The U.S. Air Force and defense contractor Northrop Grumman have begun work on a massive expansion at a federal aircraft manufacturing plant in California.
The team broke ground on a new final assembly line at Air Force Plant 42, located in Palmdale, California, according to an Oct. 8 news release. Northrop Grumman and the Air Force will use the facility to manufacture the B-21 Raider, a strike-stealth bomber.
The project will add more than 1 million square feet of facilities that will help increase the production capacity at the plant, per the announcement.
The expansion follows an agreement earlier this year between the Air Force and Northrop Grumman to increase the manufacturing capacity for the B-21 Raider, according to a February announcement from the Air Force. Total investment in the project will reach $4.5 billion, which was appropriated via the One Big Beautiful Bill.
“This groundbreaking represents more than construction; it represents a sustained commitment to delivering the capability our nation needs at the speed the security environment demands,” said Gen. Dale White, director of critical major weapon systems, in the announcement.
Indeed, other builders have reaped the recent benefits of military construction projects for both the armed forces and private contractors.
JE Dunn and Alberici, for example, broke ground on a more than $3.2 billion greenfield shipyard on Sept. 30, the first to be built in the U.S. since World War II. Alongside those builders, Turner Construction, Granite Construction, Skanska and Tutor Perini also recently touted their own wins for contracts across military branches.
