In a teaser before its maiden flight this year, the U.S. Air Force released two new images of the nuclear-powered B-21 Raider stealth bomber, offering new insights into the design and capabilities of the $692 million top-secret aircraft. On December 2, 2022, Northrop Grumman and the US Air Force carefully lifted the lid on a top-secret aircraft that would one day replace America’s nuclear-powered bomber fleet. This was an invitation-only event, the B-21 was dimly lit but sharply illuminated, and only one image was released to the public.

Now the Air Force has released two more images taken at the same time as the first. A close-up of the bomber’s cockpit and a full, high-angle shot give us some clues about the B-21’s closely guarded design that even its dimensions remain a mystery.

Designed in what the U.S. government calls “unprecedented range,” the B-21 Raider is designed to fly on long-range missions from U.S. soil without the need for forward bases and perhaps little in-flight refueling. . This range is so great that the Australian government has been advised to purchase the B-21 to operate from secure bases in the south of the country, but be able to hit distant targets with conventional weapons.

Other facts that the Air Force recognizes about the B-21 are intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), electronic attack, communications, and other functions in addition to long-range attack missions. . It also has a high degree of autonomy and artificial intelligence that allows it to function as a control platform for drone swarms.

The new images confirm that the B-21 is an evolution of the B-2 Spirit bomber combined with radical advances in stealth technology. The most obvious difference is the grayish-white color of the new radar-absorbing composite coating, which is reported to be more effective and less brittle than the old coating.

A close-up view shows that the coating is composed of a woven-appearing composite rather than combined with added layers such as tape. This is especially noticeable around the cockpit windows, which are more curved than the B-2s to better disperse reflected radar signals. The cladding around the windows now covers all seams and seams for added privacy.

Top angle view shows composite cladding extending over engine air intakes. The bonnets are lower and more flush with the fuselage, and the intakes are contoured rather than sharply geometric, creating a smoother wing-body combination. The engine itself is recessed away from the intake, possibly to reduce the heat signature, and the engine compartment is closer to the body.

It turns out that inside the intake is an intake cover, which previously looked like part of the engine structure, but can now be removed before flight. The tail is not clearly visible, neither are the engine exhausts, although the sight is not clear enough to say for sure, the tail structure appears more integrated into the wing and fuselage rather than the B-2’s different sawtooth configuration. . Behind the engines are several flat geometric structures that could be some sort of port or satellite dish array.

The Air Force plans to purchase at least 100 B-21s, with the first expected to enter service in 2027. The aircraft will replace the B-1B Lancer and B-2 Spirit bombers by 2040, and later the B-52 Stratofortress. in the 2050s.