The Ultimate Fusion of Sports and Militarism 

BILL ASTORE

SEP 18, 2026

Incredibly, the Air Force Academy football program is honoring a weapon system, the new B-21 Raider bomber, which is surely music to the ears of Northrop Grumman, the lead contractor.

Here’s the announcement from the Air Force:

The Air Force football team will honor the B-21 Raider with the 2026 edition of the Air Power Legacy Series uniform. The Falcons will wear the special uniform for the Navy game scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 3, at 10 a.m. MT at Falcon Stadium on the campus of the United States Air Force Academy. The game will be nationally televised on CBS.

The idea of preventing conflict by maintaining a force so capable, ready, and credible that no adversary will ever risk war. It is the promise that peace is preserved through unmatched strength and readiness 24/7/365.

Power Projection is ability to rapidly fly, fight, and deliver decisive airpower anywhere on the globe, anytime, through any contested airspace. It ensures America’s reach has no limits.

Ah, “America’s reach” may have no limits, but recent events surely prove that our reach has greatly exceeded our grasp, whether in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, or most recently in Iran.

And how is “preventing conflict” working for America’s massively steroidal military?

Perhaps one shouldn’t think too much about this. Focus on the cool uniforms and the sleek jets, am I right?

Here’s a slick Air Force PR image—if you can stand it.

Look at those gridiron warriors, embracing the new B-21 bomber! Truly inspiring.

The mixture of sports and militarism in America is increasingly deadly, especially for those people on the receiving end of America’s “projected” power. 

A special sports uniform for a plane that isn’t even fielded yet, let alone combat-proven. What insanity.

By the way, if you go to the Northrop Grumman website, you see this proud statement:

Air Power Legacy Series

Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Air Force Academy partnered on the 10th‑anniversary Air Power Legacy Series, unveiling a B‑21 Raider inspired football uniform that connects Air Force heritage to the future of American air power. The uniforms debut October 3 vs. Navy at Falcon Stadium.

No better illustration of Ike’s military-industrial complex can possibly exist.

P.S. The projected cost of each B-21 bomber is roughly $700 million, a “conservative” estimate. Given the usual cost overruns, it’s likely the B-21 will cost $1 billion per plane. Total program cost is just over $200 billion, but that’s in Fiscal Year 2019 dollars. Again, given the usual cost overruns, that cost will likely double over the next 10-20 years, assuming Congress continues to fund the plane. And, guess what? America doesn’t even need the B-21. The Air Force already has more than enough planes, bombs, and missiles to end most life on earth.

Talk about unlimited “reach”!

P.P.S. By happy coincidence, today is the Air Force’s 79th birthday. Why don’t you chip in a few hundred dollars for the new B-21? Not that you have any choice in the matter.