The House overwhelmingly approved the compromise version of the Fiscal 2017 defense authorization bill on Friday with a vote of 375-34. The legislation authorizes $618.9 billion in the base budget and $59.5 billion for overseas contingency operations. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill next week before sending it to President Obama for signature. (For more about the NDAA, see our previous coverage: NDAA Includes Pay Raises, Higher End Strength; NDAA Will Let Congress Begin to Move on From Compass Call; and Lawmakers Preserve A-10, Call for Study on F-35.
More than 100 B-21s will be needed if the nation is to avoid creating a high demand/low capacity capability, panelists said on a Hudson Institute webinar. The B-21's flexibility, stealth, range and payload will be in high demand for a wide range of missions, both traditional and new.