2024-04-13 11:15:30
The cost of the US Air Force‘s new B-21 Raider strategic bomber has decreased following negotiations between the Air Force and Northrop Grumman. This was reported by Defense News with reference to Air Force representative Frank Kendall, Day.Az reports with reference to Lenta.ru.
“The spokesman said the Air Force procurement budget for the B-21 for fiscal year 2025 has been adjusted to reflect favorable negotiations for low initial production prices. The service said neither volumes nor program scope have been adjusted,” the statement said. message.
It is noted that during the presentation of the B-21 in 2022, the Air Force said that the average cost of the aircraft would be $692 million, adjusted for inflation. At a hearing on the Air Force’s fiscal year 2025 budget proposal on Tuesday, April 9, Kendall declined to say how much the plane would cost.
He added that the Air Force is trying to ensure that all aspects of the program are planned, including building maintenance infrastructure, pilot training and building simulators. “I’ve seen programs run into problems because they focused too much on the platform and not enough on everything needed to support it,” Kendall said.
Northrop Grumman said it spent nearly $1.6 billion on the program in the final quarter of 2023.