@marc atkinson Yes, a raffale got a kill on a simulated engagement, after the F-22 moped the floor with them 11 times before. I can bet 1000 bucks that someone told the pilot the exercise wouldn't end until the raffale got a kill and I wouldn't lose a single penny
@Spaced92 The same happened with the X-32, the fucking plane couldn't VTOL without the prototype being stripped of several parts. Like, my brother in christ, the main requisite for the prototype was that it had to be VTOL capable without reconfigurations.
@marc atkinson No, the YF-23 wasn't superior to the YF-22, it had many major flaws that the presented YF-22 didn't have, and the YF-22 prototype beat the YF-23 in all fields but stealth.
@Mike Johnson The YF-23 was worse than the YF-22 in all aspects but stealth where it had a little edge. The prototype couldn't even launch a missile, the internal storage was laughable and for some fucking reason NG decided to put the bay doors IN FRONT OF THE INTAKES. The maneuverability and sensor suite were worse too.
I was flying to LA from the east coast 20 years ago. The pilot suggested that passengers on the left side of the plane should look above our plane. We were directly below a B2 on the same course. The second coolest thing I've ever seen from a jet liner. Number one was a space shuttle launch.
@Charles I was the Captain on a DC8-61 circling Orlando trying to see a shuttle launch .... they scrubbed it and we continued on. One of the things I wish I had seen. As a pilot flying fo 64 years I have seen almost everything and once was almost hit by a comet or space junk.
My Dad and I tried to catch one of the last shuttle launches in (I think) November of 2010. Scrubbed every day by 4am except Saturday. We went out to Titusville at 5 and they scrubbed that day between 7 and 8. Never did get to see one go up but my Mom and Dad went back for the rescheduled launch in January and at least he got to see it. I will have to get down to see an Artemis launch. Similar boosters and the same engines (+1!) so it sould at least sound like a shuttle launch!
I was once on a flight when the captain announced mid-flight: "Hello. This is your captain speaking. I just wanted to say, if you all lean to the right to look out the right side widnow..." Suddenly pausing, the captain then immediately continued, "The plane will start banking to the right..." Pausing again, as everything stood up straight, he finished "So please don't do that!" Not everyone was amused, but I laughed my ass off in my economy seat.
The B-21 Raider was unveiled a few hours ago, but you couldn't see it from the top, just from the front. It looked a lot like the B-2, but with flatter air intakes.
It’s crazy how the US managed to put out 2 different stealth bombers before its allies and enemies alike could create one. We have plenty of area to improve, but somewhere we won’t be beat for a while is the air. Edit: It’s done. The b21 has been revealed. On budget and on time.
@Morfeu What nonsense. U either work for, or suffer from russian propoganda-itis. 1. Of course we're not likely to see the bomber used against any major military countries. Nobody wants that. It would be devastating for the entire world. Hopefully, there's no reason to use them at all. 2. Even w/o getting into more detail, Vietnam was a long time ago. Things change. If u want to use the past, then you don't have much of a case for China and Russia either, despite Russia (actually USSR) best days (militarily) in the past. 3. Russia lost in Afghanistan. By your "logic, " Afghanistan must be the most powerful military in the world? 4. The US didn't lose in Afghanistan in the sense you are implying. (*Note: this isn't to say there isn't plenty of fair criticism, just that it has almost nothing to do w military capability.) The US wasn't there to conquer the country. They were there to stem the terrorist training - they did. Also, to train Afghans to be able to manage their own country and maintain an effective govt. They failed to step up and the US wasn't going to stay there forever to do it for them. The resulting disaster was inevitable. 5. Russia's military is so great, yet it is so scared of neighbors a fraction of their size that they attack them unprovoked? Then, they proceed to embarass themselves and show everyone overestimated them. They have now become China's pet (a nicer way to put it). So, China's military may in some ways rival the US, but Russia doesn't belong in the convo. (*Note: I love Russia - as in its people - and wish them well. It's only the weak pos, Putin and his gremlins, that ruin the reputation of what could be a great country, that I ridicule and despise.)
@AncapLanaOriginal the mig 31 has the best radar and range of any fighter jet in service worldwide, as well as the highest speed and altitude. only way to get close enough to engage it is with reduced observability like with the f22. and if you want to talk records, the f22 has never even engaged in air to air combat and the f35 has shot down a grand total of 2 UAVs
@marius behr What russian interceptors? The MiG-25 and 31? Those pieces of crap? The US goes hard on stealth tech because technological superiority saves lifes, dumbass.
