Is This the "real" Lockheed X-44A Manta?

a reply to: Zaphod58

why did they even skip f-19 anyway?

a reply to: humanoidlord

Wasn't it because Northrop wanted their next F-5 to be relabeled as the F-20 for marketing purposes?

en.wikipedia.org...

a reply to: anzha

Yep. Their official reason was they didn't want potential customers to confuse it with the MiG-19.

a reply to: anzha

Yeah it did.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Thought so. It's the same gimmick as doing $9.99 instead of $10, but in reverse.

Then...then they had the F-35. And number order and skipping became a joke.

a reply to: Zaphod58

I'm surprised no one here has ever connected the Ferret to anything. I mean, it actually has more of the stealth tech of the day in it than the supposed F-19 did.

a reply to: anzha

It was a rather interesting design. I would have liked to see something like that.

Random thought,

Did Testors slap a red star and MIG designation on a not so Russian design, or is this just more imagination at work here? Its not a super far stretch from the YF-23 planform which i would think was only a thought at the time at best.

a reply to: StratosFear

That's an interesting thought. The YF-23 though? hmm.

There must have been other birds that were more contemporary.

a reply to: Winterpain

Big, stealthy unmanned loitering platforms are a fun rabbit hole to go down. It's been a very active part of the black world, for sure. The "RQ-180", or whatever it's actually called, is just the latest in a long line of similar aircraft and design studies.

a reply to: anzha

From the little bit i know about the YF-23 it certainly seems Northrop had alot of things worked out with their design compared to the YF-22. Theres quite a story there that I wasnt aware of before and its got me thinking a few things.

a reply to: StratosFear

Makes you wonder if they didn't learn from something else they built in the past...

a reply to: Zaphod58

a reply to: anzha

It’s platform is pretty close to the YF-23

a reply to: waynos

somewhat.

Makes you wonder still if Northrop didn't make something earlier...