Thanks for watching everyone! If you enjoyed the video, please give it a thumbs up. And feel free to subscribe as I have many more videos coming over the next few months... X-15, F-22, YF-23, the first 747/727/737, B-17, B-29, B-36, B-47, XB-70, Hughes H-4 Hercules, YF-12, Space Shuttle Orbiter and more... (footage is already captured so I just need to edit it!)
Great series Paul. Planning a trip to Dayton in a couple of years and wondering how long you recommend i set aside for the museum. Is 1 day enough? Cheers
Can you make videos? Not of anything inside of course but of your experience snd stories. I've always been infatuated with everything about this jet and want to know anything about it and the awesome pilot to fly them. Hope you see this and may considsr starting up a YT channel of your own about the B-2 bomber. You'll grow a following pretty quickly. Cheers and thanks for your service.🇺🇲
The B2, F117A, B1-B and the SR-71 design still blow my mind today. I was but a wee nipper when the aircraft were unveiled (SR-71) and they just look so incredible to this day. The amazing thing is, to the engineers and designers, when these aircraft enter service, they're immediately old news as the next gen is already in development.
I got to see this particular aircraft when it first arrived at the museum. The right wing was still broken and all of the wing leading edges had been removed as they were considered classified. The museum staff did an amazing job fabricating the missing parts and putting it back together for display.
Hate to ruin it for everyone but this isnt a real B2 its a fake painted scale model used for stress testing. None of the avionics, engines or stealth tech is on this piece. Per museum curator the only part of the plane that is real is the front nose gear. There would be no point in having an operational 2 billion dollar aircraft on a museum display.
@@AirzGamingTTV what was on the test article was not disclosed. The "body" which includes the wings and "fuselage" were part of the test article because it was built to find the failure point. Since any structure inside the skin was classified, and I have seen no public information about the internal structure, we don't know about what else was included. For sure they didn't put in expensive components like the engined, electronics. BTW Northrop built another test article nicknamed the Iron bird. It had no skin. It a full cockpit, control surfaces and everything required to fly the B2 except the engines. It was used to test how everything worked when plugged together. The cockpit was a flight simulator. I had the privilege to fly it for a few minutes.
Dang, I remember the day B-2 was unveiled to the public. I was 8 at the time and totally in awe. Still looks as amazing as ever. I've got to say the B-21has alot to live up to!
In fact we cannot say anything less about a lot of other aircraft, just thinking about the B36 for example at the time when it was designed and developed...
Uhhh great, this video will be awsome. I cant wait to get a better feeling for the size of the B2-Spirit. I will just grab a quick coffee and enjoy this before the family wakes up. Aren`t these the best minutes of the day?
I live 50 miles west of Whiteman AFB and see these flying over the house often. I think we are on the flight path to one of the runway approaches. It surprises me how quiet they are even when low to the ground. Sitting in the house they sound similar to the HVAC turning on .
That place would be my Mecca! Not just the B-2 but so many other phenomenal aircraft I grew up trying to learn as much as possible about, some of which I saw in the background in this! The YF-12 and the Valkyrie just blow my mind! To see them in person must be such a surreal experience!
B2 was the first stealth plane to be designed with the benefit of modern computers. The older mainframes they used for the F117 weren't powerful enough to model curved surfaces, so they were forced to use flat angled facets instead. In comparison, the B2 is so astonishingly smooth it looks like they hand shaped it out of wet modeling clay. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to machine all those curved panels so they perfectly matched with no gaps big enough for a radar beam to fit into. Your $1 billion at work, I suppose.
The plane that truly gets your attention at the USAF Museum is the B-36. The XB-70 is amazing but you're able to get closer to the B-36 and see it from above.
Let me tell you why the B-2 is my forever favorite military plane. When I was 13 my father was a Chaplin at Whiteman AFB. He had a buddy that ran the flight simulator for the B-2 training. My younger brother and I were fortunate enough to be allowed to "fly" in this gigantic room-sized box on a hydraulic platform. The trainer boarded with each of us one at a time. Sitting at the pilot seat, I got to taxi to the runway, fly a takeoff, refuel off a KC-10, bombing of Whiteman AFB (no kidding lol), and finally a landing. Talk about a unique childhood experience. Now, post 9/11, I think it would be tough to have something like that happen for another couple lucky kids.
