NATIONAL HARBOR, Md.–The U.S. Air Force is flying two sorties per week of the “production representative” test Northrop Grumman [NOC] B-21 Raider stealth bomber as the service aims to move to daily sorties, officials said at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Air, Space and Cyber conference on Wednesday.
William “Elvis” Bailey, the director of the Department of the Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office, said that testers are expanding the flight envelope. Asked when the Air Force expects to reach daily sorties, he said that the service has a target but declined to disclose it.
Thomas Jones, the president of Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems, said that he is “very pleased” thus far with the B-21 test flights and that the program is “able to generate two test flights a given week.”
Officials interviewed here said that the two sorties a week is not unexpected, given the early flight testing and the need to move deliberately and safely in the current phase. It also may be that significant advances in processing power and telemetry data mean that the service can spot any flight test and computer model anomalies more readily and quickly to correct them before moving to further testing.
The Air Force said last week that Secretary Frank Kendall has decided that Whiteman AFB, Mo.–the home of the 509th Bomb Wing B-2 Spirit stealth bombers by Northrop Grumman–will be the second operating base, after Ellsworth AFB, S.D., for the B-21 (Defense Daily, Sept. 13).
Dyess AFB, Texas is to be the third operating base for the bomber.
The Whiteman B-21 basing decision “was made after a thorough evaluation process, which included operational analysis, site surveys, and consideration of environmental, economic, and technical factors,” the Air Force said. “The experience that Whiteman AFB has with the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber and its strategic location, played into the decision to base the B-21 [at Whiteman].” Whiteman’s Mid-West location provides “easy access to both coasts and the country’s central regions,” the service said. “This location makes it also an ideal base for the B-21, as it allows for quick response times and the ability to reach targets across the globe. Furthermore, Whiteman AFB already has infrastructure and systems in place to support the B-21, including a skilled workforce and modern facilities. This will make the transition to the B-21 smoother and more efficient for the base and its personnel.”
