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ACuriousPLAFan

Brigadier
Registered Member
B-2 vs B-21 underside view comparison, may not be up to scale. Posted by @AlexHollings52 on Twitter.

F-mXhyqWMAAHBUX.jpeg

SlothmanAllen said:
Those exhaust ports are very slim! Also, with those underside photos is it possible to estimate the size of the bombay and maybe even load?
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F-mBgg7XEAAjRda.jpeg

#3 is definitely the weapons bay.
#1 and #5 is certainly the access hatches to the engines, which are same as those on the B-2.
That leaves #2 and #4 as unknowns.
 
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ACuriousPLAFan

Brigadier
Registered Member
tamsen_ikard said:
I don't know how useful a subsonic slow bomber will be in a fight against top level countries. Low frequency radars can already detect stealthy planes. Even if they can't get weapons grade tracking, just discovering a slow plane gives you time to scramble fighter jets to send against such slow planes. So, once they are detected, they have no defense against fighter jets.
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tamsen_ikard said:
If China has low frequency Anti-Stealth Radars setup all over the country. The only thing B21 will be good for is firing long range cruise missiles from a distance. Cause if they get too close, they will be detected by low frequency radars and fighter jets will be sent to destroy them. So, this kind of long range cruise missile can be already be done by H-6 bombers.
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tamsen_ikard said:
So, no. B21 is not a game changer against China and China should not be desperate to counter it with its own similar bomber. It should look at the trajectory of technology and select the right cruise missile platform.
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Who says that penetrating deep into enemy territorial airspaces to drop guided bombs is the only correct way to use the B-21?

Remember that the current plan is for the USAF to procure at least 100x B-21s. Assuming that every B-21 can carry 4x JASSMs and with a mission-ready rate of just 25% - That's 100x JASSMs in a single volley of fire. Which is, despite not being fast - Is still quite a non-insignificant threat to deal with, considering the LO and standoff capabilities of the JASSM themselves.

And even if the B-21s can only be used to lob missiles at standoff ranges - Their VLO characteristic, among other things, is capable of allowing the B-21s to have greater chances to get closer to Chinese targets to launch their payloads and retreat safely than their non-VLO counterparts (i.e. B-52 and B-1B). This in itself is another key bonus for the B-21.

Besides, VLO is never the only characteristic that determines whether the B-21 (or just about any other US combat warplanes) can operate in a highly contested environment or not. There's also the EW/ECM factor, which isn't just one, but also one of the many, alongside a major factor to consider (which, due to their complex nature and my insufficient understanding, I won't discuss it any further).

Last but not least, we really have to get rid of the mindset that the B-21 is just another pure strategic bomber - Because it really isn't.
 
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SlothmanAllen

Junior Member
Registered Member
ACuriousPLAFan said:
B-2 vs B-21 underside view comparison, may not be up to scale. Posted by @AlexHollings52 on Twitter.

View attachment 121261


View attachment 121262

#3 is definitely the weapons bay.
#1 and #5 is certainly the access hatches to the engines, which are same as those on the B-2.
That leaves #2 and #4 as unknowns.
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What an awesome shot of the underbelly!

Clearly the space marked '3' is the main bomb bay. As you pointed out, '2' and '4' are either further access points for maintenance or some sort of smaller weapons bay. You can clearly see that lengthwise they are much shorter than the '3' bay if in fact they are further weapons compartments.

I just love that we got so much imagery on the first flight! What an awesome day to be following these types of things.
 
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bebops

Junior Member
Registered Member
ACuriousPLAFan said:
Who says that penetrating deep into enemy territorial airspaces to drop guided bombs is the only correct way to use the B-21?

Remember that the current plan is for the USAF to procure at least 100x B-21s. Assuming that every B-21 can carry 4x JASSMs and with a mission-ready rate of just 25% - That's 100x JASSMs in a single volley of fire. Which is, despite not being fast - Is still quite a non-insignificant threat to deal with, considering the LO and standoff capabilities of the JASSM themselves.

And even if the B-21s can only be used to lob missiles at standoff ranges - Their VLO characteristic, among other things, is capable of allowing the B-21s to have greater chances to get closer to Chinese targets to launch their payloads and retreat safely than their non-VLO counterparts (i.e. B-52 and B-1B). This in itself is another key bonus for the B-21.

Besides, VLO is never the only characteristic that determines whether the B-21 (or just about any other US combat warplanes) can operate in a highly contested environment or not. There's also the EW/ECM factor, which isn't just one, but also one of the many, alongside a major factor to consider (which, due to their complex nature and my insufficient understanding, I won't discuss it any further).

Last but not least, we really have to get rid of the mindset that the B-21 is just another pure strategic bomber - Because it really isn't.
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This is legit. With all the capabilities that it mentioned, they should mass produced tens of thousands of these. ISR/EW craft.
Two major capabilities I see from B21 is EW(proofing/jamming) and command center.. Perhaps China needs some strong anti proofing hardware.

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These, he said, “are capable of carrying payloads capable of capturing light, infrared rays, multispectral, hyper-spectral, radar, and other info, which can then be used to increase battlefield sensory and knowledge capability, support military operations.”

They also “can carry various payloads aimed at electronic counter-battle, fulfilling the aim of electronic magnetic suppression and electronic magnetic attack on the battlefield, damage and destroy an adversary’s information systems.”
 
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Soldier30

Senior Member
Registered Member
The American B-21 Raider bomber, worth $700 million, made its first flight. This is reportedly the world's first sixth-generation bomber. The B21 Raider long-range stealth bomber was developed as part of the Long Range Strike Bomber program. Northrup Grumman Corporation received a contract for its development in October 2015. The US Congress in its report said that the new B-21 Raider should by 2040 completely replace the fleet of old strategic bombers - the B-1 Lancer, created almost 50 years ago, and the B-2 Spirit, which was created more than 30 years ago.

 
coolgod

coolgod

Major
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US military aircraft crashes in Mediterranean; injuries unknown​

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A U.S. military aircraft crashed in the eastern Mediterranean after suffering a mishap during a training exercise Friday evening, U.S. European Command said in a statement Saturday.

The command did not provide further details about where in the region the aircraft went down, whether over land or water.

It’s also unclear what type of aircraft was involved, how many people were aboard or whether anyone was injured or killed.
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“We can definitively say that the aircraft sortie was purely related to training and there are no indications of hostile activity,” it added.
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Among those forces are two Navy carrier strike groups stationed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, U.S. surveillance aircraft gathering intelligence off of the Israeli coast and others spread around the region.
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USS Liberty V2.0?
 
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