B-2 Spirit

B-2 Spirit
B-2 Spirit original.jpg
A USAF B-2 Spirit in flight.
Role Stealth bomber
National origin United States of America
Manufacturer Northrop Corporation
Northrop Grumman
First flight 17 July 1989
Introduction April 1997
Status Active service: 20 aircraft
Primary user United States Air Force
Number built 21[1][2]
Unit cost $737 million (1997 average procurement cost)[3]
$2.1 billion (1997 average total program costs)[3]

The Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit (also known as the Stealth Bomber) is a multirole heavy bomber with "low observable" stealth technology capable of penetrating dense anti-aircraft defenses to deploy both conventional and nuclear weapons. Because of its astronomical capital and operations costs, the project was controversial in Congress and among Pentagon brass during its development and placement into service. In time, Congress scaled back initial plans to purchase 132 of the bombers. By the early 1990s the United States elected to purchase just 21 of the bombers at US$737 million per aircraft. Total program cost averaged US$2.1 billion per aircraft in 1997 dollars.[3]

The B-2 is operated exclusively by the United States Air Force with none in the Air Force Reserves. Though originally designed in the 1980s for Cold War operations scenarios, B-2s have been used in combat to drop bombs on Kosovo in the late 1990s, and see continued use during the ongoing Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Featuring formidable design specifications, a two officer crew aboard the bomber can drop up to eighty 500 lb (230 kg) class JDAM "smart" bombs, or sixteen 2,400 lb (1,100 kg) B83 nuclear bombs in a single pass through extremely dense anti-aircraft defenses. The bomber has been a prominent public spectacle at air shows since the 1990s. It has been the subject of espionage and counter-espionage activity.

Contents

Development

In a 1994 live fire exercise near Point Mugu, California, a B-2 Spirit dropped forty-seven 500 lb (230 kg) class Mark 82 bombs, which represents about half of a B-2's total ordnance payload in the Block 30 configuration.

The B-2 followed the Northrop YB-49 and Horten Ho 229 flying wing designs of the 1940s. The B-2 originated from the Advanced Technology Bomber (ATB) black project which began in 1979.[4] Meanwhile, as Ronald Reagan campaigned for the Presidency in 1979 and 1980, he promised a restoration of American military strength. On August 22, 1980, the Department of Defense first publicly disclosed that it was working to develop stealth aircraft including the ATB.[5] The ATB competition was reduced to the Northrop/Boeing and Lockheed/Rockwell teams with each receiving a study contract for further work.[4] Both teams developed flying wing designs. The Northrop design was larger while the Lockheed design was smaller and included a small tail.[6]

The Northrop/Boeing team's ATB design was selected over the Lockheed/Rockwell design on October 20, 1981.[4][7] The black project was funded under the code name "Aurora".[6] The Northrop design would receive the designation B-2 and the name "Spirit". The bomber's design was changed in the mid-1980s when its mission profile was changed from high-altitude to low-altitude, terrain-following. The redesign delayed the B-2's first flight by two years and added about US$1 billion to the program's cost.[5] An estimated US$23 billion was secretly spent for research and development on the B-2 by 1989.[8] At the program's peak, 13,000 people were employed at a dedicated plant in Pico Rivera, California for the plane's engineering and portions of its manufacturing.[9]

The first B-2 was first publicly displayed on November 22, 1988, at Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, California, where it was built. Its first public flight was on July 17, 1989 from Palmdale.[10] The B-2 Combined Test Force, Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, is responsible for flight testing Air Force aircraft.

A procurement of 132 aircraft was planned in the mid-1980s, but this was later reduced to 75.[11] Yielding to budgetary pressures and Congressional opposition, in his 1992 State of the Union Address, President George H.W. Bush announced total B-2 production would be limited to 20 aircraft.[12] This reduction was largely a result of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, which effectively rendered void the Spirit's primary Cold War mission.

