Northrop bid sees testbed role for B-2 (B-2B!)

Originally posted by kilcoo316

Originally posted by ghost
Speaking of Supersonic, aren't Sonic Booms still an issue with stealth aircraft, or have they gotten rid of the sonic boom and I missed it? I know a while back NASA was Working on it, but I don't know they perfected it.

A stealth bomber with a loud sonic boom seems like a potential problem to me.

Tim

Still a problem?


Besides, what will a sonic boom tell you - there is an aircraft somewhere - it would be pretty useless for pinpointing there position to be honest. Also... you can fly subsonic if needs be.

How about where the aircraft is and where it's headed! The shock wave creating the boom follows the plane. A sonic boom is sound EQUIVALENT of leaving a contrail! If you track the boom, you CAN pinpoint the aircraft. This is why we know the approxamate flight route the Aroura was flying over the desert in the 1980's. Observers tracked and plotted to path of the sonic booms on a map!

I think we all know why contrails and stealth don't go together, so I won't start that lecture!

Tim

i don't get this aurora thing most of the time sightings of this aircraft get spotted over scotland? (the things ive read) or it is based there.

why scotland?, britain is a small island...the aurora wouldn't fly or be based over small land (would it)

in some parts of america you can go for 100's miles and not hardly see a person in sight, wouldn't that be a wise place for a top 'black' aircraft to be kept instead of foregen land?, maybe this 'aurora' is a british secret aircraft instead, maybe nightjar or bae replica?

www.spyflight.co.uk...

[edit on 7-10-2006 by st3ve_o]

Dude you have no idea how remote scotland is - i have walked for two days and seen no one at all - its remote dude.

And best of all, they hid all the runways in real wierd remote way out of the way areas... and yes, weird things do fly round up there. Remember the North sea oil rig ala chris gibson sighting?...

and its got great access to bombing ranges and refuelers as well...

Back to the Original topic! Does anyone have anything on the status of the B-2B proposal?

Tim

Originally posted by ghost
Back to the Original topic! Does anyone have anything on the status of the B-2B proposal?

Tim

From what I've heard in the last week or so, it is still in the Analysis of Alternatives phase. They know what technologies they would like to see and have made a wish list for the big 3 US aerospace companies. It is understood however that at the present time many of the technologies on the USAF's wish list are simply not mature - so they are trying to determine what technologies will be mature or in milspeak, at "technology readiness level 6" by 2018. Those technologies wished for but not ready by 2018 will be pushed back to the 2035 next generation bomber program.

That said, the B-2B project is right where the B-1R, FB-22 and FB-23 projects are... in limbo.