Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit

[Forest Green]

This is at least the second time it's had signature reduction upgrades. It talked about some having already been done in AFM's 'Stealth' publication back in 2014.

From the link:

Defence manufacturer Northrop Grumman is preparing a series of modernisations for the company’s iconic B-2 Spirit flying wing bomber, including changes to aircraft’s exterior radar absorbent coating.

The change involves phasing out the use of radar-absorbing tape, in favour of a coating material known as magnetic radar absorbing material, or MagRAM.

The specialised tape must be regularly applied to certain B-2 surfaces in order to maintain the aircraft’s LO profile. Kodama says after analysing B-2 maintenance records, Northrop found the tape to be a “high driver” of time needed to preserve mission readiness.

“Using MagRAM, instead of tape, we are driving down maintenance and man hours to maintain that LO,” she notes. “It’s keeping LO health on the aircraft and making it a more maintainable platform.”

Kodama reveals Northrop is in the process modifying the first B-2 with the new MagRAM tape replacement. The company expects to complete the physical modifications before year’s end.

Kodama says the change could reduce the annual maintenance requirement for the B-2 fleet by “tens of thousands” of hours.

An early example of that technology sharing involves mission planning software Northrop developed for the B-21 that will also be compatible with the B-2 – allowing the two bomber types to integrate more easily.

“We can actually share applications that were developed for the B-21 on to the B-2,” Kodama notes.

Kodama says Northrop will continue to work with the USAF on increasing the type’s lethality and capability, including the possibility of teaming the B-2 with autonomous combat jets being developed under the Pentagon’s recently announced Replicator initiative.

 

[flateric]

That's an interesting patch. Is this something recent, maybe related to all the ongoing upgrades?

ongoing non-upgrades I'd say

 

[Foo Fighter]

Sounds like B2 is going on longer than thought.

 

[Hydroman]

B-2 not going away any time soon, NG got $7B for upgrades, life extension and maintenance. B-2's maybe getting B-21 LO treatment tech, makes sense, B-2 still a real viable platform even after 30+ years, we knew the potential of this aircraft when I got on the program in 1986. B-2 ahead of its time when initiated.

 

[Scott Kenny]

Sounds like B2 is going on longer than thought.

It's going to stay on till there's something like 70 B21s delivered, enough to replace the B-1s...

 

[quellish]

This is at least the second time it's had signature reduction upgrades. It talked about some having already been done in AFM's 'Stealth' publication back in 2014.

From the link:

B-2 has always had magnetic RAM. The upgrades improved the maintainability of the signature rather than any significant change in the RCS values