In 1990, the Department of Defense accused Northrop of using faulty components in the flight control system. More recent issues with the bomber have included cracks in the tail. Efforts have also been made to reduce the probability of bird ingestion, which could damage engine fan blades.[13]

Northrop made a proposal to the USAF in 1995 to build 20 additional aircraft with a flyaway cost of $566M each, a figure which excludes the bomber's operations costs.[14] The bombers high costs reflected the innovation of a paperless computer aided design CAD system, and a computerized manufacturing control system.

The high development costs also reflect the inefficiencies of separating design teams into different parts of the country for reasons of both design intelligence compartmentalization as a counter-espionage measure, and as a political measure to create lucrative jobs manufacturing different constituent parts of the plane in a variety of Congressional districts across the United States.

In 1996, the Clinton administration, though originally committed to ending production of the bombers once the 20th aircraft was completed, authorized the conversion of a prototype test model to full operational Block 30 status at a cost of nearly $500 million.[15]

The prime contractor, responsible for overall system design and integration, is Northrop Grumman. Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, Hughes Aircraft (now Raytheon), General Electric Aircraft Engines and Vought Aircraft Industries, are members of the aircraft contractor team.

Program costs

The program was the subject of public controversy for its costs to American taxpayers. In 1996 the General Accounting Office disclosed that the B-2 bomber "will be, by far, the most costly bombers to operate on a per aircraft basis" costing over three times as much as the B-1B (US$9.6 million annually) and over four times as much as the B-52H ($US6.8 million annually). In September 1997, each hour of B-2 flight necessitated 119 hours of maintenance in turn. Comparable maintenance needs for the B-52 and the B-1B are 53 and 60 hours respectively for each hour of flight.

A key reason for this cost are the air-conditioned hangars large enough for the bomber's 172 ft (52.4 m) wingspan, which are needed to maintain the aircraft's stealthy properties, especially its "low-observable" stealthy skins.[16][17] These maintenance requirements raise serious questions about the ability to deploy the B-2 overseas.[18]

The capital cost of one B-2 bomber in 1994 dollars was reported at US$737 million. However, the total cost of the program with development, spare parts, and facilities averaged over US$2.1 billion per plane as of 1997 according to the B-2 program office.[3]

Opposition

In its consideration of the fiscal year 1990 defense budget, the House Armed Services Committee trimmed $800 million from the B-2 research and development budget, while at the same time staving off a motion to kill the bomber. The opposition was bipartisan, with Congressman Ron Dellums (D-CA), John Kasich (R-OH), and John Rowland (R-CT) authorizing the motion to kill the bomber, The growing cost of the B-2 appeared to be the factor driving the opposition. At the peak production period specified in 1989, the schedule called for spending US$7 billion to $8 billion per year in 1989 dollars, something Committee Chair Les Aspin (D-WI) said "won't fly financially." [19]

In time, a number of prominent members of Congress began to oppose the program's expansion, to include former Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry who cast votes against the B-2 Stealth Bomber in 1989, 1991 and 1992 while a United States Senator representing Massachusetts. By 1992, Republican President George H.W. Bush called for the cancellation of the B-2 and promised to cut military spending by 30% in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union.[20]

In May 1995, on the basis of its 1995 Heavy Bomber Force Study, the DOD determined that additional B-2 procurements would exacerbate efforts to develop and implement long term recapitalization plans for the USAF bomber force.

In October 1995, former Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, General Mike Ryan, and Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General John Shalikashvili, strongly recommended against Congressional action to fund the purchase any additional B-2s, arguing that to do so would require unacceptable cuts in existing conventional and nuclear-capable aircraft to pay for the new bombers,[21] and because the military had much higher priorities on which to spend its limited procurement dollars.[22]

Some B-2 advocates argued that procuring twenty additional B-2s would actually save money because B-2s would be able to deeply penetrate anti-aircraft defenses and use low-cost, short-range attack weapons rather than expensive standoff weapons. However, in 1995, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), and its Director of National Security Analysis, found that additional B-2s would reduce the cost of weapons expended by the bomber force by less than US$2 billion in 1995 dollars during the first two weeks of a conflict, which is when the Air Force envisions bombers would make their greatest contribution. This is a small fraction of the US$26.8 billion (in 1995 dollars) life cycle cost that the CBO projected an additional twenty B-2s would cost.[23]

In 1997, as Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Ron Dellums, a long-time opponent of the bomber, cited five independent studies and offered an amendment to that year's defense authorization bill to cap production of the bombers with the existing 21 aircraft. The amendment was narrowly defeated.[24] Nonetheless, Congress has never approved funding for the purchase of any additional B-2 bombers to date.

