The aerospace defense industry is “more than ready” to develop the Long-Range Strike Bomber and it’s “time to move forward,” said Rebecca Grant, president of IRIS Independent Research, on Thursday at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando. The Obama Administration has given a clear demand signal for the next-generation bomber, and the current bomber force, including the 20 B-2 penetrating, stealth platforms in the inventory, is not sufficient to meet the future threat landscape of more robust air defenses and much larger target sets, she said during the symposium’s panel discussion on long-range strike in a contested environment. Swift program execution of LRS-B is essential to the US defense strategy, said Grant. The new bomber will be critical to the United States maintaining a technological edge over potential adversaries, she said, noting that LRS-B will be the first new US bomber in 34 years.
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.