The Northrop
(later Northrop Grumman) B-2 Spirit, also known as the Stealth Bomber, is an
American heavy penetration strategic bomber, featuring low observable stealth
technology designed for penetrating dense anti-aircraft defenses; it is a
flying wing design with a crew of two. The bomber can deploy both conventional
and thermonuclear weapons, such as eighty 500 lb (230 kg)-class (Mk 82) JDAM
Global Positioning System-guided bombs, or sixteen 2,400 lb (1,100 kg) B83
nuclear bombs. The B-2 is the only acknowledged aircraft that can carry large
air-to-surface standoff weapons in a stealth configuration.
Development
originally started under the "Advanced Technology Bomber" (ATB)
project during the Carter administration; its expected performance was one of
his reasons for the cancellation of the supersonic B-1A bomber. The ATB project
continued during the Reagan administration, but worries about delays in its
introduction led to the reinstatement of the B-1 program as well. Program costs
rose throughout development. Designed and manufactured by Northrop, later
Northrop Grumman, the cost of each aircraft averaged US$737 million (in 1997
dollars). Total procurement costs averaged $929 million per aircraft, which
includes spare parts, equipment, retrofitting, and software support. The total
program cost including development, engineering and testing, averaged $2.1
billion per aircraft in 1997.
Because of
its considerable capital and operating costs, the project was controversial in
the U.S. Congress and among the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The winding-down of the
Cold War in the latter portion of the 1980s dramatically reduced the need for
the aircraft, which was designed with the intention of penetrating Soviet
airspace and attacking high-value targets. During the late 1980s and 1990s,
Congress slashed plans to purchase 132 bombers to 21. In 2008, a B-2 was
destroyed in a crash shortly after takeoff, though the crew ejected safely. A
total of 20 B-2s remain in service with the United States Air Force, which
plans to operate the B-2 until 2058.
The B-2 is
capable of all-altitude attack missions up to 50,000 feet (15,000 m), with a
range of more than 6,000 nautical miles (6,900 mi; 11,000 km) on internal fuel
and over 10,000 nautical miles (12,000 mi; 19,000 km) with one midair
refueling. It entered service in 1997 as the second aircraft designed to have
advanced stealth technology after the Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk attack aircraft.
Though designed originally as primarily a nuclear bomber, the B-2 was first
used in combat, dropping conventional, non-nuclear ordnance in the Kosovo War
in 1999. It later served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Quick Facts:
Top speed:
1,010 km/h
Wingspan: 52
m
Length: 21 m
Range:
11,100 km
Weight:
71,700 kg
Unit cost:
737,000,000–737,000,000 USD (1997)
Manufacturers:
Northrop Corporation, Northrop Grumman
No comments:
Post a Comment