{"id":40163,"date":"2017-10-18T19:07:10","date_gmt":"2017-10-18T19:07:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2017\/10\/18\/b-21-cost-info-to-stay-secret-despite-new-air-force-leadership\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:11:57","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:11:57","slug":"b-21-cost-info-to-stay-secret-despite-new-air-force-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2017\/10\/18\/b-21-cost-info-to-stay-secret-despite-new-air-force-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"B-21 cost info to stay secret despite new Air Force leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Don\u2019t hold your breath waiting for the contract value of the B-21 Raider to be revealed. While the U.S. Air Force\u2019s top general reviews the bomber program every few months to see whether new details can be released, it will be \u201csome time\u201d before the service divulges more cost information, the Air Force undersecretary said Oct. 12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out of the Air Force\u2019s top three acquisition priorities, the B-21 Raider is its most secretive, with only a few details disclosed to the public, such as the estimated price per aircraft and a list of the major contractors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The service has taken a hard line against releasing the value of the development contract awarded to Northrop Grumman in 2015, with officials saying that doing so would give adversaries information that would allow them to extrapolate on the bomber\u2019s design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as the service\u2019s No. 2 civilian, Air Force Under Secretary Matt Donovan finds himself in an interesting predicament. Just months ago, as the majority policy director for the Senate Armed Services Committee, he helped helm committee Chairman John McCain\u2019s arguments in favor of releasing more information on the B-21 Raider, including the contract value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that Donovan is working for the Air Force, part of his job is to support and implement the decisions of Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein and Secretary Heather Wilson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The irony isn\u2019t lost on Donovan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s funny because they knew I was the guy that was always pushing on that from the Senate side [to release the B-21 contract information],\u201d he told Defense News in his first-ever interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne of the things that I\u2019ve been able to do is come over here and say: \u2018We need to release things as sure as we know that we can.\u2019 And I know that Gen. Goldfein still does a review every couple of months, and the B-21 folks come talk to him and give him an update because he is very responsive to Sen. McCain\u2019s desires to make sure the American people know.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even so, Donovan added that \u201dit will be some time\u201d before Goldfein and Wilson feel comfortable disclosing the contract value, but \u201cif conditions change as we get farther along in the program, I think the chief and the secretary will certainly consider that and release as much as they can.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t