The United States is about to air a extraordinary stealth bomber aircraft, which you can hear but not see, designed in secret for years as part of the Pentagon’s response to China’s military buildup. The device is a true technological monster that can fly even without a pilot.

The B-21 Raider is America’s first new bomber in more than 30 years. Almost all aspects of the project they are classified. The artist renders released thus far reveal a slight resemblance to the B-2 Spirit, which is the model it will replace.

The bomber is part of the American efforts to mmodernize the three legs of its nuclear triad, including air-launched, submarine- and silo-launched atomic ballistic missiles. It is a courageous step, with particular attention to the People’s Republic.

China is on track to increase its arsenal to 1,500 nuclear weapons by 2035 and has made significant gains in hypersonic, cyber warfare and space capabilities.

According to the Pentagon, in its report this week, the Asian giant presents today “the most important systemic challenge to the security of the United States”. “We needed a new bomber for the 21st century that would allow us to cope much more complicated threatsDeborah Lee James, secretary of the Air Force, said when the contract to build the B-21 Raider was announced in 2015.

The plane is the solution to this request: “It has it more survivability and can take on those tougher threats.

While the Raider may look like the B-2, the similarities aren’t that great, explained Kathy Warden, chief executive officer of Northrop Grumman Corp., the company tasked with developing and building the aircraft.

“The way it operates is extremely advanced compared to the previous model, then the evolution that technology has undergone in terms of computing power,” Warden said.

There is also a change in the materials used in the leathers which make the bomber jacket more difficult to detect. It adds new ways to check e-emissions, so you can falsify information They detect enemy radars and disguise themselves as another object. It also added new technologies in the propulsion system.

You feel it but you don’t see it

In a fact sheet, Virginia-based Northrop Grumman said, without elaborating, that work was being done to make the plane much more stealthy. “When we talk about low chance of being observed, it’s really low. You feel it, but you don’t really see it.” Said the guardian.

A total of six B-21 Raiders are in production. The Air Force plans to build up to a hundred. Each will be able to deploy nuclear and conventional weapons and will even be able to fly unmanned. A value of the project was the speed, crowned in seven years from the award ceremony to the debut. Other fighter and ship programs took decades.

The cost of the bombers is unknown. The original price was $550 million for each unit it would now grow 753 million, but it’s unclear how much the Air Force is investing. The fact that the price is not public worries government enforcement agencies.

In fact, the true costs will be known when the Raider first returns, what will happen only in 2023 and it is then that his true condition will be known. Northrop Grumman has so far confirmed the device’s performance with a digital model.