Originally posted by ghost
If the Horton Brothers were in contact with Jack Northrop (Founder of Northrop). they could have easly shared information on the flying wing back and
forth. Do you think the B-2 might have eveolved as a HO XVIII/YB-49 hybrid?
Tim
ATS Director of Counter-Ignorance
There is no Northrop-Horten link to the B-2.
Here's a little history on the flying wing design.
Northrop
In 1929 Jack Northrop produced the X-216H which was a refined flying-wing concept and led to the first successful all-wing design, the N1M "Flying
Jeep". First flown in 1940, the N1M made over 200 flights before being retired in 1941.
Horten
the Horten brothers first glider called the Horten Ho I, was first flight tested at Bonn-Hagelar in July 1933. This glider opened the way for other
models, including the Ho IV with a high aspect ratio wing of 24 meters in span, as well as their Ho III that soared to 7000 meters in 1938.
Origins
Is it possible that 2 individual companies came up with this concept around the same time without input from the other?
According to Jack Northrop's biography, Jack became convinced as early as 1923 that the limit had been reached in conventional airplane design
development. He felt that the next logical step was an all-wing aircraft which would do away with the drag-producing fuselage and tail. The entire
airframe would create lift and significantly increase overall performance. This was a concept native to Northrop's aircraft development and never
acknowledged by either the Horten's or Northrop to have been a copied concept.
How the B-2's shape came to be
Designer of Northrop's B-2 (Irv Waaland) said that the B-2 originated on Northrop's ATB drawing boards after 6 weeks of design analysis to meet the
requirement of both stealth, heavy lift capabilities and low altitude penetration, which not only disassociates Northrop's B-2 from the Horten
designs but also from the earlier Northrop flying wing designs.
Some aerospace enthusiasts may find this a hard to believe seeing the similarities of Jack Northrop's and the Horten brothers flying wing concepts
and the B-2 bomber.
Here's a fact for you; Northrop's original concept of the B-2 was actually diamond shaped, but it underwent a major re-design to the now familiar
bat-shape due to a change in USAF mission requirements from high altitude ingress to low altitude ingress.
Sources:
www.abovetopsecret.com...
www.mucheswarbirds.com...
aerostories.free.fr...
An ATS post by Intelgurl - Feb. 2004
"NORTHROP B-2 STEALTH BOMBER" by Jay Miller