@sophrapsune "Quantity has a quality all of it's own" said the guy who tried to win trough overwhelming numbers and completely ruined Russian demographics.
@jimmy77 The way I hear it the jumbos are on the way out. Airbus has decided to discontinue their much newer A380 which is categorized as a VLA just like the 747. The 747 itself just isn't economical enough to compete with many of the long range twin engine jets - even from their own company. I expect both will survive for decades after as oversize cargo aircraft though.
@Bryon Slatten You know you're old when you see someone mention KC-46 & your mind instantly conjures up an image of a Curtiss C-46 Commando being used as an aerial tanker. Then, for a nanosecond, the thought crosses your mind; "I didn't know we had enough of those left for that?"
An interesting subject for your channel is stealth helicopters in spec ops. How the U.S. Navy had to give up proprietary specialized operations to an all encroaching ego led pentagon brass all in inclusive high profile target acquisition involvement of a multi force pentagon high rank meddling up a finely tuned Navy team of helicopter specwar squadrons and SPECWAR groups on both coasts.
I'm glad Jack Northrop's legacy still shines today despite his flying wing projects failing A year before Northrop died to old age, he was shown blueprints and a scale model of the B-2 Spirit. Northrop reportedly teared up and whispered "now I realize why God kept me alive for so long"
@AncapLanaOriginal i do believe that both the hortons and jack came to the wing concept within a year or two of each other.. but who put pencil to paper and craft into the air first is something that needs more research than my fat butt is willing to put in. seeing that they grew the designs so far apart from each other just amplifies the genius of flight from so long ago. bravo to all pioneers.
@AncapLanaOriginal Just like NASA ex Penemude full with S....T ,Nazy ?NAZY was on peak of science all the best discover was made by thru Germany Institute MAX Planck.🤠🤠🪖🪖☠️☠️🇱🇷🇱🇷🇱🇷💩💩💩💩
The b2 bomber is a design ripped off the Nazis. NASA was started by 8,000 to 12,000 nazi scientists. NASA probably had a different meaning when it started.
As an unrepentant geek on the subject of stealth, the B-21 Raider will be a significant change in the power projection of US. The leverage of tech and the incredible security to guard its' latest capability is amazing. Outstanding job Brother Alex. One of these days you need to look at race to stealth, how we are cruising at the spot we are now. I contend the NGAD system of systems will have a very Raider like component in its' array. One sad note, the B-1 deserves better credit than it receives in terms of capability and what it has delivered.
Frankly, I think most of them will be destroyed on the ground in a real war. Unless you hide them and have a lot of decoys. Well it’s no good if it can’t get off the ground in three minutes. To tell you the truth, these are dinosaurs. Unmanned is the future. With people on board is a disaster. Pilots are the weakest link, by far. I know, I’m a pilot.
Nice to know that just prior to his death, Jack Northrop was informed of the B-2 program, given its very classified top secret status. The emotion and delayed gratification he must have felt knowing his life long passion and legacy would live on had to be incredibly redeeming, satisfying and heartwarming all at the same time. And just a little tidbit: Russia never had, or invested in the super computer technology needed to calculate the rcs of a planes surface area from every angle. Therfore, they saw no value in Ufimtsev's work and allowed him to publish his findings.
Great views of stealth during the Pasadena Rose Parade, usually a very unmuffled flyover which the roar is part of the absolute world power mission capability, meaning at full thrust u m a y not even see it until it zips thru the air molecules overhead.
As an Australian I love these new developments in stealth. As a former Radar Plot in the RAN I can certainly attest to the fidelity of lower frequency radars too. I remember the old Delta band LW02 sets… Wouldn’t it be nice if the aircraft were made available to Australia under the AUKUS agreement? We’ve previously asked the US about making the F-22 available, as has Japan, but those were declined long before the AUKUS agreement. Prior to our current fleet of F/A-18Fs we had a long history with the F-111C and G. We lack that long range strike capability now, and for a country this size we need it!
@N Crawford The famous norwegian visiting you was probably a right-winger, too. And he blamed Norway for not being as he liked it to be, although most of Norways citizens love it that way. And your right wing agenda will just not work in the future. The future is socialist. Why? Because capitalism is facing a huge problem: Companies will no longer need people of low and average IQ in their workforce. Or at least not enough to avoid mass unemployment. Factories today run with a fraction of the staff, cars will soon drive themselves, local stores being closed in favour of less personal intense online services, ... Capitalism worked as long as the workforce was needed. The people sold their time and work to the companies, in order to be able to afford the goods and services produced in this way. The money was more or less circulating through society. But this system stops working if half the people are long-term unemployed and can't afford to buy stuff. And we as a society need to find a way to put money into the hands of unemployed people. Because we are facing a time when there will bennot enough paid work available. And we are still going to need those unemployed people as customers. Or demand will crash, leading to further layoffs. The right-wing agenda is the result of past times where being unemployed was a choice or a tragic event. But we are going to face times when having a job will be seen as a privilidge. And capitalism can't deal with that without socialism.
