Speed vs brains, power vs stealth- the Russia Tu-160 vs the American B-21 Raider- which
bomber is truly supreme?
Every day that the war in Ukraine rages is one day closer to a possible confrontation
between the United States and the Russian Federation, and one thing's for sure- if war
between the two breaks out, these two bombers are going to be some of the most important
aircraft in the sky.
Currently the B-21 Raider is not yet operational, so let's fast forward a few years to a hypothetical
conflict where the two nation's strategic bombers find themselves caught in the most
catastrophic war since World War II.
The difference between the bombers and their capabilities will likely spell victory for
its side, so which is the better bomber?
The Tupolev 160 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tupolev_Tu-160_RF-94109.jpg), or Tu-160 Belyy Lebed- White Swan in Russian-
or as it's known by its NATO code name Blackjack, is a truly impressive aircraft from a nation
that stopped producing impressive aircraft a long time ago.
To date it is the largest and heaviest military aircraft that can exceed speeds of Mach 2,
and second only to the American XB-70 when it comes to size and speed.
Other aircraft are faster, but like the XB-70 prototype, the Blackjack was designed to penetrate
deep and fast into enemy airspace to deliver conventional- or more likely nuclear- bombs.
Today it's in a class completely of its own as the largest, fastest bomber in the world,
and it steals a trick from the famous American F-14 Tomcat with its variable sweep wing technology.
The Blackjack has its origins all the way back in 1967, when one thing became abundantly
clear- conventional bombers were no longer survivable in the modern jet age.
The Soviets needed something new, and despite laying the groundwork for stealth technology,
never followed through on that idea- leaving it to the Americans to exploit with stunning
success.
Instead, the Soviets decided that they'd just go fast.
Really fast.
And bring a lot of bombs while going really fast.
It was Looney Tunes logic at its finest, but the idea worked splendidly.
In 1972 the Soviets launched a competition for a variable sweep bomber that could fly
at speeds of up to Mach 2.3, which would have left most surface to air missiles in the dust
at the time, or so starved of inertia that they'd be ineffective in bringing the bomber
down.
The variable sweep design was a necessity for subsonic and supersonic flight, allowing
the plane to change its geometry and be more efficient at faster speeds.
The Blackjack would compete against the American B-1, though the B-1 project would actually
be canceled thanks to the development of cruise missiles and the development of the B-2 bomber.
The United States saw stealth, not speed, as the ultimate guarantor of safety for its
bomber fleet, and the B-1 was suddenly out of a job.
With only a few prototypes built, the B-1 would be canceled until it was restarted in
1981 due to delays with the B-2.
In November 1981 an airline passenger photographed the strange plane at Zhukovsky Airfield, officially
revealing the prototype to the world.
The big bomber would undergo further testing and refinement, until finally being authorized
for serial production in 1984.
An extremely successful bomber, the Blackjack would see a production run of 36 aircraft,
with 27 operational bombers and 9 test craft.
This pales in comparison with the American B-1, which saw 101 aircraft developed, but
the war in Afghanistan put serious budgetary pressures on the Soviet Union and the ensuing
collapse only made defense budget woes even worse.
The new Russian Federation however had a problem- the Blackjack was designed to carry nuclear
weapons very far and very fast, and in the post-Cold War era it was conventional war,
not nuclear war, that was the primary agenda.
Thus in 2002 all 15 surviving Tu-160s underwent a modernization program which saw mixed results.
Modifications to the aircraft allowed them to now carry a variety of conventional weapons,
including the Kh-555 air-launched cruise missile, as well as receiving communication, navigation,
and engine upgrades as well as life extension care.
However the initial plan to modernize its avionics was scrapped due to costs, and it
wouldn't be until 2014 that the first modern radar and avionics suites would be installed.
Further hampering efforts to modernize the Blackjack was corruption inside the ministry
of defense and a weak Russian industry and defense budget both.
The collapse of the Soviet Union saw many specialists and the companies they worked
for end up in now independent nations, forcing the Russian Federation to attempt to restart
these enterprises at home.
This met with very mixed success, and Russian firms struggled- as they have historically-
in producing updated engines.
By August of 2022 only 5 of the 17 strong fleet had new engines installed.
