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Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider

2032 MODERN AIRCRAFT X-PLANE FUTURE FLIGHT

The Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider Story

On February 26, 2016, the name of the upcoming Northrop Grumman LRS-B program was announced as "B-21". Artist renderings are also shown, showing a bomber form not dissimilar to the B-2A "Spirit" series currently in service with the US Air Force.

Performance and functionality will emerge as the project evolves - so this article will be updated accordingly.

Announced partners for the B-21 program include Pratt & Whitney (engines), BAe Systems (electronics), GKN Aerospace (metals and composites), Janicki Industries (composites and tools), Orbital ATK (wing skins) and nacelles), Spirit Aerosystems (metals and composites), and Rockwell Collins (communications). Northrop Grumman will be responsible for airborne radar adjustments.

The B-21 is expected to enter service in the second half of the 2020s, with a target fleet of 100 aircraft. These will be used for the successful (perhaps optimistic at this point) aging line of stealth bombers currently in service with Boeing B-52s, Rockwell B-1s and even Northrop's own B-2s.

The Air Force's Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) is leading the program.

According to published artistic renderings, the B-21 will feature a full-wing aircraft similar to the B-2A "Spirit" stealth bomber, incorporating all learned and possible new stealth technology into its design. The flight crew number two and team sit at the top of the "arrow" shape of the floor plan. All of the main compartments are located in the middle of the aircraft, where the fuselage is fused with the wings, allowing for a very low profile when size is considered. At the rear, the engine (like the B-2A) is embedded in the design, protecting the exhaust from the IR locator as much as possible.

The ground operation adopts the traditional multi-wheel retractable tricycle landing gear. An unmanned option for the new bomber design was announced.

Compared to the B-2A, the B-21 has an extended nose section or "beak" that forms an arrow-shaped tip. The landing gear front legs were placed further aft in the nose compartment and built to a shorter height specification, while the main legs were simplified by showing fewer wheel frames. The cockpit has two windshields (compared to four on the B-2A), and the engine air intakes are closer to the center mass of the fuselage, reducing the overall length of the fuselage itself.

Attention was paid to mid/high flight control by implementing a simplified wing with a trailing edge and a "serrated" leading edge.

Overall dimensions appear to indicate a smaller overall shape of the bomber compared to the relatively bulky B-2A, although actual specs have yet to be announced.