Operational Pilot Flies B-21 Raider in Historic First for U.S. Testing

The B-21 Raider Is Being Tested for Combat Before It’s Even Totally Finished — a Break From How America Builds Warplanes

The B-21 Just Cleared Another Major Milestone A B-21 Raider is unveiled at Northrop Grumman’s manufacturing facility on Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, Dec. 2, 2022. The B-21 will be a long-range, highly survivable, penetrating strike stealth bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Joshua M. Carroll) A second B-21 Raider test aircraft takes off, Sept. 11, from Pa…

Operational pilot flies B-21 Raider in historic first for U.S. testing

In what Air Force officials described as the earliest such integration in modern test history, an operational test pilot flew the B-21 Raider alongside a developmental test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base in California, signaling that America’s next-generation nuclear bomber is transitioning from proving it can fly to proving it can fight. The flight […]

Pilot takes B-21 Raider on first flight as program moves toward combat testing

The U.S. Air Force has accelerated B-21 Raider testing by flying an operational test pilot alongside a developmental test pilot for the first time this early in the program, aiming to speed up feedback on combat readiness and mission systems as the B-21 moves toward becoming the backbone of the future bomber fleet. The post Pilot takes B-21 Raider on first flight as program moves toward combat testing appeared first on TechStock².

B-21 Raider Hits Major Milestone as Operational Pilot Joins Test Flight, Accelerating USAF Bomber’s Path to Service

The United States Air Force has achieved a significant milestone in the development of its next-generation B-21 Raider stealth bomber, with an operational test pilot flying alongside a developmental test pilot in the aircraft for the first time. The unprecedented… The post B-21 Raider Hits Major Milestone as Operational Pilot Joins Test Flight, Accelerating USAF Bomber’s Path to Service appeared first on The Asia Live.

US Air Force fast-tracks B-21 testing timeline by combining test phases

In another illustration of how defense programs are being fast-tracked, the US Air Force has, for the first time, placed an operational pilot alongside a test pilot early in the flight-testing program for the B-21 Raider nuclear bomber.Continue ReadingCategory: Military, EngineeringTags: US Air Force, Northrop Grumman, B-21 Raider, Flight Tests

Operational pilot flies B-21 Raider in historic test flight

The United States Air Force (USAF) has confirmed that an operational pilot has flown a Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider during a historic test flight.   On June 11, 2026, Edwards Air Force Base announced that an operational test pilot recently flew the bomber with a developmental test pilot sharing the cockpit.  “We put an operational test member in the pilot seat with an Air Force Test Pilot School graduate in the other,” Col. Matt Guasco, AFOTEC D…