Pleasure is expensive, but doubtful. "For" and "against" the aircraft of the 6th generation B-21

Alexander Sychev

This event was preceded by a multi-day advertising campaign in almost all US media, and Northrop Grumman arranged the rollout of the new B-21 Raider strategic bomber from the hangar of Plant No. lots of champagne for honored guests. Among them were US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Northrop Grumman CEO Cathy Warden, and Vice Chairman of the US Navy Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Christopher Grady.

The event was of great political importance. It was supposed to demonstrate to the Americans and the whole world the continuing leadership of the United States, including technological. The latter is especially important in connection with the fact that in a number of areas America began to noticeably lag behind, losing the championship to Russia and China.

Discussing the idea of creating a sixth-generation bomber at the Pentagon began at the dawn of the 2000s. It took quite a long time to choose a contractor, among which, in addition to Northrop Grumman, were Boeing and Lockheed Martin corporations, which presented quite interesting developments. But they chose Northrop. Why, they did not explain to the public.

It was planned that the first flight would take place at the end of this year, but, again, without explanation, it was postponed to 2023. Currently, six aircraft are at various stages of production, which will be involved in testing and development. It is assumed that the first fully finished bomber of the Air Force will receive in 2026. However, Northrop Grumman negotiated a one-year delay. Just in case, the product is a complex, fully digital project. Who knows what the tests will show.

American aircraft designers refer the aircraft to the sixth generation. Generation is a rather arbitrary concept. You can find various lists of signs that supposedly should indicate belonging to a particular generation. The sixth from the fifth is distinguished by an improved technology for reducing radar visibility, high performance in all flight modes from subsonic speed to supersonic speed reaching several Machs, the ability to change shape, "smart" coverage, integration into a communications and data exchange network, numerous increased sensitivity enemy detection sensors, the possibility of manned and autonomous flight and mission performance; and, finally, a directed energy weapon. The latter is more related to fighter aircraft, but it can also appear on a bomber.

As far as it was possible to implement the entire list, tests will show. In the meantime, the designers from Northrop Grumman tried to present all the advantages of their offspring, of course, with the utmost secrecy. Even photographs were distributed with the image only in front. Therefore, nothing is known about its performance characteristics, even about the engines used, flight range, carrying capacity and just dimensions.

Externally, the B-21, built according to the "flying wing" design, resembles its predecessor, the B-2 Spirit bomber. At the presentation, company representatives said that he also borrowed technologies from other past developments of the company: Tacit Blue, YF-23 and X-47B.

Unlike its predecessor, the aircraft is painted light gray, which may indicate plans for its use not only at night, but also during the day.

The design uses an open architecture, which, according to the developers, should make it possible for the bomber to adapt to the changing weapons of the enemy. Unlike previous generation aircraft, the B-21 will not undergo block upgrades. New technologies, capabilities and weapons will be built into it. This approach should allow the B-21 Raider to change almost continuously throughout its service life.

“We hope that modular open architecture systems will help ensure that the B-21 remains the most advanced stealth aircraft in the world for the next 30 to 50 years,” said Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Grady.

The plane turned out to be smaller than the B-2 Spirit. Accordingly, he received a lightweight chassis - all carts have two wheels instead of four. The landing gear hatch covers open sideways and do not have the serrated edges found on the B-2.

The airframe is assembled from large panels made of composite materials. The body panels are connected almost seamlessly.

The cockpit windows are very small. This was done to reduce the radar visibility of the aircraft, but visibility was sacrificed as a result. Pilots can only see forward and slightly up (necessary for mid-air refueling), and very little through the tiny side windows.

The limited view is likely to be compensated for by cameras. However, they were not seen on the presented aircraft, as well as sensors, of which there must be a lot in order for the bomber to correspond to the “sixth generation”.

The air intakes are located on top of the hull and are extremely smooth and fit into the wing in order to more effectively dissipate the radar pulse. The nozzles are also placed on the upper plane of the airframe and are equipped with an exhaust gas cooling system. Company officials said even the most advanced air defense systems would have difficulty detecting the B-21.

In connection with the roll-out of the bomber and the work on the sixth generation fighter, a discussion began in the United States about the need for stealth technologies in general. The fact is that air defense systems are developing so rapidly that low visibility technologies are not keeping up with them, and many in the United States do not see much point in creating them.

In addition, the cost of such aircraft is simply sky-high. The total estimated cost of the entire B-21 program is approximately $203 billion in 2019 prices. This amount includes about $25 billion spent on development, $64 billion for the upcoming production of a hundred bombers, and $114 billion for 30 years of maintaining and operating the aircraft fleet. Judging by the current state of the American economy, writes Bloomberg, we are already talking about almost $240.4 billion.

How much more will have to be spent, no one undertakes to estimate. In the past, the Pentagon generally planned to acquire up to 145 bombers, and, therefore, there is a high probability of a multiple increase in costs.

The new aircraft will be more of a multi-purpose platform than just a bomber like its predecessors, including the B-52. It will have significant capabilities for electronic warfare, reconnaissance, surveillance and reconnaissance, will be able to act as a communications relay, and also control a group of drones with a high degree of autonomy. It uses "cloud technologies" for storing and transmitting data.

In addition, each aircraft will have its own digital twin - a detailed model that will allow engineers not only to have an idea of the state of all aircraft components during the flight, but also to plan repairs in advance, which will reduce the time and cost of their implementation.

Maintainability in general was one of the most important requirements imposed by the Pentagon on the new bomber. American military pilots have struggled with the skin and design of the B-2 stealth aircraft. Their maintenance proved to be extremely expensive and difficult. As a result, aircraft spend more time in repair shops than in the air. The B-21 must overcome this shortcoming.

From the arsenal of weapons that are supposed to be placed in the internal compartments of the bomber, GBU-57 / B Massive Ordnance Penetrator adjustable anti-bunker bombs were mentioned at various times. They are used on B-2 bombers, as well as the future Long Range Stand-Off (LRSO) cruise missile with nuclear warheads.

The US Air Force plans to replace all existing B-2 Spirit stealth bombers, as well as the B-1 Lancer. In 2027, a whole squadron, eight B-21 Raider aircraft, is to take over the combat post, the base of which is Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. In the middle of the next decade, it is planned to increase production to 80 aircraft, and by the second half of the 1930s, the fleet of strategic bombers should increase to 220 combat vehicles, which will be a record for the United States.

Washington expects the B-21 Raider to become the backbone of the American bomber fleet, play a key role in supporting the country's strategic power and allow long-range accurate strikes with nuclear and conventional weapons anywhere in the world.

While, of course, it is not clear how the B-21 Raider will meet the expectations of the American generals. Previously, equally high hopes were pinned on the B-1, then on the B-2. They weren't justified.

Today, some American experts are of the opinion that by the beginning of the 30s, the B-21 will lose all the advantages pointed out by Northrop Grumman. One of the arguments is the speed of development of defensive and strike weapons of potential opponents. They call hypersonic weapons as the most promising, for the launch of which any carriers, even submarines, are already suitable.

Not forgotten are also various drones, which are becoming more perfect and more numerous. Already today, some of them are able to independently solve problems in given areas. And the drones cost several orders of magnitude less than the B-21 Raider. In general, the arms race is in full swing, which means that even such a promising combat vehicle as the B-21 may become obsolete before it enters service.