The United States Air Force is ramping up production of the next-generation B-21 Raider stealth bomber. Working with manufacturer Northrop Grumman, the two announced in February 2026 plans to increase production capacity for the warplane by 25%, according to a service news release. The deal will use $4.5 billion in funding appropriated for production of next-generation bombers in the 2025 U.S. budget reconciliation bill.
“The B-21 is foundational to our long-range strike capability and to credible deterrence,” U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink said in the news release. “Accelerating production capacity now ensures we deliver operational capability to combatant commanders faster — strengthening our ability to outpace, deter and, if necessary, defeat emerging threats. This is disciplined execution at the speed the security environment demands.”
The B-21 is part of the overall modernization of the U.S. nuclear triad, which includes new intercontinental ballistic missiles under the Sentinel program, the U.S. Navy’s Columbia-class submarine, and nuclear command and control systems (NC2). The Raider, which was publicly unveiled in December 2022, first took flight in November 2023. The B-21 is undergoing flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, where a second Raider arrived in September 2025.
The B-21 is in “low-rate initial production,” according to Military Times. The program “remains on track for aircraft on the ramp at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, in 2027,” according to the news release, with combat-ready units starting deployments by 2030.
“This [production] decision reflects our confidence in the program’s performance and the stability of the industrial base,” U.S. Air Force Gen. Dale White, director of Critical Major Weapon Systems, said in the news release. “By increasing production capacity now, we are responsibly accelerating delivery of a critical, combat-effective capability to the warfighter.”
The total B-21 output was set at 100 warplanes in 2018 to replace the aging B-1B Lancer and
B-2 Spirit bombers, but the U.S. now faces a much different global security environment: Russia continues its war on Ukraine and both the Chinese Communist Party and North Korea are building up their nuclear arsenals. U.S. officials have increasingly expressed support in recent years for a larger fleet of Raiders, possibly consisting of as many as 145. The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies think tank has even called for 200 B-21s, according to its February 2026 policy report. The U.S. military has used heavy bombers against targets in Iran, Venezuela and Yemen.
“It’s also worth noting … that the Air Force’s bomber fleet plans, broadly, are no longer constrained by limitations previously imposed by the New START arms control treaty with Russia, which expired [in February 2026],” noted military news website The War Zone (TWZ).
The B-21 gives the U.S. a strategic capability of more than just a bomber, according to a November 2025 TWZ report. “On top of their ability to carry out deep-penetrating nuclear and conventional strikes, the Raiders will have an extensive suite of networking, battle management, electronic warfare, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities,” wrote TWZ. “The aircraft could also end up acting as forward aerial controllers for uncrewed platforms, among other missions.”