America's top-secret £585m stealth nuclear bomber, the B-21 Raider, has been spotted soaring through the skies for the first time ever.

The beast was first revealed in December 2022, but Uncle Sam has kept it pretty hush-hush until now. In a fresh release from the US Air Force (USAF) on Wednesday, the mean machine is seen flexing its wings at Edwards Air Force Base in California during flight tests and they're planning to build at least a hundred of these bad boys.

This dual-threat bomber can drop both conventional and nuke payloads, making it a formidable force in the sky.

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A USAF spokesman said: "A B-21 Raider conducts flight testing, which includes ground testing, taxiing, and flying operations in California."

They added that these trials are key, run by the Air Force Test Center and the 412th Test Wing's B-21 Combined Test Force (CTF), to ensure this bird can deliver a punch, stay under the radar, and hit targets anywhere on the globe to keep foes at bay.

"The B-21 will be the backbone of the service's future bomber force, and will possess the range, access and payload to penetrate the most highly-contested threat environments and hold any target around the globe at risk."

Northrop Grumman is the brains behind the B-21, all thanks to the Air Force's hefty contract with them. In a previous statement, the USAF explained: "It is designed with an open systems architecture, enabling rapid insertion of mature technologies, and allowing the aircraft to remain effective as threats evolve over time."

"The aircraft is expected to enter service in the mid-2020s with a production goal of a minimum of 100 aircraft."

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