Design

The B-2's engines are buried within its wing to conceal the induction fans and hide their exhaust. The two crew members sit side-by-side in the cockpit.

As with the B-52 Stratofortress and B-1 Lancer, the B-2 provides the versatility inherent in manned bombers. Like other bombers, its assigned targets can be canceled or changed while in flight, the particular weapon assigned to a target can be changed, and the timing of attack, or the route to the target can be changed while in flight. In addition, its low-observable, or "stealth", characteristics give it the ability to penetrate an enemy's most sophisticated anti-aircraft defenses to attack its most heavily defended targets.

The blending of low-observable technologies with high aerodynamic efficiency and large payload gives the B-2 significant advantages over previous bombers. The U.S. Air Force purports the aircraft has "high aerodynamic efficiency" and states its range is approximately 6,000 nautical miles (11,100 km).[25][26] Also, its low-observation ability provides the B-2 greater freedom of action at high altitudes, thus increasing its range and providing a better field of view for the aircraft's sensors. It combines GPS Aided Targeting System (GATS) with GPS-aided bombs such as Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM). This uses its passive electronically scanned array APQ-181 radar to correct GPS errors of targets and gain much better than laser-guided weapon accuracy when "dumb" gravity bombs are equipped with a GPS-aided "smart" guidance tail kit. It can bomb 16 targets in a single pass when equipped with 1,000 or 2,000-pound (450 kg or 900 kg) bombs, or as many as 80 when carrying 500-lb (225 kg) bombs.

The B-2's stealth comes from a combination of reduced acoustic, infrared, visual and radar signatures, making it difficult for opposition defenses to detect, track and engage the aircraft. Many specific aspects of the low-observability process remain classified.

A B-2 during aerial refueling

The B-2 represents a further advancement of technology exploited for the F-117. Russian-born physicist and mathematician Pyotr Ufimtsev, whose theoretical work made the F-117 and B-2 possible, was hired by Northrop at one time. Additionally, the B-2's composite materials, special coatings and flying wing design (which reduces the number of leading edges) contribute to its stealth abilities.[27] Each B-2 requires a climate-controlled hangar large enough for its 172-foot wingspan to protect the operations integrity of its sophisticated radar absorbent material and coatings.[28] The engines are buried within the wing to conceal the induction fans and hide their exhaust.[29]

The B-2 has a crew of two: a pilot in the left seat, and mission commander in the right.[25] The B-2 has a provision for a third crew member if required in the future.[30] For comparison, the B-1B has a crew of four and the B-52 has a crew of five.[25] B-2 crews have been used to pioneer sleep cycle research to improve crew performance on long sorties. The B-2 is highly automated, and unlike two-seat fighters, one crew member can sleep, use a flush toilet or prepare a hot meal while the other monitors the aircraft.[31]

The USAF has funded a project to upgrade the B-2s weapon control systems so new weapons can be used, including weapons intended to hit moving targets.[32]

Operational history

The first operational aircraft, christened Spirit of Missouri, was delivered to Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri on 17 December 1993.[33] The B-2 reached initial operational capability on 1 January 1997.[34]

The B-2 fleet is based at Whiteman AFB. Depot maintenance for the B-2 is accomplished by United States Air Force contractor support and managed at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.[25] Originally designed to deliver nuclear weapons, modern usage has shifted towards a flexible role with conventional and nuclear capability.

Combat

An Air Force maintenance crew services a B-2 at Andersen AFB, Guam, 2004.

