The United States has completed the assembly of its first B61-13 nuclear gravity bomb nearly a year ahead of schedule and just two years after launching the program. The production timeline was accelerated by over 25 percent without compromising safety, security, or progress on six other modernization efforts, according to Acting Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs David Hoagland. This development comes just five months after the $9-billion upgrade of the B61-12 bomb, which has been in service for over five decades. The B61-13 now stands as one of the fastest-deployed nuclear weapons since the Cold War, reinforcing U.S. nuclear deterrence capabilities amid rising global tensions.
