The B-21 raider, which will be able to deliver both conventional and nuclear weapons around the world using long-range and mid-air refueling capabilities, is part of the Pentagon’s response to growing concerns about a future conflict with China. It is the first new US bomber in more than 30 years. The bomber was unveiled at an event at US Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California where six aircraft are already in various stages of assembly. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said: “This is not just another plane. “It is the embodiment of America’s determination to defend the democracy we all love… We will soon fly this aircraft, test it and then move it into production.” Each aircraft, which has a similar “flying wing” shape to its predecessor, the B-2, is projected to cost about $729.25 million. The Air Force planned to buy at least 100 of the planes and begin replacing the B-1 and B-2 bombers. Almost every aspect of the program is classified. The aircraft is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to modernize all three arms of its nuclear triad – which includes nuclear silo-launched ballistic missiles and submarine-launched warheads – as it shifts from counter-terrorism campaigns of the past few decades to meet its rapid military modernization China. Image: B-21 Raider could confuse enemy radars and disguise itself as another object China is on track to have 1,500 nuclear weapons by 2035. The Pentagon said this week in its annual report on China that Beijing’s gains in hypersonic, cyber warfare and space capabilities pose “the most consequential and systemic challenge to US national security and the free and open international system.” Read more: South Korea tests Rolls-Royce fighter jets and easyJet jet engine test on hydrogen Deborah Lee James, the Air Force secretary when the Raider contract was announced in 2015, said: “We needed a new bomber for the 21st century that would allow us to take on much more complex threats, like the threats we fear we will. person of the day from China, Russia”. Kathy Warden, chief executive of Northrop Grumman Corp., which makes the bomber, said the B-21 is “extremely advanced” compared to the B-2 with advances in computer capabilities and materials used in coatings that make “harder to detect”. Several defense analysts say other developments include new ways to control electronic emissions – meaning the bomber could confuse enemy radars and disguise itself as another object.
