B-21, KC-135에서 공중급유받는 장면을 공개

[위종민]

B-21 레이더가 KC-135 스트라토탱커로부터 공중급유를 받는 사진이 공개됐습니다. 4월 14일 사진이 발표됐습니다만, 첫 급유가 언제 시행됐고, 촬영된 사진이 언제 찍혔는지는 제작사와 미 공군 모두 공개하지 않았습니다. B-21은 연료소모율이 B-2나 기타 다른 폭격기에 비해 매우 우수하다고 하네요. 

나온지 60년 된, B-47에 붐 꽂아주던 기체가 B-21에도 붐을 꽂아주는 게 참 뭔가 이래도 됐었나 싶긴 하네요. 

이미지 파일 업로드가 안되네요. 사진은 링크를 타고 가셔서 보셔야 될 것 같습니다. 

사진: 공군, B-21과 KC-135의 급유 시험 공개

미 공군이 제공한 날짜 미상의 이 사진에서 B-21 레이더가 KC-135 스트래토탱커와 공중 급유를 수행하고 있습니다.
사진: 공군, B-21과 KC-135의 급유 시험 공개
2026년 4월 15일 | 작성자: Matthew Cox

공군은 B-21 레이더가 KC-135 스트래토탱커와 공중 급유 시험을 수행하는 새로운 사진들을 공개했습니다. 이는 신형 장거리 타격 폭격기 개발의 핵심 이정표를 확인해 주는 것이며, 기밀에 부쳐진 이 항공기의 특징을 엿볼 수 있는 드문 기회를 제공합니다.
계약업체인 노스롭 그루먼과 미 공군(USAF)은 4월 14일에 이 시험들을 발표했으나, 첫 급유가 언제 일어났는지 또는 공개된 사진들이 언제 촬영되었는지는 명시하지 않았습니다. 군 대변인은 질의에 즉각 응답하지 않았습니다.
B-21 레이더의 공중 급유 수행 능력이 확인된 것은 항공 애호가들이 캘리포니아주 에드워즈 공군 기지 상공에서 KC-135와 함께 비행하는 신형 폭격기를 포착한 지 불과 한 달여 만입니다. 관계자들은 당시 그것이 "근접 비행"이었으며, B-21이 실제로 KC-135의 붐(급유관)에 연결되지는 않았다고 밝힌 바 있습니다.
KC-135에서 촬영된 새로 공개된 사진 중 하나는 B-21의 상부를 지금까지 중 가장 잘 보여줍니다. 폭격기의 독특한 조종석 창문과 더 깊게 패인 엔진 흡입구와 같은 일부 특징은 이전의 공식 이미지들을 통해 이미 알려져 있었으나, 이 사진은 배기 구역을 가장 잘 보여주며 B-2의 상자 모양 슬롯 배기구와는 상당히 다른 더 둥근 형태임을 확인해 주는 듯합니다. 또한 B-2와 달리 배기구 뒤에 특별한 물질이 보이지 않습니다. 새 이미지는 또한 B-21의 후면이 더 "부채꼴" 모양인 B-2의 디자인 대신 단일 정점으로 모아진다는 점에서 얼마나 다른지도 보여줍니다.
이미지들은 또한 테스트 중인 폭격기가 2024년 초 공군에 인도된 첫 번째 기체인 AF-0001임을 보여줍니다. 해당 기체는 B-21의 비행 성능과 조종 특성을 테스트하는 데 사용되고 있으며, 여전히 하단에서 앞으로 뻗어 나온 테스트 프로브와 데이터 수집을 위한 트레일링 콘이 장착되어 있습니다.
현재 비행 테스트 중인 것으로 알려진 B-21은 두 대입니다. 두 번째 항공기는 2025년 9월에 에드워즈 기지에 도착했으며, 당시 관계자들은 두 번째 항공기를 통해 무기 및 임무 시스템 테스트를 시작할 수 있을 것이라고 말했습니다.
공군은 지난 2월, 첫 번째 B-21 폭격기가 2027년에 작전 기지에 인도될 것으로 예상된다고 발표했습니다.
1950년대에 제작된 KC-135는 적어도 2050년까지 비행할 것으로 예상되므로, 이 "6세대" 폭격기가 전 세계 타격 임무를 수행할 수 있도록 최소 수십 년 동안 B-21에 급유를 제공할 것으로 보입니다.
B-21 레이더가 KC-135 스트래토탱커와 공중 급유를 수행하고 있습니다. 미 공군 사진
미 공군 지구권타격사령부 사령관 S.L. 데이비스 대장은 발표를 통해 "이 능력은 우리가 전 세계 어디든, 언제든 침투하여 장거리 타격을 가할 수 있음을 보장한다"라고 말했습니다. "우리 폭격기 승무원들과 그들이 지원하는 통합전투사령관들에게 있어 이것은 지구력과 임무 수행 준비 태세에 관한 문제다."
B-21은 B-2 스피릿과 같은 기존 항공기들이 사용하는 연료의 극히 일부만을 소모하여 "지금까지 제작된 폭격기 중 가장 연료 효율이 높은 폭격기"라고 발표문은 명시하고 있습니다.
공군 참모총장 케네스 S. 윌스바흐 대장은 발표에서 "B-21의 연료 효율성은 그 치명성의 핵심 요소 중 하나다"라고 말했습니다. "이 장거리 타격 폭격기는 우리 급유기 기단에 대한 수요를 줄이고 합동 부대를 지원하기 위한 자산을 확보해 줄 것이다. 이는 더 넓은 범위의 운용 옵션과 우리 국가가 필요로 하는 억제력을 제공할 것이다."
공군은 지난 2월 말, B-21 폭격기 생산을 25% 가속화하기 위해 노스롭 그루먼과 45억 달러 규모의 계약을 체결했다고 발표했습니다. 의회는 지난여름 공식적으로 '원 빅 뷰티풀 빌 법(One Big Beautiful Bill Act)'이라 불리는 조정 패키지의 일부로 이 계약을 위한 추가 자금을 승인했습니다.
국가 핵심 주요 무기 시스템의 펜타곤 직속 포트폴리오 매니저인 데일 화이트 장군은 B-21의 진전이 공군의 변화된 획득 접근 방식의 원칙을 잘 보여준다고 말했습니다.
화이트 장군은 발표를 통해 "B-21 프로그램은 우리가 군 전반에 심어주고 있는 획득 사고방식의 최첨단에 있다"라고 말했습니다. "모든 테스트는 우리 리더들이 시작부터 통합된 능력을 인도할 수 있도록 권한을 부여한 것이 성공적이었음을 증명한다. 이 프로그램의 디지털 엔지니어링 및 현대적 생산 공정 활용은 성숙하고 고도로 유능한 시스템을 인도하고 있으며, 이는 우리가 유의미한 속도로 생산 능력을 영리하게 확장해 나가는 데 확신을 준다."

