Placelowerplace Report This Comment
Date: February 24, 2007 01:57AM

There is only one Original Flying wing that still exsists. It is in Chino California, also there, is the only Mitsubishi Zero in the world that is still flying.

If you Stall the flying wing, you must force it into a spin to enable the stall recovery otherwise the wing will tople along the longitudinal axis until it impacts terrain.

Air Force Guy Report This Comment
Date: February 24, 2007 03:15AM

The B-2, "Stealth Bomber" is based on the flying wing design, but it has absolutely no vertical control surfaces at all. Covered in "teflon" paint to absorb radar waves, each B-2 costs around $2 billion taxpayer dollars per copy -- and they don't even fly at supersonic speeds.

The flying wing was originally devised in order to maximize lift for heavy payloads. Engineers were surprised by the wing's small radar signature. So stealth was an unintended, benficial effect of the design.

Little known trivia: B-2 aircraft are rumored to have "after-coolers" on the aircraft's engines (which are "inboard," contained within the hull). These after-coolers mask the heat signature of engine exhaust in order to increase the plane's "stealthiness."

All B-2's are assigned to Whiteman Air Force Base in Knob Noster, Missouri. Although the aircraft have been in service for more than 10 years, when they take off or land during the day, traffic along Highway 50 and other local roads nearly comes to a standstill as people pull over and get out of their cars to see the strange, "alien-like" planes in flight.

quasi Report This Comment
Date: February 24, 2007 01:08PM

The B-2 actually has the same wingspan as the YB-49 (and it's predecessor, the propeller driven YB-47). Because of stability problems, the flying wing concept didn't become a viable platform until the availability of modern computers which could make the thousands of minute control adjusments necessary for safe flight in the B-2.

I saw a B-2 do a fly-by at an airshow and they're amazing.

Air Force Guy Report This Comment
Date: February 24, 2007 05:28PM

Nice info, quasi. The F-117 Stealth "Fighter" (which is not really a fighter, but a light bomber) is also highly unstable in flight and would not be practical without advanced computerized flight stabilization. The F-117's inherent instability caused pilots to give it the nickname "Wobbly Goblin."

If you watch an F-117 in flight, you can sometimes see large panels pop up and lay back down -- just like the panels on NASCAR race cars which pop up if the car spins out of control and starts skidding backwards.

I never understood the need for the B-2 when, for the same price, you can build dozens of F-117s that are capable of doing the same job. One lucky shot on a B-2 would cost us $2 billion, while it would take dozens of lucky shots on F-117s to cost us the same amount. It just doesn't seem to add up. But both planes are cool.

Anonymous Report This Comment
Date: February 27, 2007 04:57PM

The first flying wing was designed and built by the Nazi's.They were to be used
on a one way mission to deliver nukes to the eastern seaboard of the United States.
Given a few more years of success it would be quite scary to think of the power
Hitler would have possesed.Sound like a fantasy? Hitler made a newsreel about
the entire aforementioned bombing raid and the U.S. has one of these babies
hidden in the back rooms of the Smithsonian institute.

Mr Happy Report This Comment
Date: March 16, 2007 01:35AM

Great pic and post. Thanks for the info you guys, it was very good reading for a change.