{"id":30533,"date":"2021-06-10T02:28:42","date_gmt":"2021-06-10T02:28:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/06\/10\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:57:13","slug":"south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/06\/10\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\/","title":{"rendered":"South Dakota\u2019s Ellsworth Air Force Base will be home to B-21 bomber"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">SIOUX FALLS, S.D. \u2014 Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota will be the home of the next-generation nuclear bomber, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2016\/09\/19\/it-s-the-raider-air-force-unveils-name-of-new-b-21-bomber\/\" target=\"_blank\">the B-21 Raider<\/a>, the U.S. Air Force indicated Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force plans to build and eventually operate over 100 of the stealth bombers, which are capable of launching nuclear strikes around the globe. U.S. Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds said they heard from the Air Force Wednesday that it has officially designated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/27\/ellsworth-to-be-first-operational-b-21-base\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ellsworth the bomber\u2019s main operating base<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thune said the planes will eventually be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2018\/05\/02\/air-force-next-generation-b-21-bomber-headed-to-3-bases\/\" target=\"_blank\">housed at several Air Force bases<\/a>, including locations in Texas and Missouri. However, Ellsworth was selected by the Air Force to house the bomber\u2019s training program and first squadron, Thune said.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/27\/ellsworth-to-be-first-operational-b-21-base\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"170\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/B-21_ocean.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Ellsworth to be first operational B-21 base<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri and Dyess Air Force Base in Texas will follow, and receive B-21s as they become available.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The announcement represents an economic boon for the western part of South Dakota, with the bomber expected to potentially double the size of the base\u2019s personnel by bringing 3,000 more service members, Thune said. Construction projects for bomber hangars and other facilities are also expected. It currently hosts two squadrons that operate B-1 bombers, which are expected to eventually be phased out of military use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s a once in a generation, historic opportunity for South Dakota,\u201d Thune said, adding that it will ensure Ellsworth remains a vital part of the nation\u2019s military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The base, located near Rapid City, is already one of the largest employers in the state. According to a 2017 estimate, it had an annual economic impact of over $350 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ellsworth faced the possibility of closure in 2005 when it was briefly put on the Pentagon\u2019s list of military bases that should be closed or relocated. But since then, South Dakota politicians have worked to keep it on the shortlist of sites for the B-21 bomber. The Air Force had announced in March 2019 that it was leaning towards the base as the location to develop its B-21 Raider program.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2021\/01\/19\/watch-the-skies-in-2022-for-the-first-b-21-bomber-flight\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/210111-F-AF000-1416.jfif_.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Watch the skies in 2022 for the first B-21 bomber flight<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Construction of the second B-21 is underway.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rounds credited West River communities for rallying to make sure the base stayed open. He added the development would create a ripple effect of construction for schools, infrastructure, and housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Republican senators emphasized that it will be an important piece of the United State\u2019s military rivalry with both Russia and China. The bomber is expected to have a range long enough to attack targets on other continents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt will let (China) know that we can reach out and touch them should they misbehave,\u201d Rounds said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the bomber is not expected to be flying over the Black Hills until 2027, and many of the details of the aircraft, currently being developed by Virginia-based Northrop Grumman, remain unknown or classified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rounds was briefed several weeks ago on the project and said that so far it was \u201con time and on budget.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>U.S. Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds said they heard from the Air Force Wednesday that it has officially designated Ellsworth the bomber&#8217;s main operating base.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":58893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":67,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["your-military","news","left-column","home","middle-column","good-news-report","newsletters"],"primary_category":"your-military"}}},"categories":[101,24,88,16,26,67],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3986],"class_list":["post-30533","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-left-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-air-force"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"QYZ5VV75BFBX7LFBGNTUDSKVPI","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/06\/09\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>South Dakota\u2019s Ellsworth Air Force Base will be home to B-21 bomber - Air Force TImes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"U.S. Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds said they heard from the Air Force Wednesday that it has officially designated Ellsworth the bomber&#039;s main operating base.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Dakota\u2019s Ellsworth Air Force Base will be home to B-21 bomber\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"U.S. Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds said they heard from the Air Force Wednesday that it has officially designated Ellsworth the bomber&#039;s main operating base.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/06\/10\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Air Force TImes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-06-10T02:28:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-07T20:57:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Stephen Groves, The Associated Press\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Stephen Groves, The Associated Press\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"South Dakota\u2019s Ellsworth Air Force Base will be home to B-21 bomber\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2021-06-10T02:28:42+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-07T20:57:13+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 467,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/200130-F-PA987-9002.JPG_27697c.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Left Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Your Air Force\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/10\\\/south-dakotas-ellsworth-air-force-base-will-be-home-to-b-21-bomber\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"South Dakota\u2019s Ellsworth Air Force Base will be home to B-21 bomber - 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