X-47B Batwinged Drone Takes Flight

[M.D. Holloway]

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – A robotic, bat-winged bomber designed to take off from a US aircraft carrier has passed its first test in a debut flight in California, the US Navy said.

The X-47B jet, which looks like a smaller version of the B-2 stealth bomber, stayed in the air for 29 minutes and climbed to 5,000 feet in a test flight on Friday at Edwards Air Force Base, according to the Navy and defense contractor Northrop Grumman.

Military leaders see the plane as part of a new generation of drones that would be able to evade radar and fly at much faster speeds than the current fleet of propeller-driven Predators and Reapers used in the war in Afghanistan.

"Today we got a glimpse towards the future as the Navy?s first-ever tailless, jet-powered unmanned aircraft took to the skies," Captain Jaime Engdahl, a program manager for the warplane, said in a statement.

Northrop is building the navy bomber under a $636 million contract awarded in 2007.

With no pilot on board, the experimental aircraft was operated by a joint Navy and Northrop team on the ground.

The plane "flew a racetrack pattern over the dry lakebed with standard-rate turns," the Navy said.

It will be years before the X-47B joins the naval air fleet, with the first tests on a carrier scheduled for 2013, Northrop said in a release.


Dynamic Tests Validate Design and Structural Integrity of X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System for Carrier Operations
(Source: Northrop Grumman; issued July 29, 2009)

SAN DIEGO --- Northrop Grumman Corporation recently completed a series of static and dynamic proof load tests to validate the design and structural integrity of the U.S. Navy's first X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) for aircraft carrier launches, recoveries and at-sea operations under the UCAS Carrier Demonstration (UCAS-D) program.

"Arrested landings, catapult launches, high winds, pitching deck, subsonic speeds, you name it - the operating environment of the carrier air wing is unforgiving," said Scott Winship, vice president and program manager of the Navy UCAS program for Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems sector. "The X-47B was built for these conditions, and as the results of the rigorous proof test show, the design of the aircraft is structurally sound for all aspects of carrier operations."

Conducted over a two-month period with NAVAIR involvement and oversight, the first X-47B underwent a series of progressive structural, functional proof and calibration tests to verify the integrity of all flight control surfaces, major structural load paths, main landing gear structure and tailhook assembly.

According to Northrop Grumman's air vehicle integrated product team lead, Tom Soard, "Past experience in the Navy shows these tests are the only way to verify the design and the tools used to estimate the load paths. This test proved that our latest finite element models are indeed very accurate. The results match our predictions very well."

To conduct the tests, over 200 electro-hydraulic assemblies were attached to the major components of the X-47B. Pressure was applied to simulate aircraft flight conditions. Each test condition was reviewed and the results approved by the X-47B airframe team before the next series of tests were initiated. Reported results confirm that the X-47B meets the design requirements outlined by the U.S. Navy for a jet-powered, fighter-sized aircraft to demonstrate autonomous launches and recoveries from a carrier.

The X-47B aircraft, now designated with Navy Bureau Number 168063, will undergo engine integration and taxi tests through the fall in preparation for first flight and carrier trials. The second aircraft is currently being assembled and will begin proof load tests later this year.

On schedule and cost, the Northrop Grumman UCAS-D program is committed to maturing critical technologies, reducing unmanned air system carrier integration risks and providing necessary information to the U.S. Navy for a potential follow-on acquisition in support of the Naval Aviation Master Plan. The period of performance for the UCAS-D contract is through 2013.

[Heel n Toe]

That might be for real, but it sure looks Photoshopped.

[quicksix]

Pretty sure they are all chopped. The first one looks like he is headed aft during a launch/recovery cycle, dont see any yellow shirts.

[kevin993]

They had a phototype at the Mirimar air show in 2004, so nice to see it flying.

[Seahawk]

Long way to go...

[slodave]

It's a Photoshop.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

No doubt. What's with the lighting phongs on the tires? That looks all wrong. Color balance is off, shading looks off, etc.

[9dreizig]

Guys of course it's chopped it just had it's first flight, didn't land on a carrier!!
One thing is for sure, the last fighter pilot has already been born!

[kevin993]

Agreed that the pics above are photoshop. For Northrom Grumman pics and first flight video, go here:

Northrop Grumman-built U.S. Navy X-47B Unmanned Combat Aircraft Completes Historic First Flight (NYSE:NOC)