I wonder if some of the problems are less the radar absorbant coating and more the radar absorbant coating. IE, if it gives you cancer. I bet they will eventually give out future old stealth ships once these coating issues are not there.
@William zk Ukraine is not small , with France biggest country in Europe and also with Turkey strongest army if not strongest in Europe . You write total nonsense Tocka U missile is very deadly but 90 % downed , 300 slow speed Harpoons lol kid you watching too much military porn . Western weapon no matter what PR and propaganda tell you failed miserably in Ukraine , that is why Ukraine now asking old soviet weapons from all eastern countries
I love the fact that the wave of triangular UFO sighting things in the 70's and 80's suddenly made a whole lot more sense when the B-2 and F-117 we're revealed finally.
Those triangular "ufo" sightings were an equilateral triangular shaped craft with a light at each corner and one in the center. Some people claim it was a black project called the TR3B
@Blackhawk 7R Tic-Tacs have been seen back in the 1950s and one landed that a Police Office seen and reported in New Mexico long before the 2004 incidents you are talking about.
Triangle UFOs were seen Hovering in the Famous 1990 Belgian wave of them (Google It), B2 and F117 do not Hover at all yet the Black Triangle UFOs do. The Phoenix Lights was not a B2 or F117 as reported by the 1000s of people that watched it.
Two generations of advanced stealth technology ahead of the B2 Spirit...yet, no leaked pictures in 7 years of development. Sounds like the stealth tech is working, folks.
That, and they don't tell you what you're building when you're building it, and they don't allow any electronics, and if you break clearance you lose it forever and go to prison. Plus they pay you good.
I was stationed at MacDill AFB, One of the B2's landed there for a few days, I was leaving base one day on my way back home and it just happened to be taking off as I did. The size of it was massive, it's amazing to think something that large can be that stealthy.
I live near Whiteman AFB and I see/hear the Stealths fly over my house almost every week day. It's amazing because you don't hear it until you see it. And you don't see it until you hear it. It never gets old.
SAVE LIFE EARTH PEOPLE KILLED THE ALIEN AND IMPACT ASTEROID ASKING SEARTH INFORMATION SAVE LIFE EARTH PEOPLE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SATTELITE ALBERT ESPINO MALLORCA NORTH DAANG HARI BICUTAN TAGUIG CITY PHILLIPPINES GLOBE GOOGLE MAP TRUE PEOPLE STUDY LEARN A Z TRUE
It's not just stealth getting 30 years of development since the B-2. It's also aircraft engines, composite materials, computer processing power for avionics, communications, etc etc
@Reagan Harder many people don't realize that the B2 along with other stealth aircraft are regularly being upgraded. Obviously the B2's shape and radar absorbent material coating the aircraft play a significant part in it being stealth. However, given the most technological advancements in its computing abilities, the B2 still remains second to none. It's no longer just its shape and coating that keeps it stealthy, but also utilizes resources simultaneously from satelites, air resources, land resources, and sea resources. All of those resources work together simultaneously in a coordinated effort to ensure the B2's stealthy effectiveness.
I am really curious how much actual advancement there is in avionics, because already the B2 has some pretty advanced avionics in there. Unsure if carbon composites will end up being used in the B21, but that's one area that's definitely seen lots of development and widespread adoption. Combine that with improvements in engines and I wouldn't be surprised to see the B21 with a meaningfully longer operating range.
I remember when the air force debuted the F-117A at Oshkosh. The year must have been around 1990 or so. It had ropes around it and there were armed guards.
You're old? I distinctly remember when the F16 rolled out in the mid/late 1970's. I remember a Senator in hearings talking about the exorbitant price per plane. I don't remember which Senator, but it was on the nightly news...he said "at 18 million a piece we should only need three! One for the European theater, One for the Asian theater, and One to protect the U.S." ... LOL.
I remember all the.. politic over it, as well as the B-1. Or a carpet bombing dream that has no 'real' use these days, as well as for some time now... The B-52 is quite a bit of a waste. There will never again be a non-nuclear full scale war requiring such carpet bombing. I mean, it's ALL about precision targeting!
