AURORA, Colorado—The U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman have reached an agreement to increase production capacity of the B-21, bolstered by billions in additional funding provided by last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink announced the agreement on Feb. 23, saying that industry across the board has increased its production capacity—but not enough.
“No as fast as we need and want, but faster than they had,” Meink said in an address at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Air Warfare Symposium here. “The B-21 is doing well, and we recently reached an agreement to ramp production capacity.”
In a subsequent announcement, the Air Force laid out the long-awaited production capacity increase. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act included $4.5 billion in funding to increase production, along with Northrop Grumman announcing up to $3 billion of its own funding for production.
The agreement would increase annual capacity by 25%, though the Air Force did not specify an exact production rate. The exact pace is classified, though understood to be up to eight aircraft per year. The Air Force also said the agreement would compress delivery timelines and preserve “cost and performance discipline.”
The Air Force and Northrop Grumman said the program is on pace to deliver aircraft to Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota, in 2027. Two flight test aircraft have been delivered, with additional aircraft undergoing ground testing. Two flight test aircraft are in assembly.
“The strong performance of the B-21 program has our Northrop Grumman and Air Force team ready to accelerate production of this game-changing capability for our nation,” Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden said in an announcement. “Northrop Grumman has invested more than $5 billion in digital engineering and manufacturing infrastructure, and we are ready to produce B-21 faster.”
Warden had said on Feb. 18 that the agreement had been expected in March, indicating an accelerated process to make the announcement at the symposium.
The Air Force has a program of record for 100 B-21s, but key leaders have called for at least 150 of the bombers.