The B-2 has seen service in three separate campaigns. Its combat debut was during the Kosovo War in 1999. It was responsible for destroying 33 percent of selected Serbian bombing targets in the first eight weeks of U.S. involvement in the War. During this war, B-2s flew non-stop to Kosovo from its home base in Missouri and back.[25] The B-2 was the first aircraft to deploy GPS satellite guided JDAM in combat use in Kosovo.[35]

The aircraft has been used to drop bombs on Afghanistan in support of the ongoing War in Afghanistan. The B-2 flew one of its longest missions to date from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri to Afghanistan and back.[25]

During the ongoing War in Iraq, B-2s have operated from Diego Garcia and an undisclosed "forward operating location."[25] Other sorties in Iraq have launched from Whiteman AFB. This resulted in missions lasting over 30 hours and one mission of over 50 hours. B-2s have been used during 22 sorties from Diego Garcia as well as 27 sorties from Whiteman AFB and have released more than 1.5 million pounds of munitions.[25]

The B-2's combat use preceded a U.S. Air Force declaration of "Full Operational Capability" in December 2003.[25] The Pentagon's Operational Test and Evaluation 2003 Annual Report noted that the B-2's serviceability for Fiscal Year 2003 was still inadequate, mainly due to the maintainability of the B-2's Low Observable materials. The evaluation also noted that the Defensive Avionics suite also had shortcomings with pop-up threats.[36] The B-2 has seen action in the War in Iraq, dropping 583 JDAM "Smart Bombs" in 2003.[37]

All B-2s, nuclear-capable B-52s, and nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles, will be shifted the new nuclear-focused Global Strike Command to be set up by September 2009.[38][39]

Espionage

In 1984 a Northrop employee, Thomas Cavanaugh, was arrested for trying to sell classified information to the Soviet Union, which apparently was smuggled out of the Pico Rivera, California factory.[40] Cavanaugh was eventually sentenced to life in prison and released under parole in 2001.

Noshir Gowadia, a design engineer who worked on the B-2's propulsion system, was arrested in October 2005 for selling B-2 related classified information to foreign countries. His trial was initially scheduled for 12 February 2008, but he received a continuance.[41][42]

Operators

The "Spirit of Indiana" sits on the ramp at Andersen AFB in Guam on June, 23, 2006.

B-2s are operated exclusively by the United States Air Force active units.

Accidents

Main article: 2008 Andersen Air Force Base B-2 accident

On 23 February 2008, a B-2 crashed back onto a runway shortly after takeoff from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam.[43] The crash of the Spirit of Kansas, 89-0127, which had been operated by the 393rd Bomb Squadron, 509th Bomb Wing, Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, and had logged 5,100 flight hours, was the first ever known crash of a B-2. The two officer crew ejected from the aircraft and survived the crash. The aircraft was completely destroyed, a total loss estimated at US$1.4 billion.[44] [1]

Aircraft on display

Mockup of a B-2 Spirit on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force

Because of its high cost, strategic-preparedness role, and the still-classified aspects of its low observable coatings, no production B-2 has ever been placed on permanent display. However, B-2s have periodically made prominent public spectacle during appearances on ground display at various air shows.

In 2004, one of the test articles (s/n AT-1000) built without engines or instruments for static testing was placed on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force near Dayton, Ohio.[45] The test article had been used for structural testing, and after passing all planned tests, pressure was applied until the right wing broke off at 161% of specification.[46] The Museum's restoration team spent over a year reassembling the fractured airframe.

From 1989 to 2004, the South Dakota Air and Space Museum located on the grounds of Ellsworth Air Force Base displayed the 10-ton (9.1 tonne) "Honda Stealth", a 60% scale mockup of a stealthy bomber which had been built by North American Honda in 1988 for an advertising campaign.[47] Although not an actual replica of a B-2, the mock-up was close enough to the B-2s design to arouse suspicion that Honda had intercepted classified, top secret information, as the B-2 project was still officially classified in 1988. Honda donated the model to the museum in 1989, on the condition that the model be destroyed if it were ever replaced with a different aircraft. In 2005, when the museum received a B-1 Lancer for display (Ellsworth being a B-1 base), the museum destroyed the mock-up.[48][49]

Specifications (B-2A Block 30)

Orthographically projected diagram of the B-2 Spirit

Data from USAF Fact Sheet,[25] Pace,[50] Spick,[26] Globalsecurity[51]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

Later avionics and equipment improvements allow B-2A to carry JSOW and GBU-28s as well. The Spirit is also designated as a delivery aircraft for the AGM-158 JASSM when the missile enters service.