I wish my dad was still here to see this. He was a Deputy Commander of Maintenance in Guam when they transitioned to the B52 from the B47 that he flew. Before he left the Air Force after 33 years he was in charge of writing the book on how to perform maintenance for the B52. This aircraft is just crazy cool.
I remember seeing the B2 twice. Once at Whitman AFB (from several hundred yards away) and a fly over at an airshow. Amazing plane. I think the B21's physical appearance is a gross understatement of its capabilities. Also a sad aside.. RIP to the AMAZING Bone. One of the coolest planes ever created. I still think we need a B1"c" upgrade with all the chooch of the A, and the stealth coatings and electronics from the new toys instead of retirement.
My father was a Project Manager for the B-2 Bomber project...I think, maybe he didn't make PM until J-Star. He died back in 2001 but I'm watching this for you Dad! I can only imagine how pumped you would've been about this!
do people not realize the aviation week b2 pilot interview was public information almost three decades ago?.. does anyone really think that foreign countries havent already plundered all the stealth tech they havent developed themselves? you folks obviously dont know your history.. like you cant already go and publicly access TT Brown`s work and papers via foia from the usaf. laughable you would think i`m a spy given whats available already in the public realm.
Where is Ray Epps when you need the FBI? Only guy yelling to storm the capital…and never charged. The FBI is yelling leave the poor guy alone. Meanwhile, the DOInjustice & FBI are holding January 6 “insurrectionists”, without bail without attorneys solitary confinement for going on close to two years now. Nothing to see here folks.
SAVE LIFE EARTH PEOPLE KILLED THE ALIEN AND IMPACT ASTEROID ASKING SEARTH INFORMATION SAVE LIFE EARTH PEOPLE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SATTELITE ALBERT ESPINO MALLORCA NORTH DAANG HARI BICUTAN TAGUIG CITY PHILLIPPINES GLOBE GOOGLE MAP TRUE PEOPLE STUDY LEARN A Z TRUE
A few years ago the Liberty Memorial in KC turned 100. Of course there were speeches and a B2 flyby but that wasn’t all. Throughout the day multiple B2’s were flitting about the city like birds. I looked up to see one flying down Universal at at 200’. I was pumping gas 100 yds away. It was breathtaking. Those guys can turn and burn too, it’s very cool to see one standing on a wingtip. The Royals/Chiefs flyby’s are fun not only at the stadiums but my neighborhood as well. It seems the plane(s) orbit the area around my house. This is because the flight time from this area to the stadium is the correct time to allow the plane to arrive for “the land of the free and the home of the brave”. So when the singer starts singing the anthem the plane leaves the orbit and passes over the drive in theater at the correct speed and altitude. Here a few years ago on the day of the Royals home opener it was quite overcast but the low clouds were opening up. I sat in the lot of a school and listened to the distinctive sound. Occasionally you would catch glimpses in the thin areas of cloud. In one view the plane came out of the cloud standing on its wing with vapor forming and disappearing over the wings. I got those chills.
@Peter Weller even then it’ll be impossible to intercept one, Russian Air Force haven’t even intercepted atleast one B-2 let alone the B-21 and plus the B-21 not even commissioned yet. We saw how the Russian Air Force performed during your special military operation in Ukraine, It wasn’t pretty let me you.
What I find really interesting is that the Xian H-20 will most likely enter service before the B-21. Which makes you think, as they either began development much earlier than expected or development had a significantly faster pace. Although I suspect the B-21 will have a technological edge over it, as I think the H-20 will be more so comparable to the B-2 than the brand new B-21. Unless China received critical information straight from the development team at Northrop. Which isn't unlikely, the Manhattan Program was also full of spies.
The fact is, China's aviation knowledge and capabilities is years behind the US. They are making progress, good progress too, but nowhere near a danger for the US yet. So the Xian H-20 would be similar to the B-2 in terms of competence and functionality, but will lack some unique "cutting-edge" capabilities that the B-2 has. "Clones/Replicas" of the original will always miss out on something that makes the original, original.
Oh man, I remember the B2 and F117 from my childhood. I had little die cast models of them. The B21 sounds incredible. Can not wait to see those hangar doors slide open again. Those crazy engineers over at Northrop just keep knocking it out of the park. And as sad as I will be to see the Lancer go, the B21 looks awesome in the rendering. I think we also really need to give props to Northrop for their project security on this. You're right, the fact that not a single byte of information has leaked on this thing in 7 years is unprecedented. That's real steal right there.
