US launches high-tech B-21 stealth bomber

The new B-21 Raider, a high-tech stealth bomber that can carry nuclear and conventional missiles and is built to be able to fly without a crew on board, will be unveiled by the US Air Force on Friday.

The B-1 and B-2 aircraft, which made their first flight during the Cold War, will eventually be replaced by the B-21, which is on schedule to cost about $700 million per plane and is the first new US bomber in decades.

The B-21 will serve as the foundation of our bomber force in the future.

It will be able to infiltrate the most fiercely guarded threat settings and put any target anywhere in the world in danger, according to US Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek, who spoke to AFP. The Air Force intends to purchase at least 100 B-21s once the maiden flight is anticipated to occur in the following year, according to Stefanek.

Six of the aircraft are presently being assembled and tested at the Palmdale, California, site where the reveal will take place, according to the manufacturer Northrop Grumman. Although the aircraft’s specifications are being kept under wraps, it should provide major improvements over the US fleet’s current bombers.

The B-21 has a number of novel features, including the ability for unmanned flight. The plane is “provisioned for the eventuality, but there has not been a decision to fly without a crew,” according to Stefanek.