After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Ukraine inherited 19 of the big bombers, or over half
of the entire Soviet fleet.
After lengthy negotiations, 11 of the 19 aircraft were purchased by the Russian Federation,
and the remaining 8 were scrapped under the terms of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat
Reduction agreement.
20 years later, this ended up being a massive mistake for Ukraine, who could not have foreseen
that its own bombers are now delivering cruise missile strikes against its civilian population.
Though long out of production, a resurgent Russia announced plans in 2008 to resume serial
production of the Blackjack until a fleet of 50 aircraft had been established.
However, Russian industry suffered from serious brain drain after the collapse of the Soviet
Union and the ensuing troubling years of Vladimir Putin's presidency.
Lacking the technical expertise in electron-beam welding or working with titanium that it once
had, Russia took until November 2017 to develop a fully assembled, but unfinished Tu-160.
Full scale production was estimated to ramp up in 2019, with new airframes delivered in
2023, and in 2018 the first, new Blackjack built in over 30 years had its maiden test
flight.
However, sanctions have rocked Russia hard and prevented the expected delivery of two
new aircraft by 2022.
Instead, in January of 2022 a single Tu-160 undertook a test flight from an airfield owned
by the Kazan Aviation Plant.
Much like America's restarting of the B-1 in the 1980s, the Blackjack is resuming production
as a stopgap measure due to delays with Russia's own stealth bomber program, code named PAK
DA, but thanks to international sanctions the future of both programs is now in serious
question.
17 of the bombers are believed to exist, but only 11 have been verified as operational
today.
Each bomber is powered by four NK-32 afterburning turbofan engines, the most powerful engines
to ever be fitted to a combat aircraft.
This allows the 110 ton bomber to fly at speeds of Mach 2.05, a necessity that the US dropped
from its B-1 Lancer due to an interest in reducing the plane's radar cross section.
The aircraft carries weapons in two internal bays, each of which can carry 44,000 pounds
(20,000 kg) of free-fall bombs or nuclear missiles in rotary launchers.
The aircraft can also carry long range missiles in external hard points, allowing it to bring
a lot of pain to a fight very fast.
Fully loaded to bear, the Tu-160 has a range of 6500 miles (10,500), but has the capacity
to be refueled in air to extend that range if needed.
In the blue corner is America's newest and greatest- the B-21 Raider.
This is a bomber that's not even operational yet and deeply shrouded in mystery.
Given that few solid details of the B-2 bomber have ever been leaked, and that aircraft is
over 40 years old, it's unlikely the world is going to be learning the true potential
of the B-21 anytime soon, but we can make some solid guesses.
Like the Blackjack, the B-21 Raider is a long range strategic bomber- the culminating effort
of the US Air Force's Long Range Strike Bomber program.
The plane is so secretive, that at its unveiling ceremony in December of 2022, only the front
of the plane was visible, and photographers were not allowed to get within several hundred
feet of the aircraft.
The B-21 was first planned in 2011, and according to the Congressional Research Service its
“size, required stealth, structure, number and type of engines, projected weapons, and
onboard sensors” all remain classified- so bear with us as we try to gleam pearls
of information from a deep web of secrecy.
In 2011 the US Air Force woke up to the reality of a rising Chinese threat in the Pacific
and an increasingly belligerent Russia.
It needed a tool to counter modern and extremely sophisticated air defenses in order to put
steel on target where it hurt the most, and right off the bat this is where the B-21 took
a different development plan than its boomer grandpa the B-2.
Unlike the B-2, the B-21 would be designed as both a conventional and nuclear deterrent,
which meant that the air force would order it in large numbers- possibly enough to replace
its B-52 fleet.
By 2014 the Air Force conducted initial research and issued a request for industry to submit
proposals for a new bomber aircraft.
After top secret review of various submissions, the development contract was awarded to Northrop
Grumman in October of 2015, prompting protests by both Boeing and Lockheed Martin who filed
bid protests.
In October 2016, the Government Accountability Office cited costs as the decision to pursue
the Northrop Grumman design and rejected Boeing and Lockheed's challenges.
Unlike traditional weapons programs, the entire B-21 program is being managed by the Air Force
Rapid Capabilities Office.
