Hello all, here is today's article posted on TheArmoryLife.com. It is titled “Evolution of the Flying Wing” and can be found at https://www.thearmorylife.com/evolution-of-the-flying-wing/.
Evolution of the Flying Wing
- Thread starter Mike H.
- Start date
Tacoma236
Operator
One of the cool stories shortly before Jack Northrop died was he was taken in secret to Edwards and they did an overflight with the B2 Stealth . He supposedly looked up as it flew over and then looked at the senior engineers and said, "Ya finally got the damn thing to fly."
LOL
LOL
Jester560
Professional
It was cool of them to do that for him. Northrop was way ahead of his time.
Lexie__M
Professional
This is the actual first "Flying Wing" and after WWII, the US used x-germans from Operation Paperclip to produce the US flying wing.
worldwarwings.com
Inside the Horten Flying Wing
During the last years of World War II, German aircraft designers pursued unconventional solutions to regain control of the skies. Among the most ambitious was the Horten Ho 229, a jet-powered flying wing that challenged traditional aircraft design. Conceived by the Horten brothers, the aircraft e
worldwarwings.com
I spent 5 years of my AF time in the 8th AF at a B52 wing and have an appreciation for the histoey of Strategic bombers.
My son in law is now a program manager on the B21 bomber program and we have 30 years of successful B2 operations ak the flying wing proves what’s old is new again!
My son in law is now a program manager on the B21 bomber program and we have 30 years of successful B2 operations ak the flying wing proves what’s old is new again!
My ex-father-in-law, Russ Schleeh, was the test pilot on the propeller driven version. It had terrible problems with engine cooling, as did many large displacement radials in other aircraft (he was also Air Force test for the B-29) and said they rarely returned with all 4 working during early phases of testing.
It is rumored (pretty good source on this) that the nose gear folded on landing with Russ at the helm and he broke his back while pulling his copilot out. As the aircraft sat smoldering on the runway (lakebed I think), his comment was "let it burn." The early flying wings, both piston and jet, had serious stability problems, and its only today with computer assist that they are viable.
It is reported that when Russ was in hospital from this accident, Yeager brought him some entertainment (hooker?); think that's in Right Stuff. They were buds. Yeager was my ex's godfather.
It is rumored (pretty good source on this) that the nose gear folded on landing with Russ at the helm and he broke his back while pulling his copilot out. As the aircraft sat smoldering on the runway (lakebed I think), his comment was "let it burn." The early flying wings, both piston and jet, had serious stability problems, and its only today with computer assist that they are viable.
It is reported that when Russ was in hospital from this accident, Yeager brought him some entertainment (hooker?); think that's in Right Stuff. They were buds. Yeager was my ex's godfather.