There are aircraft, and then there are icons. The Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit belongs to a category all its own — a machine so advanced, so secretive, and so visually striking that it has fascinated aviation enthusiasts, military historians, and collectors for decades. COBI has now captured that legacy in brick form, and the result is one of the most impressive sets to come out of the Armed Forces series.
A Bomber Like No Other
The B-2 Spirit isn't just a stealth bomber — it's a statement. Developed in the early 1980s in response to increasingly sophisticated Soviet radar systems, the B-2 uses a flying wing design with no fuselage, no tail, and an eerily smooth exterior to achieve an almost invisible radar signature. It flies high, it flies quietly, and when it appears, no one was supposed to know it was coming.
Of the more than 130 aircraft originally planned, only 21 were ever built. At over $2 billion per aircraft, the B-2 became the most expensive plane in history. Every one of those 21 jets remains in active service today, operated exclusively by the United States Air Force out of Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. Rare in production. Rare in sight. Rare in every sense of the word.
What COBI Built
Set 5916 is part of COBI's Armed Forces series and recreates the B-2 Spirit at a 1:100 scale using 1,109 precision-engineered bricks. The finished model measures 220mm long with a 520mm wingspan — just over 20 inches wide — which is an immediate presence on any shelf or display surface.
COBI didn't cut corners on the details. The set features a custom-molded piece that recreates the B-2's uniquely complex cockpit profile, an opening cockpit hatch, retractable landing gear with rubber tires, and a fully functional bomb bay that opens to reveal eight Mark 82 missiles inside. Every interactive element is purposeful, not gimmicky.
The model also ships with a dedicated display base — a black brick platform with two transparent support pins and a white nameplate bearing the aircraft name, scale, and the U.S. flag. It's display-ready straight out of the box.
Built for the Collector's Eye
This isn't a set aimed at children with a loose grip and a short attention span. It's designed for people who appreciate precision — the aviation enthusiast who can name every variant of a stealth program, the military history buff who knows what the Cold War cost in engineering dollars, the adult builder who wants something impressive on their desk that also has a story behind it.
The flying wing geometry that makes the real B-2 so visually striking translates exceptionally well into brick form. The smooth, flat surfaces and flowing silhouette are the kind of design challenge that most building sets sidestep entirely. COBI leaned into it. The result looks unlike anything else in the Armed Forces lineup — or in brick building generally.
The Build Experience
The instructions are illustrated and icon-based, making them accessible even if you haven't built at this scale before. The most technically interesting phase is constructing the wing substructure, which has to carry the weight and maintain the geometry of the entire model. It's a satisfying engineering challenge that mirrors, in a small way, the real complexity of building a flying wing aircraft.
Total build time will vary, but most builders report a deeply engaging session from start to finish — the kind of build where you're not watching the clock.
A Piece of Aviation History, in Your Hands
The B-2 Spirit flew its first mission in 1999 during Operation Allied Force over Yugoslavia. It has since been deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya — always under the cover of darkness, always from its home base in Missouri, often flying 30+ hour round-trip missions. The crews who fly it consider it the most capable bomber ever built.
COBI set 5916 is one of the few ways for a civilian to get this aircraft in their collection at any scale. It pays tribute to the engineering, the secrecy, and the history of one of the most consequential aircraft programs of the 20th century — and it does it in a format you can actually build, display, and interact with.
If you've been looking for a set that earns its place on a shelf and starts conversations, this is it.
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