New B2 airframes
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
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From: Peripatetic
I'm presuming he meant B-21 and numbers are for low rate production lots 3 to 5.
Current production rate is 7 a year (thought they want to increase that to 9), so assuming each lot is per year then 22 for 3 lots makes sense.
(They're not going to build more B-2s as the production line has been shut for decades)
Current production rate is 7 a year (thought they want to increase that to 9), so assuming each lot is per year then 22 for 3 lots makes sense.
(They're not going to build more B-2s as the production line has been shut for decades)
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From: Geneva, Switzerland
?Administrator
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From: The Gulf Coast
We have a thread about the B-21, if you would like to browse it.
It's currently on page one of the Military Aviation sub forum.
It's currently on page one of the Military Aviation sub forum.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
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From: Peripatetic
More serious question - is the B-21 to replace the B-2 or complement the fleet ?
It's to replace the B-2 which is incredibly expensive in time and hours to keep operational - which is why it's being retired before the B-52.
LRS-B... The B-21
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From: London/Oxford/New York
As suggested, see the B-21 thread.
It's to replace the B-2 which is incredibly expensive in time and hours to keep operational - which is why it's being retired before the B-52.
LRS-B... The B-21
It's to replace the B-2 which is incredibly expensive in time and hours to keep operational - which is why it's being retired before the B-52.
LRS-B... The B-21
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Joined: Jul 2000
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From: Peripatetic
The B-21 is also replacing the B-1 fleet, to serve alongside rengined B52's that will seemingly last forever.
* https://www.airandspaceforces.com/b-...along-the-way/
The B-2 will be retired because it costs over $135,000 and 119 hours of maintenance per flying hour and is basically unrepairable - they've had 2 accidents in which aircraft had main collapses. The first happened in 2021 and the aircraft took over $75M to repair and 4 years to return to service**, the second happened in Dec 2022 and the aircraft was written-off as beyond economic repair in 2024***.
** https://aeronauticsmagazine.com/news...stealth-bomber
*** https://www.twz.com/air/damaged-b-2-...ink-to-19-jets
