Air Force B-21 Raider Long-Range Strike Bomber.

• Author: Gertler, Jeremiah
• Position: FURTHER READING

* Any scrap of information on the Air Force's secretive B-21 Raider program is news--even a relatively dry and neutral Congressional Research Service report.

"Details such as the projected weapons and onboard sensors remain classified, which makes evaluating the proposed cost difficult," the report's author CRS aviation specialist Jeremiah Gertler wrote. The Air Force has released a list of subcontractors, but without mentioning what subsystems they are supplying.

However, the report includes an updated artist's rendering, which made a small splash in aviation circles when it was released in early July.

The B-21, projected to enter service in the mid-20s, will have both conventional and nuclear deterrence roles, with the capability of penetrating advanced air defenses. It will initially be a manned aircraft with unmanned operation possible at some point in the future.

The question before lawmakers with all this opaqueness is how many platforms they will be able to afford. The Air Force wants to buy at least 100. Some...