The United States recently announced the launch of mass production of a new hydrogen bomb B61- 12. Work is now underway on a more powerful version of the B61-13.
According to the Ministry of Defense, nuclear weapons are intended to “provide the President with additional capabilities against certain protected and large-scale military targets.” Weapons development reflects an ongoing process of change in the security situation.
No changes to the nuclear arsenal 
photo: invoen.ru
The United States and Russia have concluded agreements since 1991 under the START-1 (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), START-2 and New START treaties to reduce nuclear weapons stockpiles. According to the US Department of Defense, the number of B61-13 units will not increase. Because the B61-7 hydrogen bomb will be discontinued. Additionally, fewer B61-12s will be produced than B61-13s.
The B61-12 was already justified on the basis that the bomb would replace the B61-3, 4, 7 and 11. The B61-3 and 4 are the oldest on this list and have been in service since 1979. The B83 is also planned to be replaced by the B61-12, which would make the B61-12 the only free-fall nuclear bomb in the US arsenal.
With an explosive yield of 1.2 megatons, the B83 is the most powerful active nuclear weapon in the United States. For comparison, the bomb dropped on Hiroshima had an explosion yield of 13 kilotons (kt). The B61-12 has a warhead with four variants: 0.3 kt, 1.5 kt, 10 kt and 50 kt. Due to the decommissioning of the old B61 bombs, variants with a yield of 170 (B61-3) to 400 kilotons (B61-11) will also be excluded.
Thus, the B61-13 should have a yield of up to 360 kilotons, like the B61-7 it replaces. According to the Department of Defense, the B61-13 will have the advanced safety and accuracy characteristics of the B61-12. The B61-12 has a hit accuracy of 30 meters. Earlier models of the B61 series had an accuracy of 100 meters.
Great destructive force due to detonation in the ground content/uploads/2024/03/ssha-sozdajut-novuju-moshhnuju-vodorodnuju-bombu-6e52135.jpg» />photo: hearstapps.com
The B61-13, like the B61-12, will likely have limited ability to penetrate underground upon landing. This is done to make the bombs effective against fortified positions and bunkers. Due to the so-called cumulative effect, when striking the ground, the B61-13 will be able to achieve a destructive force on underground targets equivalent to a ground explosion with a yield of more than one megaton. So, at least in terms of destructive power, the B83 could be taken out of service without losing any nuclear combat power.
For the B61-11 there was a special warhead that could penetrate deeper into the ground, as well as breaking through concrete. It was a modified B61-7 warhead. It is unknown whether the B61-13 will have the same warhead.
B61-13 as weaponry for the B-21 Raider
The B61-13 can be dropped from the new B-21 Raider stealth bomber and its predecessor, the B-2 Spirit . The bomb is not intended for the F-35 and similar fighters, so the B61-13 should be stationed in the United States — where the stealth bombers are located.
Technically, it would be possible to equip the F-35 with the B61-13, since shape and weight must be identical to B61-12. The length is 3.6 meters and the weight is 324 kilograms. The B61-12 is designed for the F-35 and will therefore be stored at US bases in Europe.