An agency designed to cut through red tape and seek off-the-shelf solutions whenever
possible, the AFRCO was designed to help the US Air Force adapt to battlefield threats
within months of encountering them- if not less time.
The fact that the Rapid Capabilities office was placed in charge of the B-21 program is
a clear indication that the US sees a pressing need for the B-21 to be fully operational
sooner rather than later.
Northrop Grumman describes the B-21 as the world's first sixth generation aircraft.
But the B-21 is more than a one-trick pony, as back in 2015 the Air Force publicly stated
that the Raider would need to function as not just a bomber but also an intelligence
collection platform, battle manager, and even interceptor- hinting at the B-21's ability
to carry long range air to air missiles.
With its networked sensor-shoot capabilities, the B-21 would also penetrate deep into denied
air space and directly guide other aircraft's weapons to their targets, without using its
own and giving away its location.
The Air Force initially planned for 100 B-21s, ramping up for a full fleet of between 175
to 200 aircraft.
Due to the similarity in engine design to those powering the F-35, the B-21 could see
a dramatic cost reduction that would make this the world's first affordable stealth
bomber.
Historically speaking, the US Air Force has had big plans but short pockets when it comes
to high capability aircraft such as the B-21.
In a stunning development for any major weapons program, by February of 2022, just before
Russia's invasion of Ukraine and just six years from greenlighting production, six B-21
Raiders were confirmed to be in production, with its first public flight scheduled for
2023.
The program remains so secret however that the Air Force won't even release the estimated
cost of the entire B-21 contract, as it claims that the figure would reveal too many capabilities
of what is turning out to be the most classified US Air Force program in history.
Currently, it's estimated that each B-21 will cost about $700 million- an absolutely stunning
figure but well under the over 1 billion figure of the B-2 bomber.
In what would be a first in US history, Australia could possibly also operate America's most
capable stealth bomber.
Citing security concerns over a conflict with China in the South Pacific, Australia has
stated that its fleet of F-35s is insufficient to deliver credible firepower far from its
own shores.
However, B-21s flying from secure bases in the south of Australia, well outside Chinese
threat envelopes, could fly an estimated 2,500 miles (4,000 km) to threaten targets far from
Australian shores.
In August of 2022, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall stated that the US was willing to
have a conversation about allowing Australia to join in development of the B-21.
With total payload, range, engines, speed, altitude, and radar cross section all classified,
there's not much of a tale of the tape when it comes to the B-21- so which aircraft is
better?
Currently, the Tu-160 has all the advantages.
Yes, its avionics, engines, and fundamental structure is all dated- but the Tu-160 is
a combat proven platform, while the B-21 remains untested except on the drawing board and highly
classified simulations.
However, unlike Russia, the US has a track record of making promises on capabilities
and keeping them- and the B-21 is being built off the back of the highly successful B-2,
which is already a significant threat modern air forces struggle to defeat.
With a smaller payload than the B-2, the Raider is going to bring less firepower to the fight
than the Blackjack.
In order to retain its stealthy characteristics, the B-2 is almost certainly also going to
be a subsonic bomber, meaning the Tu-160 also gets the speed advantage.
In a conflict where mass matters, the Tu-160 wins hands down with its speed and larger
payload.
However, the B-21 is designed to fight an intelligent war.
Its stealth will allow it to penetrate deep into denied air space and strike exactly where
it hurts the most.
US air warfare doctrine sees the use of stealth aircraft and precision long-range stand off
attack munitions to strike at command and control hubs, logistics networks, and other
targets vital to the operation of a modern military.
Knocking these critical nodes offline can throw an army into disarray, as we've seen
happen in Ukraine with the use of HIMARS.
Plus, with a healthier budget and the US's robust economy, the B-21 will inevitably be
purchased in greater numbers than the Tu-160, offsetting the mass advantage the Blackjack
might enjoy.
Its far greater survivability also means that the B-21 will be flying long after the last
Russian Tu-160 has been blown out of the sky.
As an added bonus to ground crews and any wildlife in the vicinity, the B-21 will also
not be expelling extremely hazardous nitric acid as it takes off, which is not just cancerous
but can have catastrophic effects on exposed flesh
Now go check out Dumb Reason Russia Is Losing The War, or click this video instead!