GAO Reports Four-Month Delay in LRSO Missile Testing Due to B-52 Availability but Air Force Maintains 2027 Production Goal

The Government Accountability Office reported that low availability of legacy aircraft has delayed flight testing of the AGM-181A Long-Range Standoff nuclear-armed cruise missile by four months. @TheWarZoneWire reported that the B-52 remains the only platform involved in the effort. The GAO published its annual assessment last week.

It noted nine LRSO test flights since developmental testing began in October 2024, with six of those flights and seven ground tests completed in 2025. The Air Force now targets initial operational capability for November 2030. Program officials realigned the test schedule after the delays, leaving less time to finish the remaining 27 flights before operational testing begins in September 2027.

Twelve of 14 software releases have been delivered, with the final release planned for March 2026. The Air Force maintains 75 B-52H bombers, with a mission-capable rate between 50 and 55 percent in recent years. Only one aircraft is dedicated to test and evaluation work.

@TheWarZoneWire reported that B-52s supported strikes on Iran earlier in 2026 and that one bomber crashed at Edwards Air Force Base last month during a radar modernization flight test, killing all eight crew members. Air Force Gen. Dale White stated at the February AFA Warfare Symposium that the small fleet size creates challenges meeting both modernization and operational requirements.

The GAO also recorded a $347 million cost increase after a one-year production extension and a $1.9 billion gap between Office of the Secretary of Defense and Air Force production estimates. The Air Force remains confident it can begin low-rate initial production in 2027. Two of six critical missile technologies are still maturing and are expected to reach full maturity in fiscal year 2026.