Northrop Grumman celebrated the opening of a new 845,000-square foot facility to support production of the stealth bomber.

Northrop Grumman has been assembling the B-21 Raider, the US Air Force’s next-generation long-range bomber, at its highly classified manufacturing facility at USAF Plant 42 near Palmdale, California. The same historic location was used to build the U-2 Dragon Lady, the SR-71 Blackbird, the B-2 Spirit, and the space shuttles.

But now the aerospace firm has a new facility in Layton, Utah, that will play a significant role in the production of the B-21.

“It is a phenomenal machine, and it is a phenomenal program,” Tom Jones, corporate vice president for the defense giant, said at a ceremony this week to formally unveil the new plant, KSL.com reported.

“I believe it will be the predominant deterrent weapon system of the future,” Jones added. “This is what is going to help keep peace and stability in the world, the platform that we’re building here.”

What Will Northrop Grumman’s Layton Facility Provide? That’s Classified!

Northrop Grumman wouldn’t confirm exactly what will be manufactured at the new 845,000-square foot Utah facility, but the B-21 Raider is one of the largest current US Air Force programs and has required a massive supply chain. Approximately 8,000 employees working at the aerospace firm and more than a dozen other defense contractors, spanning a range of sizes and operating across 40 states, have been actively working on the US Air Force’s new stealth bomber.

The brand-new facility in the East Gate Business Park is adjacent to Hill Air Force Base (AFB), which already serves as a major hub for US Air Force logistics, aerospace maintenance, and repair via its Ogden Air Logistics Complex. Designed to support up to 1,500 engineers and manufacturing employees, East Gate 3 is set to reach full operations by 2032.

The prime contractor for the B-21 has also expanded its footprint considerably in Utah in recent years.

Northrop Grumman directly employs more than 11,000 people in the Beehive State, and supports over 46,000 total jobs, generating more than $12.4 billion for Utah’s economy. In July, the company also broke ground on a “Legacy Building” at its Roy campus to support the US Air Force’s Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program, with construction running through 2028.

The Cost of the B-21 Raider Program

The US Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman the contract to develop and build the B-21 Raider in 2015, and the company has invested more than $5 billion to date. It has accumulated more than $2 billion in total pre-tax losses producing the first five low-rate initial production (LRIP) lots. The aerospace firm adjusted its manufacturing methods to speed up production rates and to reach full-rate production (RFP) quicker.

As the early production lots were built under fixed-price contracts, Northrop Grumman absorbed the cost overruns.

The increased costs of the B-21 Raider drove a significant drop in quarterly operating income in the spring of 2025 and forced Northrop Grumman to lower its annual profit forecasts. CEO Kathy Warden said at the time that although the financial impact was disappointing for the company, the lessons learned from the early production changes were integrated to de-risk future lots as deliveries to the Air Force approach.

About the B-21 Raider

The B-21 Raider is now nearly a decade in the making. Northrop Grumman first attained the contract for the next-generation bomber in 2015, and the company then quickly assembled a nationwide team to build it. The Raider—named for the 80 men who participated in the 1942 “Doolittle Raid” on Tokyo in 1942—was developed using the aerospace firm’s pioneering digital engineering practices and advanced manufacturing techniques.

In late 2023, the US Department of Defense approved the B-21’s move into low-rate initial production (LRIP), and Northrop Grumman was provided a Pentagon LRIP contract in January 2024. The LRIP phase is currently on track for five lots and will run through the end of this decade.

The Air Force has set a goal of acquiring a fleet of at least 100 B-21s, but some analysts have called for that number to be doubled.

The B-21 Raider’s (Reported) Specifications

• Year Introduced: Not yet introduced (anticipated 2027)
• Number Built: 3 (prototypes)
• Length: 54 ft (16.46 m)
• Wingspan: 132 ft (40.2 m)
• Weight (MTOW): 180,000 lb (81,646 kg)
• Engines: Two Pratt & Whitney PW9000 turbofan engines (27,000 lbf each)
• Top Speed: ~600 mph (965 km/h) / Mach 0.8
• Range: ~ 6,000 mi (9,650 km)
• Service Ceiling: ~50,000 ft (15,240 m)
• Loadout: Internal weapons bay, 20,000 lb (9,070 kg) payload capacity; expected to field a dual-capable loadout of both nuclear and conventional weapons, including precision-guided munitions like the AGM-181 LRSO cruise missile, B61-12 nuclear glide bomb, and B61-13 nuclear bunker buster bombs
• Aircrew: 2

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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