Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider (LRS-B)

Scott Kenny said:
Dude, the California cost of living is higher than Snoop Dog or Willie Nelson.
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Dunno what their precise annual income levels or accumulated wealth assets are, but as a corporate aerospace engineer, I can abide, although I admittedly slum about 20 driving minutes from the Pacific Rim coastline...
 
Probably won't lead anywhere, but something I saw while reading that time article (that I believe that no one has touched on) is the obfuscation of markings on the internal part. Some words remain visible though, so maybe it could mean something.

link to time article: https://time.com/6238168/b-21-raider-bomber-us-military-exclusive/
text below image: zoomed in high-res of image: "Northrop Grumman has opened new hiring and training pipelines as production on the B-21 program picks up.Christopher Payne for TIME | A small portion of this image was removed for security purposes."

(this is part of what we believe to be the intake, likely the front end (?))
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yeah, it looks like that. Just curious about what might have been removed, and why they're open about showing an internal component like this. Especially something that is of high scrutiny (the intakes & engine)
 

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raptor82 said:
news.northropgrumman.com

Northrop Grumman’s B-21 Raider Receives Aviation Week Grand Laureate Award

WASHINGTON – March 18, 2024 – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) received the Aviation Week Grand Laureate Award in the defense category for its role as the prime contractor delivering the B-21 Raider to the United States Air Force.
news.northropgrumman.com news.northropgrumman.com
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probably an old picture, considering it is of "Raider 1" (aka the non-flying testbed that was revealed at the ceremony). Never seen another close picture in such high resolution though, and its very interesting looking at how the windscreen is attached,
 
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4decaa said:
Probably won't lead anywhere, but something I saw while reading that time article (that I believe that no one has touched on) is the obfuscation of markings on the internal part. Some words remain visible though, so maybe it could mean something.

link to time article: https://time.com/6238168/b-21-raider-bomber-us-military-exclusive/
text below image: zoomed in high-res of image: "Northrop Grumman has opened new hiring and training pipelines as production on the B-21 program picks up.Christopher Payne for TIME | A small portion of this image was removed for security purposes."

(this is part of what we believe to be the intake, likely the front end (?))
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Is it not the kevlar jacket for the engine to contain the parts in the event of a major failure?
 
overscan (PaulMM) said:
Careful shaping of a 'bump' in front of the intake as per F-35 DSI?

Boundary layer ingestion technologies?
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While I haven't seen anything that looks vaguely DSI bump-like, the color of the airframe and the even lighting would make one hard to see in most photos.

But I'm still leaning more towards a sieve screen to suck in the boundary layer, like they did on the YF23.
 
Scott Kenny said:
While I haven't seen anything that looks vaguely DSI bump-like, the color of the airframe and the even lighting would make one hard to see in most photos.

But I'm still leaning more towards a sieve screen to suck in the boundary layer, like they did on the YF23.
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I'd agree with something different than the f35. Wouldn't really be anywhere to put a DSI bump, at least not from the photos taken. Perhaps there is a sieve or some other airflow control system placed within the inlet, behind where the cover sits (which would block it from view in all images).
 
Whisperstream said:
Was there a chase plane? I only ask because I would expect any B-21 test flight to be accompanied by a safety chase aircraft (usually an F-16). It would be very unusual at this stage of the program not to have one.
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Not the easiest thing to see, but there is one (look for the small black speck on the left side of the pic):
B-21_chase.jpg
 
That coating, whatever it does, does not seem to be operationally used yet. The B-21 also has different performance characteristics and use cases that may make such a coating irrelevant. Or potentially the coating simply isn’t applied to the test article; this is the first flying B-21 and it should not be assumed it is absolutely representative of production machines.
 
sublight_ said:
Anybody know why the go fast planes are getting the "chrome job" and B-21 is not?
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Pet theory of mine is that one is a retrofit (the chromies) while the other ones (B-21 and its cousin possibly) already come with it "skin-deep".

Whatever "it" may be...
 
Definitely an evolved external coating shared by both the B-21 and the "RQ-180", would be interesting if a few B-2s get this coating as well. Definitely can make it difficult to see. Hopefully, we may see more flight test photos. The "chrome/mirror" type coating is probably being evaluated or under consideration with others as well. Have not seen an F-22 or F-35 with a B-21-type coating or I missed it?
 
As for meaningful additions to this thread, it's quite unfortunate that this specific flight was captured on what might be an iPhone or other camera that lacks a mechanical zoom. Additionally, it's impossible to ascertain how quiet our Raider here is thanks to the fast mover hiding under it, which is even more sad.

Some additional information regarding this raider flight:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1776261389348127090
View: https://x.com/rubenhofs/status/1776261389348127090
(footage)

https://twitter.com/x/status/1776268467441713373
View: https://x.com/rubenhofs/status/1776268467441713373
(flight path)

Final edit: it appears the original tweet was deleted. (whoever commented about the FBI x-files guys, you're on the right track)
 
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In regards to the chrome, notice how the nose section where the radar sits does not get the treatment in regards to the f-22 or f-35. But the f-117 nose section, lacking a radar, gets the treatment.
 
donnage99 said:
But the f-117 nose section, lacking a radar, gets the treatment.
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Those F-117 photos are right up there with the photos, published on the same site, of an RQ-170 in flight refueling

Use caution.
 

US11939078B1 - Active fuel thermal conditioning for aircraft - Google Patents

Fuel used as a coolant in an aircraft can be thermally conditioned for active thermal management of the airframe and engine. The fuel can be thermally conditioned using the residual cooling capacity of a power and thermal module (PTM), providing flexibility of thermal system design, or via a...
patents.google.com

This system is very interesting, and if used on the B-21 it would explain some of the changes/differences between the B-21 and other aircraft when it comes to apertures, cavities, and doors.
 
I stand corrected on the no DSI bump, then.


sublight_ said:
I only brought it up because I thought it made for an interesting discussion direction. But I see you mentioned it before. I'm sure you can continue to answer questions any way that you want, it is a free country internet, but at the end of the day it wouldn't hurt if more people liked you. You are going to be publishing stuff on some new platform, and whether you like it or not, it is a popularity contest.

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Can you tell us what that "chrome" coating is for, then?
 
Oh, oops. I was supposed to tag @quellish for that: Can you say what that "chome" finish is for, if it's not an IR thing?

I was under the impression it was a thermal conductor to spread the heat load off the leading edges, but apparently that's not the case?
 
while i assumed a sieve would be used for cooling, perhaps a f35-like bump would work after reading that patent on the fuel cooling system. If they are adequately able to cool exhaust with both fuel cooling and other special systems to dissipate heat, a dsi bump would work far better than a sieve.

Also, recently saw people talking about “active” flow control in the flight control surfaces and had to LOL. Anyone else?
 
I would think just adopting a higher bypass turbofan would go a long way towards cooling the exhaust, but I would guess other measures are taken to further reduce the signature.
 
What is the top-speed possible for the B-21 ? At high altitude the speed of sound is less than 1220 kmh.
 

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