B-21 Raider: The Iran War Proves We Need More Stealth Bombers

National Security Journal ^ | 6/24/2025 | Rebecca Grant

[whyilovetexas111]

The successful “Operation Midnight Hammer” strike on Iran, where just seven B-2 Spirit bombers devastated key nuclear sites, highlights a critical lesson for the U.S. Air Force: it needs more stealth bombers, and fast. The current fleet of only 19 B-2s, a fraction of the 132 originally planned, was severely strained to execute the mission. This small fleet size creates significant risks when facing multiple global threats.

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TOPICS: Government; History; Military/Veterans; Politics
KEYWORDS: b2; b21; iran; iranfafo; israel; usairforce

[whyilovetexas111]

But can we afford it? We have tax cuts for the rich to pay for.

[imabadboy99]

The MIC needs the money folks.

[BobL]

We WERE going to build 132, then 75...wound up building 21, one then crashed, now at 20.

WHY? Because the Neocons concluded that WE RAN THE WORLD and we had finally reached THE END OF HISTORY - so we didn’t really need any B-2s, or much of a military for that matter, by their twisted logic.

THEN, they realized that China and Russia never read THE END OF HISTORY and thus were not interested in joining Europe and a few other countries in being our slave-states.

...and guess what, we never built enough of the weapons that we needed to RUN THE WORLD. So, yes, our relative handful of remaining B-1s, B-52s, and B-2s can drop bombs on Third World countries, but until we get China and Russia to read THE END OF HISTORY, we ain’t gonna be running the world, not by a long shot...and good luck at that.

[Karliner]

If one was shot down? The fleet shot down? It was a “perfect” plan. Why need more?

Which country to bomb next? Decisions decisions, and fleecing when trillions in debt, but yeah buy another 20 stealth bombers.

[Carry_Okie]

But can we afford it? We have tax cuts for the rich to pay for.

The truly rich put most of their operating expenses under their tax-exempt foundations, as actually used to game the system for profit. The "charities" they support are almost all leftist causes. THAT is where we need to go after the cash flow.

[NFHale]

Well-said and accurate.

[unread]

Maybe we could have China build them for us. (spit)

https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4324946/posts

[DIRTYSECRET]

Let’s see. The satellites get shot down. How accurate will their bombs be?

[Fitzy_888]

Great video about the B-21, projecting it’s possible use (one month ago):

B-21 Raider ATTACK Plan for Iran is SHOCKING!
https://youtu.be/uCwn1QIpeQs?si=Dk93djR6W0Van-WS

[BobL]

“Well-said and accurate.”

Thanks, like I’ve said before, running the world would kind of cool (assuming we can shake off our wokeness, mass immigration, etc.), but it takes a MILITARY to do so, and all we’ve done since the Cold War is CUT OUR MILITARY to levels far lower than any time since the Korean War (and we’re still cutting, at least in our navy).

So the logical thing to do, if we don’t want a military capable of running the world, is to STOP trying to run the world...or it will not end well.

[mikey_hates_everything]

Is that an article in the “National Security Journal” or a Northrop Grumman ad?

[central_va]

Hey bob what’s your problem? We offsored and got real cheap imports. /sarcasm

[BobL]

“Hey bob what’s your problem? We offsored and got real cheap imports. /sarcasm”

LOL - We needed to choose one or the other. Cheap imports, but expensive military to control the world - or - Expensive goods, but cheap military as we wouldn’t need to control the world (just some of it for stuff we couldn’t obtain here).

We chose Option 3 - Cheap imports with cheap military - and that doesn’t work, as we’re now seeing.

[Robert DeLong]

The global threats will need to wait in line I guess, for the world’s policeman to show up. Because we have abandoned that role. Let someone else step up to take over.

[Ditto]

The truly rich put most of their operating expenses under their tax-exempt foundations, as actually used to game the system for profit.

Really. If they really don’t pay taxes, how come the top 1% pay 40% of all taxes?

[MinorityRepublican]

The current fleet of only 19 B-2s, a fraction of the 132 originally planned, was severely strained to execute the mission.

In 2025 dollars, it would have cost us 155 billion dollars to build 132 B-2s.

Expensive. But we can afford it. So much waste and graft in our budget.

[Wuli]

Yes to the title. We need more of those bombers, more bases for the bombers, hidden bases for the bombers, and in more places of the world.

[Carry_Okie]

Really. If they really don’t pay taxes, how come the top 1% pay 40% of all taxes?

Ah, a good consumer of RINO propaganda. Who said they didn't pay taxes? I didn't. This is about rates, not amounts.

Remember that bit about Warren Buffet's secretary paying a higher tax rate than he does? The reason is because they make that much more money.

[Teacher317]

We have 19. The mission took 7, and occupied them for less than 40 hours. And clearly all 19 can fly to the opposite side of the planet and back without much fuss.

How exactly does that make the fleet "strained"? If anything, the mission proved that 132 units would be absolute overkill. We just neutered a major world power with just 7, in just one bombing run.

[Carry_Okie]

Really. If they really don’t pay taxes, how come the top 1% pay 40% of all taxes?

One other thingy about this stupid citation. The top 1% numerically includes what is left of the upper middle class, MANY of whom do not have enough assets to justify a tax-exempt foundation. Those people get taxed like crazy. The true top end, the 0.1% and fewer are the people of whom I was speaking, the "truly rich." Effectively, the system is rigged to keep said upper middle from joining the truly rich.