Pentagon makes plans for nuclear gravity bomb with bigger bang | National | thecentersquare.com
(The Center Square) The Pentagon wants to build a bigger nuclear gravity bomb to provide the military with “more flexibility” in the nation’s nuclear stockpile.
The U.S. Department of Defense has announced plans to pursue a modern variant of the B61 nuclear gravity bomb, designated the B61-13. The move will require Congressional authorization and appropriation.
The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration would produce the B61-13. The decision to pursue the new variant of the bomb was based on the 2022 Nuclear Posture Review.
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb said the announcement was “reflective of a changing security environment and growing threats from potential adversaries.”
“The United States has a responsibility to continue to assess and field the capabilities we need to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks, and assure our allies,” he said in a statement.
The projected cost of the B61-13 was not released.
Our current crop of nukes is so 20th century.