Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 That last preacher sure looked like him but I can't find any reference at all. BTW, I didn't know we ever built a jet powered flying wing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 The Northrop YB-49 was a prototype jet-powered heavy bomber developed by Northrop Corporation shortly after World War II for service with the U.S. Air Force. The YB-49 featured a flying wing design and was a turbojet-powered development of the earlier, piston-engined Northrop XB-35 and YB-35. The two YB-49s actually built were both converted YB-35 test aircraft. The YB-49 never entered production, being passed over in favor of the more conventional Convair B-36 piston-driven design. Design work performed in the development of the YB-35 and YB-49 nonetheless proved to be valuable to Northrop decades later in the eventual development of the B-2 stealth bomber, which entered service in the early 1990s. Had to wait a few decades for a better better flight control computer to overcome the inherent instability of the design, but the B-2 Spirit is proof that a flying wing is possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 Here's another that was really cool! I got to watch it fly at Chino... sadly, it crashed about a month after this flight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waxahachie Kid #17017 L Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 Billy survived on the crackers his dad invented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 9 minutes ago, Waxahachie Kid #17017 L said: He survived on the crackers his dad invented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 They must have been tricky to fly without computer assist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted October 20, 2021 Author Share Posted October 20, 2021 12 hours ago, Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 said: Here's another that was really cool! I got to watch it fly at Chino... sadly, it crashed about a month after this flight. Back when I lived in Ontario and was trying to earn a living in aerospace jobs I met a dozen or so guys who volunteered to help in the restoration of that little plane.....and I do mean little. Some had been working on it for years and I was very happy to find thad finally flown. I wasn't there to see that, but I always liked the concept. Sorryto find out it crashed. Was anyone injured and can it be salvaged again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abilene Slim SASS 81783 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 4 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said: Back when I lived in Ontario and was trying to earn a living in aerospace jobs I met a dozen or so guys who volunteered to help in the restoration of that little plane.....and I do mean little. Some had been working on it for years and I was very happy to find thad finally flown. I wasn't there to see that, but I always liked the concept. Sorryto find out it crashed. Was anyone injured and can it be salvaged again? Totally destroyed and pilot killed too. Links below. The second link supports the author's speculation in the article. https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/27808/northrop-n-9m-flying-wing-crashed-after-doing-a-barrel-roll-according-to-ntsb-report https://www.accidents.app/summaries/accident/20190422X61451 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 Posted October 20, 2021 Share Posted October 20, 2021 There was virtually nothing left. Very sad... The picture brings to mind the remains of a P-51 I once came across near the Mendocino National Forest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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