PHOTOS: Air Force Shows B-21 Refueling Tests with KC-135

PHOTOS: Air Force Shows B-21 Refueling Tests with KC-135

PHOTOS: Air Force Shows B-21 Refueling Tests with KC-135

Matthew Cox

4-5 minutes

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The Air Force released new photos of the B-21 Raider conducting aerial refueling tests with a KC-135 Stratotanker—confirm‎ing a key milestone in the new long-range strike bomber’s development and offering a rare glimpse of the secretive aircraft’s features.

Contractor Northrop Grumman and USAF announced the tests April 14 but did not specify when the first refueling occurred or when the released photos were taken. A service spokesperson did not immediately respond to a query.

The confirmation of the B-21 Raider’s readiness to perform inflight refueling comes just over a month after aviation enthusiasts spotted the new bomber flying with a KC-135 over Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Officials said at the time that it was a “close-proximity flight,” meaning the B-21 never actually locked into the KC-135’s boom.

One of the newly released photos—taken from the KC-135—offers the best view yet of the B-21’s top. Some features like the bomber’s unique cockpit windows and its more deeply recessed engine inlets were already known from previous official images, but the photo does offer the best view yet of the exhaust area, seemingly confirm‎ing a more rounded shape quite different from the B-2’s boxy slot exhausts, with no special material visible behind them like on the B-2. The new image also shows just how different the B-21’s rear is from the B-2, coming to a single point instead of a more “scalloped” design.

The images also show that the bomber being tested is the first tail delivered to the Air Force, AF-0001, back in early 2024. That airframe is being used to test the B-21’s airworthiness and handling qualities and is still outfitted with a test probe extending forward from the bottom and a trailing cone to collect data.

There are currently two B-21s known to be in flight test. The second aircraft arrived at Edwards in September 2025, and officials said at the time the second aircraft would allow them to start testing weapons and mission systems.

The first B-21 bomber is expected to be delivered to an operational base in 2027, the Air Force announced in February.

The 1950s-era KC-135 is expected to fly until at least 2050, so it is expected to refuel the B-21 for at least a few decades so the “sixth-generation” bomber can perform its global strike mission.

A B-21 Raider conducts aerial refueling with a KC-135 Stratotanker. U.S. Air Force photo

“This capability ensures we can deliver penetrating long-range strike anywhere in the world, at any time,” Air Force Global Strike Command boss Gen. S.L. Davis said in an announcement. “For our bomber crews and the combatant commanders they support, this is about endurance and mission readiness.”

The B-21 consumes a fraction of the fuel used by legacy aircraft such as the B-2 Spirit, making it the “most fuel-efficient bomber ever built,” the announcement states.

“The B-21’s fuel efficiency is one of the core components of its lethality” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach said in the announcement. “This long-range strike bomber will reduce the demand on our tanker fleet and free up assets to support the joint force. This will provide a wider range of employment options and the deterrence our nation requires.”

The Air Force announced a $4.5 billion deal in Northrop Grumman in late February to accelerate production of B-21 bombers by 25 percent. Congress approved the additional funding for the deal out of the as part of its reconciliation package—officially called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—last summer.

Gen. Dale White, the Pentagon’s direct reporting portfolio manager for critical major weapon systems, said the B-21’s progress exemplifies the principles of the Air Force’s transformed acquisition approach.

“The B-21 program is the leading edge of the acquisition mindset we are instilling across the force,” White said in the announcement. “Every test proves the success of empowering our leaders to deliver integrated capability from the start. The program’s use of digital engineering and modern production processes is delivering a mature, highly capable system, giving us confidence as we continue to smartly scale our production capacity at the speed of relevance.”

[백선호]

B-47에 기름 넣어주던 KC-135... ㄷㄷㄷ

[위종민]

당장 사진에 찍힌 저 기체도 B-47에 기름 넣어준 적이 있을 지도요 ㅎㅎ