I got lucky to see the B-2 way back when. I was at an event just north of Baltimore at a building that doesn’t exist. I happened to look up and saw the B-2 in a turn. When she went wings level the only way to find it was by the two F-4 smokers, one off each wing. She just visually disappeared. Amazing aircraft. I can’t wait for the 21.
I got lucky enough to see one when it flew over the Super Bowl in Tampa. It was a B-1B, a B-2 and a B-52 in formation, just awesome. I still get a little chill thinking about it. trvid.com/video/video-ZqODB7Vh2qQ.html
Awesome job as usual! Thanks Alex! With the significant advances in new adaptive engines and newer Ceramic based Ram, the combat factor gets a significant boost. The newer RAM, can also tolerate something like 3000 degrees no?, so less maintenance, and for fighters, that's huge, cuz they don't have to let off the gas after 5 minutes, with No damage to RAM....we just have to wait for it...amazing stuff. All kinds of new toys coming out...we will really need them if the trends continue.
Hey Alex, Another great video. Have you ever thought about doing a who lost the competition and what designs were not chosen video. For example: What other designs were submitted during the B-1 program. I've never seen a video covering this subject. We all know about the YF-23 but many other ( Tried but but missed) designs stay unspoken for. Again great job and as always very informative!
In the book by Ben Rich of Skunk Works he talks about their proposal for the new stealth bomber. It was basically a scaled up version of the F117. Given that the design was proven it would have been much cheaper than the B2 to build. As luck would have it, the choice of the B2 was definitely the right one. I think we all know that if Darth Vader were to join the Air Force there is only one plane he would allow himself to be seen in.
I think advancements in ECM and ECCM are just as important to the success of stealth as the shape and coatings of the aircraft. I also expect slave drone decoys to be used by our bombers to distract and confuse air defenses. I think stealth is both more advanced and more complex than it was at first.
My dad was in Europe at the B2's first reveal to the public outside America. It flew in silently over the runway and then roared to life, shooting straight up into the sky with the loudest noise he'd ever heard to return to base.
When the B-2 was revealed in 1988 I was 12 years old and loved everything that had to do with aviation. Especially military aircraft. I remember how mind blowing and awesome the B-2 was. I’m 46 years old now and still have never seen a B-2 in person. I can’t imagine what the B-21 will be like but I doubt it will have the same impact on me that the B-2 had on me at 12.
America's air force in the 22nd Century: B-91 Super Raider, the first invisible bomber, the F-72 Space Superiority Fighter, the F-75 single engine space superiority fighter, and the B-52 Stratofortress.
@Quake The Doom Bringer I totally agree but I think the military should also not rely 100% on high-tech weapons systems and also have low-tech weapons systems as a backup in the event of cyber warfare and satellites being destroyed by the enemy which would cripple a lot of modern high-tech systems.
@anydaynow that's actually not a bad idea. A 10 has more weapon and fuel capacity than a Predator. The Gau 8 can (theoretically) be removed to put in sensors. So you can have a really durable "mother ship" carrying drones and missiles
@Quake The Doom Bringer I think the A-10s role will change like the B-52 and will be much more of missile truck like the B-52 is, after all the thing can loiter near a battlefield for hours with 10 tonnes of missiles (eventually drones) on its racks and return home with nearly half the aircraft blown away and swish cheesed up. Rumor has it that DARPA and Raytheon are working on a standoff munitions control, kind of like a drone mothership with swarm tech where the munitions are piloted directly by the JTAC and FACs keeping the A-10 and AHs out of harm's way for the most part. So a loitering A-10 can drop a missile on an enemy in less than ten minutes (instead of waiting over an hour for the hit and get aircraft to be briefed and fly out to the trouble spot) then clean up with gun runs before being relieved on station by more A-10s.
@Michael Theoret I am not sure if the A 10 will stay around that long. Its role as a cheap, reliable CAS has largely been displaced by gunship version of Cessna or drones. With the advancement of SAM technology and kamikaze drones, it will not be worth the risk of pilots or money
I saw B2 flying west over Illinois in 1987. Took one hell of a perfect collusion of conditions and knowing what I was looking at. Too high and slow to be anything else of its size and the air conditions were perfect.
I was fortunate enough to be hired as a Systems Support Facilities Technician at the B-2 Flight Test Facility at Edwards A.F.B, CA at the beginning of the bombers lengthy flight test program. I was able to gain access the bombers flight deck to connect test cables to the aircraft during grounds tests that were conducted before any test flight. I met the pilots for every test vehicle that was stationed at the facility. My most favorite memory while I worked there was getting to talk to retired Air Force General Charles (Chuck) Yeager. It was fun working there and I left to take my life long dream job at NASA Dryden.
