Unveiled during theAir Force Association Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida, the first rendering of the Long Range Strike Bomber, called B-21.
Now - said Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James - it will be up to our military to find him a battle name.
While prototypes have already been made, the rendering is based on the concept of the initial design. The B-21 designation identifies the LRS-B as the first 21 century bomber. "The B-21 was designed from the start based on a series of requirements that allow the use of pre-existing technology. That's why the B-21 is very similar to the B-2".
The Air Force plans to reach the Initial Operational Capacity by the middle of the 2020.
The B-21 is developed by Northrop Grumman, which won on the proposal of the flying wing advanced by the Boeing / Lockheed Martin team. The first Air Force contract provides for the purchase of five lots for a total of 21 aircraft.
Each bomber will cost 550 million dollars for a fleet of 100 next-generation aircraft and a total cost of 55 billion dollars.
