.Mil’s Next Massive Boondoggle: Long Range Strike Bomber
March 4th, 2015Via: Washington Post:
With so little known about it, there is growing concern about the system’s cost. And given the Pentagon’s vast history of cost overruns on major weapons systems, experts worry that even though a contract has yet to be awarded, it is already facing the same troubling problems that have plagued other programs.
The Air Force has estimated each new bomber will cost $550 million apiece, but that figure was set in 2010 without counting for inflation and is already five years outdated. It’s also significantly less than the cost of its predecessor, the B-2 bomber, and not that much more than some high-end commercial jets. Coming in at such a low price will be difficult, if not impossible, analysts said.
Meanwhile, I have a bridge to Antarctica for sale.
I worked on the B-2 program as an inspector in one of the major supplier machine shops. B-2’s cost nearly $2 billion each 20+ years ago. An updated long range strike bomber that is optionally manned isn’t going to be much cheaper, and will probably be more expensive. The logistics of secured programs and secured suppliers on limited production runs is mind blowing expensive.