I meet Yeager at the Mojave Airport when Dick Rutan, Jenny Yeager(no relations), and Burt Rutan had the showing of the Voyager. I remember Chuck being a complete dick, a pilot....lol
I remember riding across the new B-2 hangar area when it was an iron frame. There's another building basically on the lake bed we we're headed towards.
I remember watching these fly around SoCal when my dad was stationed at Edwards AFB (a test base for the B2 at the time). It was neat. Always brought people out and about to a stand-still.
Without watching the video this plane seems like overkill to me. A weapon looking for a target. If China's rumoured equivalent is really a paper plane after all the Chinese will be laughing at the cash dropped on this project. Cash which could have gone to other, more relevant projects.
Being able to tune your radar absorbent material to specific types of radar sounds like the stuff of science fiction movies to me... And it's Northrop Grumman, so you know it's going to be good.
I remember seeing F-117s flying out of Holloman Air Force Base in Alamogordo, New Mexico for training missions. They were always accompanied by a jet trainer so their location could be tracked on radar.
Very exciting. I am always thrilled to listen to your explanations. I love Aviation, all Military Aviation in particular. Every type of flying machine in service. I grew up near Gulfport Field and got to watch almost every type of fighter from F-84s or 86s forward, transports from the smallest to the very latest beginning with C-119 Flying Boxcars, reconnaissance aircraft from the RF-101 Voodoo, and one bomber, the little B-57 Canberra. I would ride y bicycle the 3 long blocks and have fun hanging out watching from 50 yards away. Now the road has been moved because of 9/11 so if I still lived there it would be disappointing. I was lucky enough to spend many many hours there through the first, second, third, and fourth generation aircraft seeing everything Air National Guard units from many states brought to town for their annual intensive training exercises. A large variety of small to large and very large aircraft. An occasional Navy fighter, usual an F/A-18 but even an F-14 once in a while. All the keys and transports from the Vietnam era, and most before and after. From the 1950s through the early 2000s. I was spoiled! I often got off the end of the runways a short distance outside the airport boundaries to be under afterburners of many generations to the hair raising howl and swaying pine trees in vortices from F-4 Phantoms coming in over the strobes I was lying between. Lots of fun!
This time Northrop Grumman opens the hanger, the tow vehicle pulls out, there appears to be nothing behind it or in the hanger, the general says "There she is folks."
The General says " Wow ,impressive isn't She ? " The spectators: " Umm , We cannot SEE anything except for that tow vehicle !" The General : " Well, You cannot SEE It ? That's the whole point of stealth ,am I right? " Crowd starts leaving as a collective sense of disappointment is palpably felt hanging in the air . The General : " Please be sure to hand in Your signed and dated None Disclosure Form to the Air Force Security Detail on the way out. Thank You All for being witness to this momentous Event. "
my grandpa worked in complete secrecy on the design for some b2 wing structures/panels back in the 80's.... I wasn't born until the 90's but I've learned to have a grasp on the immense pride he had as an engineer. I've seen a b2 on the ground one time in my life and they're truly incredible.
I do remember when the first B2's rolled out , they weren't as stealthy as they were predicted to be. They had knowledge of the shape that reflected radar but did t have the knowledge about the different coatings the made the shapes almost invisible. Lockheed Martin was coerced into coming in and working with Northrop Grumman to make the B2 the stealth bomber it was supposed to be. And of course Northrop learned what Lockheed already knew.
I always loved the flying wings. So sleek and efficient. The reason they were dropped in the 50’s was because of their inherent pitch/yaw instability and deadly stall characteristics. Even fuel shifting in the tanks would cause constant pitch changes and yaw undulations would make an accurate bomb run impossible. Throw in a few near misses and an eventual fatal unrecoverable stall and the program was dead. It wasn’t until fly-by-wire came along that the flying wing design was revived.
I got my Security Clearance in 1981 and started testing components of the Airborne Radar ahead of the B2 Mainframe being built. I am still amazed when I see the B2 flying.
To help resolve the issue of stealth fighters being visible on long range/early warning radar, has anyone tried using variable geometry vertical surfaces? i.e., stabilizers etc. that could lay flat for cruising and then stand up for when they are needed for maneuverability etc.?
The issue with longer frequency radar picking up stealth aircraft has to do with the aircraft being a large object in the sky, not its shape. In a directly related way, the exact location of the aircraft is somewhat fuzzy and not exact. They can tell it’s there, but not guide missiles to the aircraft.
