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1994-09-26
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The B-2 Stealth bomber had evoked tremendous interest since the first hint
of its existence was revealed in the late 1970s. A secret, advanced bomber
was officially acknowledged at a Washington press conference on August 22,
1980. Most of the information remained classified and the press conference
was held purposely to stop information leaks that had been showing up in the
press for months.
In 1975, the United States Air Force became very interested in stealth aircraft.
They contracted Lockheed Corporation and asked them to design and develop
a stealth fighter. Several models were produced, one of them which became
the F-117. Sometime later, in 1981, the U.S. Air Force approached Northrop
about developing a stealth bomber. Northrop's experience in stealth tech-
nology dated back more than half a century.
The engineers at Northrop designed a plane that was "low observable." En-
gineers designed the stealth bomber with rounded surfaces to deflect the ra-
dar signals away from the radar receiver instead of back toward it. They also
built the plane so there would be fewer surfaces to reflect. The plane's four
jet engines, the fuel tanks and weapons, instead of being hung on the wings,
were put inside the aircraft. The B-2 bomber is covered with a radar-absorb-
ing material called RAM. It consists of carbon fiber, glass fiber and other
composite plastics. A transparent layer of gold coats the glass canopy over
the cockpit. This serves to deflect radar signals that might be bounced off
the pilots' helmets and other objects in the cockpit.
On July 17, 1989, after almost 10 years of development and a cost of $22
billion dollars, the batlike B-2 got off the ground for the first time. Two Air
Force F-16 fighters escorted the bomber as it flew over the California desert
at Edwards Air Force Base. The two test pilots kept the B-2 at relatively low
speeds and reached an altitude of only 10,000 feet. The plane was back on
the ground within two hours.
The B-2 is flown by means of what is called a "fly-by-wire" system. A com-
puter automatically and constantly adjusts the plane's controls. The pilot
exercises his own control by sending instructions through the computer.
The B-2 was developed with a very special role in mind. In the event of a
war, the B-2 can fly deep into enemy territory and drop nuclear bombs on
silos containing intercontinental ballistic missiles. It is also designed to
strike underground command posts that sheltered top enemy leaders. The
B-2's secondary mission is to seek out and destroy mobile missile laun-
chers.
As of 1994, Northrop has delivered seven B-2 bombers to the United States
Air Force. Thirteen additional aircraft are scheduled for future delivery.