Next-generation US stealth bomber capable of disguise takes first flight

A next-generation stealth bomber capable of disguising itself as another object has taken to the air for the first time.

The B-21, the long-awaited successor to the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber that entered service in the late 1990s, took off from the manufacturing plant at Palmdale California on Friday morning.

Accompanied by an F-16 chase plane, the aircraft completed a 39 mile journey to Edwards Air Force Base, where further testing will take place.

“The B-21 Raider is in flight testing,” said a US Air Force spokesman.

The force is planning to build 100 of the planes, which will be capable of being flown with and without pilots.

Little has been made public about the aircraft’s capabilities.

Similar in shape to the original stealth bomber, it will be built from more advanced materials and use updated technology to make it more capable of surviving in a future conflict.

It is also said to have the ability to spoof enemy air defences by disguising itself as other objects, such as other aircraft, by controlling its electronic emissions and radar signature.

It is the first new American bomber in three decades.

“Flight testing is a critical step in the test campaign managed by the Air Force Test Centre and 412th Test Wing’s B-21 Combined Test Force to provide survivable, long-range, penetrating strike capabilities to deter aggression and strategic attacks against the United States, allies, and partners,” the spokesman said.

Named after the historic Doolittle Raid to strike back at Japan after Pearl Harbour, the Raider’s construction was shrouded in secrecy.

The US Air Force and manufacturer Northrop Grumman have been striving to keep the technology hidden from China, fearing it could build a version of its own.

On the ground, signal-emitting devices such as iPhones and earbuds were banned as security guards patrolled the 5,800-acre facility.

High above the plant, orbiting satellites monitored activity at the site.

In Washington, the Senate Armed Services Committee voted not to release the cost of the project, despite objections from John McCain.

By the end of last year, the cost of each aircraft was estimated at $750 million (£614 million), compared to the almost $2 billion price tag of its predecessor.

The B-21 was initially due to make its first flight in 2021 but production of the bomber was delayed by the Covid pandemic.

The project, which began in 2011, was also hit by the global economic slowdown in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It was part of America’s strategy, drawn up by the Trump administration, of maintaining all three components of its nuclear force, known as the nuclear triad.

There had been suggestions that land-based missiles would be ditched, but the stealth bomber and submarine-launched weapons would remain.

Underpinning the project is the belief that the aircraft has to be able to evade Chinese and Russian missile defences if it is to be an effective deterrent.

Later, explaining the strategy, Lloyd Austin, the US defence secretary, stressed its ability to carry conventional and nuclear devices.

“We are again making it plain to any potential foe: the risks and costs of aggression far outweigh any conceivable gains.”