Went to a Chiefs football game years ago, at the end of the pre-game stuff, a B-2 flew over the stadium with 2 escorts. The B-2 flew low, like it was just above the stadium.. Thing was Hugh!!! Most awesome plane I've ever seen!!!!!!!
Great info. I retired from Boeing in Palmdale and did contract work for Northrop Grumman in Palmdale as well. Worked on the B2 during its black world days. I am really excited to see what this new B21 can do and how it flyers. Here in Palmdale/Lancaster area we see B2's coming and going each month for service at the same Northrop Grumman facility. Great video and information.
I rented a garage back in 95 that was near the end of the runway at the local AFB, just before dusk I heard a plane taking off I did not recognize , I ran outside tripping over everything in my way ...To see the Beautiful and awesome B-2 clearing the tree line as it raced skyward ...As I jumped up and down with excitement😄 . I hope I have the opportunity to see a B-21 someday also 😊
@Kestrel ,Back in 1987 when I was in the Air Force ( stationed at Minot ) ,I saw the F117 Nighthawk "that really did not take off" but I saw It anyhow . All different kinds of Aircraft landed there ,including those " Mystery - You actually DID NOT see That" Aircraft. Err, hopefully , I'm not on a "list" now for typing this 😬😬😬.
my sighting was at the Niagara Falls AFB , because of the very long runway ...all sorts of aircraft stop by from time to time ...we even have drones that aren't "really" here too 😂
I grew up in Dayton Ohio right by Wright Patterson AFB.. There were all kinds of things flying around we'd never seen before. Everyone said they were alien spacecraft kept in the big hangers under the hills at the end of Patterson field..
The original flying wing was able to fly over an American reader station undetected in the 50s as I recall. The story was well known and repeated to me by my dad in the 70s.
Just a laugh. Before there was "stealth" in 1967 ATC would ask me to put the gear down so they could see my Beech Bonanza on their radar. The F-117 also has a V tail.
Our property is located in an area that seems to be the turn around spot for B2 operating out of Whiteman AFB. It's pretty cool to see them make the turn above us and head back home. We see them a few times a year, when we happen to be outside as they pass by.
Was out mowing the lawn about 10 years ago and a B2 flew over and slowly turned. I was staring up at it like I had just seen the starship enterprise in front of me. It was amazing.
Considering the heavy lift capacity of the B1B, I think it would be a really bad idea to totally scrap them. The B21 just doesn't have the same volume or lift capacity as the the B1B or B2.
It was the F-117 Stealth Fighter that was just shocking. No one knew it was in the works. That was because whenever something happened that might have brought it out into the open (a crash in the Tehachapi Mts., for instance), it would be attributed to the B-2 bomber. Having the 2nd program to run interference was brilliant.
The B2 was far ahead of its time in 1988. China's H20 looks to be a copy and we still don't know when it will be deployed. Just that fact they are trying to build one tells us they consider the B2 a huge threat. Can't wait to see B21.
I'm old enough to remember the a10 roll-out and the ah-1 cobra. This new stuff is wildly innovative, but in the end, we'll still need all we have flying today. And probably many, many more.
Had a friend that was working a radar facility in Alaska. They were told a plane was going to be flying by at a specific time, and they were to track it. The plane flew by as advised. They never saw it. It was a B2. Now, I'm thinking triple threat here. B21's loaded with cruise missiles head in and take out airfields, radars, and CNC. B'2s follow with heavy bomb loads. To hit important static targets. Followed by B1's to mop up.
I love this guy. I know my stuff , at least well enough to really know this guy knows his. Alex is both current, concise, and easy to understand. He is one of the top air power experts on the web.
Suddenly, I am much more curious about the new RAM coating from yet another perspective. It might permit high Mach number (super cruise) for the B-21, for races over the ocean, heading toward a target, only slowing to prevent a sonic boom, once within enemy range? The apparent smaller size of the newer craft, may be a move which allows for both supersonic speed and stealth, simultaneously?
The B-2 big bump is really a fuselage buried in a flying wing. The YB-49 was truly a flying wing. Their is no central bulge to act like a fuselage. So, the B-2's wings can be much thinner than the YB-49.
From unconfirmed first hand reports It looks like the B2 but has a few visual differences. Supposedly even more capable electronic suites and more economic engines as well as newer engineering/construction techniques.
