After nearly two years of delay, the B-21 stealth bomber, which the United States has been developing for nearly 30 years, has finally been unveiled. In order to create a sufficient atmosphere for the launch of this bomber , the developer Northrop Grumman and the US Air Force did the best they could. At the press conference, Northrop Grumman brought out many of their products to build momentum for the B-21, including the E-2 early warning aircraft , the F/A-18, and even a B-2 stealth bomber. The U.S. Air Force provided a B-25 "Mitchell" bomber.
Anyone familiar with this type of bomber knows that the US military used it to bomb Tokyo, Japan. But "heroes grow old". No matter how brilliant the B-25 was back then, it still has to step aside and prepare the atmosphere for the advent of the B-21. According to the data released by Northrop Grumman, the B-21 is equipped with a new generation of stealth technology. Compared with the B-2, it will be easier to maintain and deploy abroad. In addition, in order to ensure that the B-21 can defeat the anti-jamming and local interception it faces, Northrop Grumman will continue to improve stealth technology and use new production technologies and materials in the future.
Judging from Northrop Grumman's description alone, the role of the B-21 in modern warfare will be far greater than that of the B-2. However, we must not be scared. No matter how much the US military or Northrop Grumman praises it, it cannot change the fact that B-21 is a low-profile youth version of B2.
Although the U.S. Air Force and developers have stated that the B-21 is a "leap in aircraft technology and development" and has improved both in stealth performance and electronic performance, overall, the performance of the B-21 is not that outstanding, and the model is even smaller than the B-2. The B-21's fuselage is 17 meters long, and the basic version may only have two engines, which means that its flight distance will not exceed 8,000 kilometers. At the same time, its maximum take-off weight is only 80 tons, which means that the B-21 can carry 5-9 tons of ammunition. This data is not even comparable to and 6.
In addition to the obvious shortcomings in bomb load , the flight speed may also be a flaw of the B-21. Before the announcement, the B-21 had been believed by the outside world that it would have the ability to fly at supersonic speed . However, after the announcement, the configuration of the two engines directly shocked the outside world. This means that no matter how excellent the other performance of the B-21 is, it will not have the ability to fly at supersonic speeds. You know, the B-2 with four engines cannot fly at supersonic speeds. Moreover, the design of the B-21 also limits its flight speed, making it impossible to surpass its predecessors.
As for the stealth capability, if you must say it, you can find that the B-21's air inlet is indeed a design similar to an "embedded" design. Its stealth capability is definitely stronger than that of the B-2. However, this technology has been used on the "Stingray" drone for a long time and is nothing new. So in summary, the biggest advantage of the B-21 is that it helps the US Air Force reduce expenses. The cost has been directly reduced from a B-2 of 2.4 billion US dollars per aircraft to a B-21 of only 600 million US dollars. Therefore, the US Air Force can save more money to build more aircraft. Of course, no matter what, with the advantage of the generation difference, our -6 is definitely not enough. Therefore, it is time for the Chinese Air Force to respond with the -20.