List of B-2 bombers

Side view of a B-2 Spirit.
B-2 in flight over the Mississippi River (St. Louis, Missouri) with the Gateway Arch and Busch Stadium in the background.
B-2 from the bottom
Air Vehicle No. Block No.[52] USAF s/n Formal name Status
AV-1 Test/30 82-1066 Spirit of America 2000-07-14 - Active[53]
AV-2 Test/30 82-1067 Spirit of Arizona 1997-12-04 - Active
AV-3 Test/30 82-1068 Spirit of New York 1997-10-10 - Active, Flight Test
AV-4 Test/30 82-1069 Spirit of Indiana 1999-05-22 - Active
AV-5 Test/20 82-1070 Spirit of Ohio 1997-07-18 - Active
AV-6 Test/30 82-1071 Spirit of Mississippi 1997-05-23 - Active
AV-7 10 88-0328 Spirit of Texas 1994-08-31 - Active
AV-8 10 88-0329 Spirit of Missouri 1994-03-31 - Active
AV-9 10 88-0330 Spirit of California 1994-08-17 - Active
AV-10 10 88-0331 Spirit of South Carolina 1994-12-30 - Active
AV-11 10 88-0332 Spirit of Washington 1994-10-29 - Active
AV-12 10 89-0127 Spirit of Kansas 1995-02-17 - Crashed 23 February 2008[54]
AV-13 10 89-0128 Spirit of Nebraska 1995-06-28 - Active
AV-14 10 89-0129 Spirit of Georgia 1995-11-14 - Active
AV-15 10 90-0040 Spirit of Alaska 1996-01-24 - Active
AV-16 10 90-0041 Spirit of Hawaii 1996-01-10 - Active
AV-17 20 92-0700 Spirit of Florida 1996-07-03 - Active
AV-18 20 93-1085 Spirit of Oklahoma 1996-05-15 - Active
AV-19 20 93-1086 Spirit of Kitty Hawk 1996-08-30 - Active
AV-20 30 93-1087 Spirit of Pennsylvania 1997-08-05 - Active
AV-21 30 93-1088 Spirit of Louisiana 1997-11-10 - Active
AV-22/AV-165 canceled

Sources: FAS.org,[55] B-2 Spirit (Pace)[56]

