![]() And the B-2 will still be able to penetrate deep into enemy airspace.I have dragged this one off the shelf of perpetual procrastination so it can be finished for next years Melbourne Model Expo (my club's display needs it - can't say any more than that for now -top secret, hush hush, secret squirrel stuff sorry - just like the real plane was in the 90's) The B-2, along with the B-1, and B-52 will “deliver the mail” in combat when called upon. Unfortunately, the bomber was not able to sneak past intrepid viewers of Google Earth recently, but that was just a minor hiccup. The idea is to fly low and use the stealth characteristics to sneak into combat theaters. It can fly up to 6,000 nautical miles without re-fueling which gives it global reach. In 2018, it carried the upgraded B61-12 nuclear bomb. The B-2 can deploy up to sixteen B-61 or B-83 nuclear gravity bombs on the rotating launchers inside its two weapons bays. In 2017, it also removed ISIS terrorists from the battlefield in Libya with GPS-guided bombs. Then Afghanistan and Iraq became a rich killing field for the B-2. During that conflict, it destroyed around 33-percent of all targets in the first eight weeks of fighting. It made its combat debut in the War in Kosovo by eliminating Serbian targets without resistance. Northrop Grumman introduced the B-2 and based it in Whiteman AFB in 1993 because the Russians and Chinese were creating a web of dangerous air defenses with new radars and improved fighter interceptors. The Enemy Evolved and the B-2 Responded in Combat This was 40 years after the experimental flying wings. The flying wing design saw no other development until the Air Force figured it would be the best way to get a stealth model into the air. By 1953, the entire flying wing program was retired after only 13 flights. In 1950, one of the experimental airplanes did a nosedive when the landing gear failed, and the prototype busted in two and was a complete loss. The Air Force has plans to use the flying wing until 2032 and gradually put them out to pasture after the B-21 Raider comes onto the scene in five or six years. But sightings are rare because there are only 20 in service. The B-2 sometimes makes appearances at air shows and even conducted a fly-over at the Super Bowl over Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida in January of 2021. Some Spectators Have Caught a Rare Glimpse Of course, we must keep in mind this is entirely dependent on how often Google Earth updates its maps. They could count the number of take-offs, for example, and receive an early warning on intercontinental missions as well as training sorties. Adversaries have noticed and could possibly use Google Earth to show B-2s taking off from Whiteman AFB in the future. This is, after all, the most expensive and advanced bomber in the Air Force’s arsenal. It’s probably not fair to criticize the bomber’s stealth signature based on one incident on Google Earth, but it is alarming that an app available to anyone with Internet service can track the B-2. But is there actually a real problem here or not? Here is a quick rundown of the B-2s history and some very key facts about this one-of-a-kind bomber.ī-2: Is the Sighting on Google Earth a Showstopper? The enterprising person who used Google Earth cheekily referred to the B-2 as conducting a “ crop dusting mission” and you can see the agricultural scene below the bomber in the video here. ![]() ![]() This photo was captured by Google Earth, and it has some critics wondering why the stealth technology on the B-2 didn’t hide it better. B-2 Stealth Bomber – All of the Facts You Don’t Know and the Latest Controversy: Civilians have pounced on a recent stilled image of a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber that appeared over a farm in Missouri close to Whiteman Air Force Base. ![]()
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