2018 Bomber
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This article contains information about a scheduled or anticipated future aircraft.
It may contain preliminary or speculative information, and may not reflect the final version of the aircraft.
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| 2018 Bomber | |
|---|---|
| Type | Medium bomber |
| Manufacturer | not yet decided |
| Designed by | Northrop Grumman or Boeing/Lockheed Martin |
| Introduced | 2018 (projected) |
| Status | Under study |
| Primary user | United States Air Force |
The 2018 Bomber is the unofficial name given to a medium bomber currently under development by the United States Air Force. Later publications now use the term NGB (for New Generation Bomber). It is projected to enter service in 2018 as a super stealthy, subsonic medium range, medium payload "B-3" type system to augment and possibly to a limited degree replace the U.S. Air Force's aging bomber fleet.
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[edit] Development
Air Combat Command recently conducted a study of alternatives for a new bomber type aircraft to augment the current bomber fleet which now consists of largely 1970s era airframes, with a goal of having a fully operational aircraft on the ramp by 2018. Speculation that the next generation bomber would be hypersonic and unmanned were laid to rest when Air Force Major General Mark T. Matthews, head of ACC Plans and Programs said "Our belief is that the bomber should be manned" at a May 1 Air Force Association sponsored event. He later cited that the bomber would also likely be subsonic due to the cost of development and maintenance of a hypersonic or even supersonic bomber. The 2018 bomber is expected to serve as a stop-gap until the "2037 bomber" which is expected to be supersonic, stealthy, and long-range.[1] USAF officials expect the new bomber to have top end low observability characteristics with the ability to loiter for hours over the battle field responding to threats as they appear, something that the B-52H and B-1B have done with great success in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Major General David E. Clary, ACC vice-commander, summed it up by saying the new bomber will be expected to "penetrate and persist". The decision to make the next generation bomber subsonic was made in light of the additional cost and complexity along with the limited value of supersonic speed in a penetrator bomber, as exampled by the B-52H which has out lived the B-58, XB-70 and FB-111 all of which were supersonic and are all now out of service or in the case of the XB-70 proved to be too complex and too expensive to ever enter service in the first place. Another issue is that of cruise missile deployment, currently only the B-52 can carry and fire the cruise missiles in Air Force inventory. Major consideration was paid to operation readiness and flexibility, the older B-52 is currently the most reliable of the heavy bomber fleet, and the B-2 is limited in the nature of the missions it can undertake and requires specialized maintenance facilities. In 2006, the program expected that a prototype could be flying as early as 2009.[2]
In September 2007, Air Force generals stated that even though the development schedule for the bomber is short, it can be fielded by 2018.[3]
[edit] Recent developments
On January 25, 2008, Boeing and Lockheed Martin announced an agreement to embark on a joint effort to develop a new U.S. Air Force strategic bomber, with plans for the new airplane to be in service by 2018.[4] This collaborative effort for a long-range strike program will include work in advanced sensors and future electronic warfare solutions, including advancements in network-enabled battle management, command and control, and virtual warfare simulation and experimentation.[5] Under the Boeing-Lockheed arrangement, Boeing, the No. 2 Pentagon supplier, would be the primary contractor with about 60% of the deal, said sources familiar with the companies' plans. Lockheed, the world's largest defense contractor, would have around 40%.[6]
Northrop Grumman has received $2 billion in funding in 2008 for "restricted programs" – also called black programs – for a demonstrator which could fly in 2010.[7]
The Air Force is expected to announce late in 2009 its precise requirements for a new bomber that would be operating by 2018.[8]
[edit] Specifications
The design goals as of September 2007 are:[3]
- Subsonic max speed
- A combat radius of 2,000+ miles
- A Weapons load of 14,000-28,000 lb
- Ability to "survive in hostile airspace for extended time"
- Ability to carry nuclear weapons
- Designed to use off-the-shelf propulsion, C4ISR, and radar technologies[1]
- Expected first flight in 2016[8]
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
[edit] References
- ^ a b U.S. Air Force: No 2009 Money for Next-Gen Bomber
- ^ "The 2018 Bomber and Its Friends", Air Force magazine, October 2006.
- ^ a b "Senior Air Force Generals To Skeptics: We Can Field A New Bomber In 2018", Defense Daily, September 26, 2007.
- ^ Boeing, Lockheed to work on new bomber, UPI.com
- ^ "Boeing and Lockheed Martin Team for Next Generation Bomber Program", Boeing
- ^ "Boeing, Lockheed team up on bomber project", TheStar.com
- ^ "Ultra Stealth", Aviation Week, May 26, 2008.
- ^ a b Boeing, Lockheed to team up against Northrop for bomber contract, Seattle Times
[edit] External links
- "Long-Range Strike in a Hurry", Air Force magazine, November 2004.
- "USAF Weighs Four Skunk Works Designs for Interim Strike", Aviation Week, November 28, 2004.
- "The 2018 Bomber and Its Friends", Air Force magazine, October 2006.
- "Return of the Bomber, The Future of Long-Range Strike", Air Force Association special report, February 2007.
- "Great Expectations", Air Force magazine, August 2007.
- "B-3" Long Range Strike Platform on GlobalSecurity.org
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