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B-21: Rounds says the fleet could be much bigger
RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds says he sees a fleet of B-21s twice as big as what is currently budgeted. “We’ve already set it up to where we plan on buying 100 of them. Right now. I think we’re probably going to buy closer to 200 of these B-21 stealth bombers.” Rounds spoke with NewsCenter1 prior to his speech at the Black Hills Defense and Industry Symposium on Thursday.
Rounds claims that the work needed to prepare Ellsworth for the new bombers has already added significant economic activity to the market in Rapid City. “We’ve got about a half a billion dollars worth of work that’s been done out at Ellsworth Air Force Base already in the last two years – authorized. And we’ve still got another, real close to about a half a billion dollars worth of additional infrastructure work that needs to be done before the B-21 gets here and is fully operational.” He added that there is likely a lot more to come.
When asked about the development, Rounds said, “We’re still putting more money into research and technology on the B-21 than we are into the actual purchase of aircraft. But so far, it is on time. It is on budget, which is amazing for a brand-new product.”
Rounds then compares the project to the difficulty that the Air Force had when they tried to develop the F-35.
“The F-35, which was a fighter bomber — the Air Force tried to to get into production, a large number of them, and then to fix them as they found problems. That did not work out well. And they found out that a number of the earlier versions simply couldn’t be repaired to put into a combat-coded position where they were operational in an actual fight. They were good for training, but that was about it.”
When asked if we are still on target for the arrival of the first bomber in 2025, Rounds replied, “Well, we’ve never released the actual targeting date, but you’re in a reasonable expectation there at mid-part of the of the decade is I think what the air force continues to say, but a lot of work is going to be done before then to get ready.”
There is still a lot to be excited about with the addition of these bombers to Ellsworth. “[Russia and China] know that they have no defense against it today that is capable of stopping these weapon systems from getting in and delivering bombs very, very accurately at their most sensitive locations,” Rounds says.
www.newscenter1.tv
RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds says he sees a fleet of B-21s twice as big as what is currently budgeted. “We’ve already set it up to where we plan on buying 100 of them. Right now. I think we’re probably going to buy closer to 200 of these B-21 stealth bombers.” Rounds spoke with NewsCenter1 prior to his speech at the Black Hills Defense and Industry Symposium on Thursday.
Rounds claims that the work needed to prepare Ellsworth for the new bombers has already added significant economic activity to the market in Rapid City. “We’ve got about a half a billion dollars worth of work that’s been done out at Ellsworth Air Force Base already in the last two years – authorized. And we’ve still got another, real close to about a half a billion dollars worth of additional infrastructure work that needs to be done before the B-21 gets here and is fully operational.” He added that there is likely a lot more to come.
When asked about the development, Rounds said, “We’re still putting more money into research and technology on the B-21 than we are into the actual purchase of aircraft. But so far, it is on time. It is on budget, which is amazing for a brand-new product.”
Rounds then compares the project to the difficulty that the Air Force had when they tried to develop the F-35.
“The F-35, which was a fighter bomber — the Air Force tried to to get into production, a large number of them, and then to fix them as they found problems. That did not work out well. And they found out that a number of the earlier versions simply couldn’t be repaired to put into a combat-coded position where they were operational in an actual fight. They were good for training, but that was about it.”
When asked if we are still on target for the arrival of the first bomber in 2025, Rounds replied, “Well, we’ve never released the actual targeting date, but you’re in a reasonable expectation there at mid-part of the of the decade is I think what the air force continues to say, but a lot of work is going to be done before then to get ready.”
There is still a lot to be excited about with the addition of these bombers to Ellsworth. “[Russia and China] know that they have no defense against it today that is capable of stopping these weapon systems from getting in and delivering bombs very, very accurately at their most sensitive locations,” Rounds says.
B-21: Rounds says the fleet could be much bigger
RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds says he sees a fleet of B-21s twice as big as what is currently budgeted. “We’ve already set it up to
