Northrop Grumman said it has been awarded another Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) contract for the U.S. Air Force’s B-21 Raider stealth bomber.
This is the second production run of the nuclear strike aircraft, but the company did not disclose how many aircraft it expects.
The information was released in its fourth-quarter financial results on Thursday. Northrop Grumman reported a record backlog of $91.5 billion amid growing sales of U.S. military equipment to foreign governments.
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The B-21 Raider is considered a 6th-generation aircraft and is being built by the company at Plant 42 in Palmdale, California.
The flying wing-shaped aircraft is an evolution of the B-2 Spirit, the first stealth bomber to enter service and also produced by Northrop Grumman.
There is currently at least one B-21 in testing at Edwards AFB, in addition to about six aircraft in various stages of production.
The Air Force expects to have at least 100 of these jets that will replace the B-2 and B-1B in the second half of the decade.
Back to the NGAD program?
Kathy Walden, the company’s CEO, also said that Northrop Grumman could return to the Air Force’s NGAD (Next Generation Air Dominance) program if it is relaunched.
The project for a 6th generation fighter was supposed to have a supplier selected last year, but then-Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall paused the program due to changes in the air combat scenario, with the advent of advanced drones and Russia’s lack of air superiority over Ukraine.
Ultimately, the decision on the future of NGAD was left to the Trump administration.
Northrop Grumman had previously said it would not compete for the contract, leaving it open to question whether Lockheed Martin or Boeing would be the only contenders.
The company, however, remains committed to another fighter program, the US Navy’s F/A-XX, which could have a winner announced in 2025.
