The X-47B first flew in 2011 at Edwards Air Force Base in California, it began as a project for DARPA's J-UCAS program but soon adopted the goal of becoming a carrier based unmanned air craft and is now part of the United States Navy Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstration program. The Northrop Grumman X-47B is similar to the Boeing X-45, the original concept design being the X-47A Pegasus that first flew in 2003.
The aircraft is 38.2 ft in length and has a wingspan of 62.1 ft extended/30.9 ft folded. Its height is 10.4 ft with a maximum takeoff weight of 44,567 lb (empty weight of 14,000 lb). In 2000 the Navy gave contracts of $2 million to both Boeing and Northrop Grumman for a 15-month concept-exploration, with a specific goal in mind. The concept had to take into account the corrosive saltwater environment, launch and recovery on deck, integration with command and control systems, and operation in an aircraft carrier's high-electromagnetic-interference environment, as well as the ability to perform reconnaissance missions.
 |
| Photo courtesy of en.wikipedia.org |
May 2012, at Patuxent River, AV-1 began high-intensity electromagnetic interference testing to ascertain its compatibility with planned electronic warfare systems. The project was started out funded under a US$635.8-million contract awarded by the Navy in 2007. However, by January 2012, the X-47B's total program cost had grown to an estimated $813 million.
Nice post. It's never bad to know things like this.
ReplyDeleteLOve learning mroe about htis stealth planes, but the costs are just ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteThere are so much better ways, to throw away money