Northrop Grumman, US Air Force introduce the B-21

Northrop Grumman Corp. and the U.S. Air Force unveiled the B-21 Raider strategic bomber.

Six B-21 Raiders are in various stages of final assembly and test at Northrop Grumman’s plant in Palmdale, California.

“The Northrop Grumman team develops and delivers technology that advances science, looks into the future, and brings it to the here and now,” said Kathy Warden, chair, CEO and president, Northrop Grumman.

The B-21 Raider will form the backbone of future U.S. air power, leading a family of systems that offer capability and flexibility through advanced integration of data, sensors, and weapons. Its sixth-generation capabilities include stealth, information advantage, and open architecture.

Northrop Grumman and the Air Force demonstrated the successful migration of B-21 ground systems data to a cloud environment. The demonstration included development, deployment, and test of B-21 data, including the plane’s digital twin, that will support its operations and sustainment.

Unlike earlier generation aircraft, the B-21 will not undergo block upgrades. New technology, capabilities, and weapons will be incorporated through agile software upgrades and built-in hardware flexibility.

“The B-21 exemplifies how Northrop Grumman is leading the industry in digital transformation and digital engineering, ultimately delivering more value to our customers,” said Tom Jones, corporate vice president and president, Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems.

“The B-21 Raider is a testament to America’s enduring advantages in ingenuity and innovation. And it’s proof of the Department’s long-term commitment to building advanced capabilities that will fortify America’s ability to deter aggression, today and into the future,” said Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III. “This bomber was built on a foundation of strong, bipartisan support in Congress. And because of that support, we will soon fly this aircraft, test it, and then move into production.”

The B-21 Raider is named in honor of the Doolittle Raid of World War II. The designation B-21 recognizes the Raider as the first bomber of the 21st century.