop nuclear bombs and launch conventional strike missiles at an adversary that would never see them coming. The B-21 will be able to take off from the United States and reach anywhere in the world to deliver its weapons.

The B-2 Program Struggled

The Air Force hopes history will not be repeated when it comes to developing a new stealth bomber. The service branch also wanted over 100 B-2 stealth bombers decades ago. They ended up costing an eye-watering $2 billion a piece. There are now only 20 B-2 bombers in service.

The Navy’s A-12 Was a Disaster

When I worked at the RAND Corporation in defense acquisition, I was always warned about the demise of the Navy’s A-12 Avenger II stealth airplane. In 1990, the A-12 was “at least $1 billion over budget, 8,000 pounds overweight, and eighteen months behind schedule.” This was an aircraft that its proponents in the Department of Defense and Congress swore was on time and under budget until Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney killed the program. So, the lesson here is sometimes to be skeptical of what lawmakers and acquisition officials claim is happening during an airplane’s life cycle.

To be sure, the B-21 is looking much better than the A-12. The unveiling impressed many, even though the rear of the airplane was hidden due to security concerns to keep the Chinese from seeing its engine. It is supposed to fly for the first time this year. Another six are on the production line.

Let’s see if the B-21 can meet the target of 100 bombers because this could give the U.S. military a huge advantage in the skies for the coming decades.

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Author Expertise and Experience: Serving as 19FortyFive’s Defense and National Security Editor, Dr. Brent M. Eastwood is the author of Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare. He is an Emerging Threats expert and former U.S. Army Infantry officer. You can follow him on Twitter @BMEastwood. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and Foreign Policy/ International Relations.

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