See also

Related development

Related lists

References

Notes

  1. ↑ National Museum of the United States Air Force Northrop B-2A Spirit fact sheet
  2. ↑ AIR FORCE Magazine: 2007 Almanac; Gallery of Weapons
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 United States General Accounting Office (GAO) B-2 Bomber: Cost and Operational Issues (Letter Report, 08/14/97, GAO/NSIAD-97-181).
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Pace 1999, pp. 20-27.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Goodall, James C. "The Northrop B-2A Stealth Bomber", America's Stealth Fighters and Bombers, B-2, F-117, YF-22, and YF-23. MBI Publishing Company, 1992. ISBN 0-87938-609-6.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Rich, Ben, Leo Janos. Skunk Works. Little, Brown & Company, 1994. ISBN 0-316-74300-3.
  7. ↑ Spick 2000, p. 339.
  8. ↑ "The Stealth Takes Wing", TIME, 31 July 1989.
  9. ↑ "Pico Rivera". GlobalSecurity.org (26 April 2005).
  10. ↑ Pace 1999, pp. 29-36.
  11. ↑ Pace 1999, pp. 75-76.
  12. ↑ President George H. Bush's State of the Union Address, January 28, 1992.
  13. ↑ "Moisture in sensors led to stealth bomber crash, Air Force report says", Kansas City Star, 5 June 2008.
  14. ↑ Eden, Paul. "Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit", Encyclopedia of Modern Military Aircraft. Amber Books, 2004. ISBN 1904687849.
  15. ↑ Bradley Graham (22 March 1996). "[? US to add one B-2 plane to 20 plane fleet]". Washington Post.
  16. ↑ Tony Capaccio, The B-2's Stealthy Skins Need Tender, Lengthy Care, Defense Week, 27 May 1997.
  17. ↑ "Air Force, Options to Retire of Restructure the Force would Reduce Planned Spending, NSIAD-96-192". US General Accounting Office (September 1996).
  18. ↑ Bradley Graham, Maintenance Problems Postpone Overseas Basing of Air Force B-2 Bomber, The Washington Post, 22 August 1997.
  19. ↑ Sorenson 1995, p.168.
  20. ↑ FactCheck.org, Zell Miller's Attack on Kerry: A Little Out Of Date, FactCheck.org, 4 October 2004.
  21. ↑ Brian Bender and John Robinson, Shali: More Stealth Bombers Mean Less Combat Power, Defense Daily, 5 August 1997.
  22. ↑ "Air Force, Options to Retire of Restructure the Force would Reduce Planned Spending, NSIAD-96-192". US General Accounting Office (September 1996).
  23. ↑ "Air Force, Options to Retire of Restructure the Force would Reduce Planned Spending, NSIAD-96-192". US General Accounting Office (September 1996).
  24. ↑ Debate on Dellums Amendment to 1998 Defense Authorization Act 23 June 1997
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 25.4 25.5 25.6 25.7 25.8 25.9 B-2 Spirit Fact Sheet, US Air Force, April 2008. Retrieved: 6 July 2008.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 Spick 2000, pp. 340-341.
  27. ↑ B-2, Encyclopedia.com
  28. ↑ Fulghum, D.A. "Away Game". Aviation Week & Space Technology, 8 January 2007. "First F-22 large-scale, air combat exercise wins praise and triggers surprise" (online title).
  29. ↑ B-2 page, Aerospaceweb.org.
  30. ↑ B-2 Spirit page, Northrop Grumman
  31. ↑ Tirpak, John A. "With the First B-2 Squadron". Air Force Magazine: Journal of the Air Force Association, Vol. 79, No. 4., April 1996.
  32. ↑ "Precision-Guided Weapons Could Allow Aircraft to Attack Multiple Moving Ground Targets in Adverse Weather From Stand-Off Ranges", Northrop Grumman, Feb. 7, 2008
  33. ↑ Pace 1999, p. 66.
  34. ↑ Pace 1999, p. 73.
  35. ↑ "JDAM continues to be warfighter's weapon of choice", US Air Force, 17 March 2006.
  36. ↑ Pop-up is an informative call of a contact that has suddenly appeared inside of meld/CCR/briefed range.
  37. ↑ Air Force programs: B-2
  38. ↑ "US plans separate nuclear command". BBC News (25 October 2008). Retrieved on 25 October 2008.
  39. ↑ Chavanne, Bettina H. "USAF Creates Global Strike Command", Aviation Week, 24 October 2008.
  40. ↑ AP. Stealth bomber classified documents missing, New York Times, June 24, 1987
  41. ↑ FBI Honolulu Press Release
  42. ↑ Gowadia case
  43. ↑ B-2 stealth bomber crashes on Guam, Yahoo! News, 23 February 2008.
  44. ↑ "Air Force: Moisture caused $1.4 billion bomber crash". CNN.com (6 June 2008). Retrieved on 2008-06-07.
  45. ↑ The display airframe is marked to resemble B-2 82-1070, The Spirit of Ohio, and has the original Fire and Ice nose wheel door from the actual bomber.
  46. ↑ National Museum of the USAF B-2 fact page
  47. ↑ "Honda Stealth"
  48. ↑ Museum slices stealth display
  49. ↑ B-1 to go on display in museum
  50. ↑ Pace 1999, Appendix A.
  51. ↑ B-2 specifications, GlobalSecurity.org.
  52. ↑ All 21 copies brought to Block 30 standard.
  53. ↑ Air Force names final B-2 bomber "Spirit of America"
  54. ↑ Lavitt, Michael O. "B-2 Crashes on Takeoff From Guam." Aviation Week, 23 February 2008.
  55. ↑ B-2 page on fas.org
  56. ↑ Pace 1999, Appendix.