I had heard recently, that the RAM coatings, of the previous generation, which were the most expensive part of the maintenance of stealth aircraft, had been improved upon considerably. Is it possible, I wonder, if this is a direct result of continued research into RAM coatings for the B-21? Apparently the uprated solution is a RAM coating which has a ceramic base. This would additionally allow far greater time cruising at high mach numbers. The earlier variant of RAM would slough off at sustained mach numbers, apparently?
The impact of the Cold War during the 1970s and 1980s drove military aircraft development to astonishing levels. The aircraft designed and developed during that time are still serving our nation today and even though they are approaching 40 to 50 years old they are still some of the most capable military aircraft in the world.
As a Missourian I see B-2s overhead a few times a year. Also went to the Whiteman air show in 2019…one of the most jarring things you will ever see is a B-2 doing a low altitude close to knife edge turn… While it’s exciting to see the new plane, it’s sad because it will replace one of the most badass planes ever made, the B-1.
Even if new systems could detect the current generation of stealth planes, its existence forces them to upgrade all of their existing air defense systems and we've had decades to work on detection ourselves.
The rollout of the B-2 was quite the thing. As noted, the Air Force was keen to keep the crowd away from the aircraft and only allowed it to be viewed from the front (although the star painted on the ramp cleverly hinted at the planform). The Air Force neglected to close the airspace over Plant 42 however and Aviation Week and Space Technology rented a GA aircraft and flew over the rollout, getting pictures of the actual planform and publishing them that week. Ahhh, the challenges of a free country. I can't wait to see the rollout. My company is a supplier to NGC and we've been supporting the B-21 (still coded as LRSB) for years,
Could you do a video on the two upcoming helicopter replacement programs? Sikorsky has the S-97 Raider compete with the Bell+Textron 360 Invictus in the AAS / FARA (armed scout) program. Meanwhile, the Sikorsky+Boeing SB-1 Defiant competes with the Bell+Lockheed V280 Valor for the FVL (long-range lift) program. Given how the US defense industry works, it is likely that both companies get one contract each, to keep every factory running, everybody employed. So if you like both Sikorsky or both Bell designs, get ready for a disappointment. The Raider has troop capacity while the Invictus does not, but that gives the Invictus better stealth properties, just like the Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche had. Not sure why they abandoned that design. Just to push a common scout and transport design when they know it's not very likely they'll get both contracts? The V280 seems to be the more mature design, faster and longer range. But the SB-1 might offer better handling and safety, as it is not a tilt rotor. And it's smaller, closer to the Blackhawk size. This might really go both ways.
I go to school in Central MO and often see B-2s doing refueling ops with KC-135s out of Whiteman and am still baffled seeing that thing in the air. Seeing pictures is one thing, but actually seeing it fly is incredible. I totally understand how people in the 80s/90s would see it and report it as a UFO...
The one thing I love about the American air force is their formation. That alone can send shivers up an enemy spine. I know having an advantage in capabilities is paramount but man, to watch these birds formation in the sky is priceless
One thing i have noticed about B-2 discussions, is that practically no one mentions the electric field the B-2 was built with, with the leading edge being positive and the tail stub being negative. The Air force acknowledged the field and said it aided stealth, but no one mentions it???
I was at Grand Forks AFB ND in 2006-2010. The reaper drone was flying and the B-21 was being built. I seen the B-21 Raider mockups and the “presentation” they gave to the Ops Group commander in the Secret projects meeting. I was just the Ops Group Enlisted Training Manager and a part of his command staff. We went where he went in the Wing command buildings. - The B-21 should / would have been used already and most likely flown only at night out of North Dakota. - We had several reaper drone missions completed before they were even acknowledged and announced as existing.
Somehow, I've watched the episodes in reverse order, though that matters little as both are fantastic news. I say that as a westerner, of course. I cannot imagine much joy in the hearts of fledgling adversaries. Though, as you may note from other comments, and with my support. The mighty B-52, being far cheaper to maintain per flight hour, will outlive many generations of its pilots.
I like the concept of the Raider but I'm saddened to hear they are going to retire the BONE, one of the the most beautiful AND badass aircraft to ever take to the skies. 😫
I'd say that B-21 is bascially initial design of B-2, before USAF demanded low level penetration capabilities and costly redesign. Plus, adjusted for modern materials and manufacturing. Though again - given what Legion class EO pods can do, stealth is on the way to reinvate itself.
I remember when the 'B-1 & 2' stealth bombers were being worked on in the late 80s. While looking cool... if I recall, both failed to carry the weight / armament they were originally proposed to support. I hope this one lives up to it's heritage.