Bibliography

  • CNN - B-2 stealth bombers make combat debut - 24 March 1999
  • Donald, David, ed. Black Jets: The Development and Operation of America's Most Secret Warplanes. Norwalk, Connecticut: AIRtime Publishing Inc., 2003. ISBN 1-880588-67-6.
  • Pace, Steve. B-2 Spirit: The Most Capable War Machine on the Planet. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1999. ISBN 0-07-134433-0.
  • Richardson, Doug. Northrop B-2 Spirit (Classic Warplanes). New York: Smithmark Publishers Inc., 1991. ISBN 0-8317-1404-2.
  • Sorenson, David, S. "The Politics of Stategic Aircraft Modernization. New York: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1995 ISBN 0275952584, 9780275952587
  • Spick, Mike. "B-2 Spirit", The Great Book of Modern Warplanes. St. Paul, Minnesota: MBI Publishing Company, 2000. ISBN 0-7603-0893-4.
  • Winchester, Jim, ed. "Northrop B-2 Spirit". Modern Military Aircraft (Aviation Factfile). Rochester, Kent, UK: Grange Books plc, 2004. ISBN 1-84013-640-5.
  • The World's Great Stealth and Reconnaissance Aircraft. New York: Smithmark, 1991. ISBN 0-8317-9558-1.

External links

Northrop aircraft
Manufacturer
designations

Alpha · Beta · Gamma · Delta

Note: Northrop company designations include a wide variety of technologies. Only aircraft, aero engines, and missiles are linked here.

N-1 · N-2 · N-3 · N-4 · N-5 · N-6 · N-7 · N-8 · N-9 · N-10 · N-12 · N-14 · N-15 · N-16 · N-18 · N-19 · N-20 · N-21 · N-23 · N-24 · N-25 · N-26 · N-29 · N-31 · N-32 · N-34 · N-35 · N-36 · N-37 · N-38 · N-39 · N-40 · N-41 · N-46 · N-47 · N-48 · N-49 · N-50 · N-51 · N-52 · N-54 · N-55 · N-59 · N-60 · N-63 · N-65 · N-67 · N-68 · N-69 · N-71 · N-72 · N-73 · N-74 · N-77 · N-81 · N-82 · N-94 · N-96 · N-102 · N-103 · N-105 · N-110 · N-111 · N-112 · N-117 · N-124 · N-132 · N-133 · N-134 · N-135 · N-137 · N-138 · N-141 · N-144 · N-149 · N-150 · N-151 · N-155 · N-156 · N-205 · N-267 · N-285 · N-300

P530 · P600 · P610
By role

Fighters: XFT · XP-56 · P-61 · F2T · XP-79 · F-89 · F-5 · CF-5/CF-116 · YF-17 · F-18L · F-20 · YF-23

Attack: YA-13 · XA-16 · A-17 · BT · SBT · YA-9 -

Bombers: YB-35 · B2T · YB-49 · B-62 · B-2

Transports: Alpha · C-19 · Beta · C-100 Gamma · RT Delta · YC-125

Reconnaissance: F-15 · RF-5

Trainers: T-38

Experimental: N-1M · N-9M · XP-79 · X-4 · M2-F2 · M2-F3 · HL-10 · Tacit Blue · X-21
United States tri-service bomber designations post-1962

B-1  • B-2

See also: 2018 Bomber, 2037 Bomber
Lists relating to aviation
General
Timeline of aviation · Aircraft (manufacturers) · Aircraft engines (manufacturers) · Airports · Airlines · Civil authorities
Military
Air forces · Aircraft weapons · Missiles · Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) · Experimental aircraft
Accidents/incidents
General · Military · Commercial (airliners) · Deaths
Records
Airspeed · Distance · Altitude · Endurance · Most-produced aircraft