@@pbdye1607 oh I am sure it was something like that. Just a fun afternoon so I am positive no secrets were given to this 12 year old (at the time) haha.
@@juniorballs6025 for real!! My brother, today, is in the military flying drones. To say we were impacted by that experience is an understatement. Totally awesome 🙂
Wow! I went to the Airforce Museum just 2 days ago and saw this B2! All of the planes I saw were a lottt bigger than what I imagined. Walked around for like 5 hours in that museum. Very fun experience, I got some of the tokens too, and an F16 shirt. Got to walk around in some presidential aircraft too, like the VC-137C that JFK used.
Back in 2018, during my senior year of high school. I had the chance to see them in person at Whiteman AFB. It was so amazing, you were spot on when you said its bigger than it seems. It is a massive wide aircraft. Surprisingly though the inside is vary cramped. I was able to sit in the cockpit and it is a tight fit for a 5'10 highschooler. They had just enough room for the stairs going in, the cockpit, a toilet and a microwave. It was such a wonderful experience seeing it in person. And an F16 buzzed the runway for us.
I was at Edwards Air Force Base when the B-2 moved from Plant 42 in Palmdale, California to Edwards. I still have my letter that was carried in the bomb bay during this maiden flight.
I live in San Diego (Poway)... I see f22s and f18s flying around ALL DAY. Nothrop, Lockheed, Gen Atomics, and Gen Dynamics are within walking distance; but, I've NEVER seen anything as awesome as THIS. The B2 Spirit is truly terrifying.
I was a crew member on F-4C's back in the mid-60's, I would love to have crewed one of these incredible birds ! They are a beautiful example of American ingenuity and sophisticated design. Thanks for this walkabout !
I worked for Northrop Grumman 1989-1998 on the B2 Stealth Program in Pico Rivera, California, as a DBA; even got told not to sit on the Cray used for flight test analysis. Installed a lot of Oracle on various servers for different applications. Got to see one up close (25 feet away) in Palmdale and made a few visits to Edwards for IT support (had a great Solaris laptop we used when doing IT support at different locations) Quite an aircraft!
"even got told not to sit on the Cray used for flight test analysis" But those things were made for sitting on (if an X-MP or Y-MP, idiots designed the Cray-2 in between without seating), they even had foam padding for the butts!
I like what you're doing straight forward information. Subscribed. Out camping in the Owens Valley Calif. saw a B-2 fly directly above me very high in the sky leaving a contrail, early in the morning the sun hasn't come up above the mountains yet, it turned east going away from me then turned south, it lit up like a UFO with a contrail, I said to myself it's not so stealthy now. I took a pixelated zoomed in shot of it. Makes me wonder why it lit up like that.
I was here many many years ago (when I was a kid), and yeah it's amazing. Probably even better. I've seen that XB-70 in person and that's another huge aircraft.
I've been there many times since I was a kid, I have my own kids now and have taken them a few times. Luckily it is just a little over an hour drive for me. You should absolutely go if you can.
Next time you’re in the states, you should check out the Evergreen museum in McMinnville, OR. The home of the Spruce Goose, another Blackbird, 2 747s (one of which is on the roof of the campus water park) and a Titan II rocket among other space age displays.
Very nice tour. Subscribed. We are lucky in the UK that Spirits, Buffs and Lancers visit one location (RAF Fairford) I have quite a few videos of them in action on my site.
Fascinating and interesting commentary and video footage on topics such as "continuous curvature" and the way the aircraft controls yaw... without compromising its "stealth". With the state of the world at the moment we need technologically superior aircraft for national defence and offence. Well done Paul.
I am just down the road in Cincinnati, and try to make it up there at least twice a year. It may no be a big change, but it seems like there is something new each time.
Everything I say is in the public domain. The B2 at the museum is a test article and never had the ability to fly. It was used in destructive testing. The external mend plates are there to hold the broken off wing in place. The only part of the test article that flew is the "Fire and Ice" landing gear door. It was removed after hot and cold testing for analysis and given to the museum separately from the test article. Many parts of the aircraft were built at the museum as the test article did not come with all the parts. The heat tiles for the engine are represented by paint applied by the museum. Anyone who had seen a B2 up close will see the differences between the museum parts and the real thing. The docents will tell you which items are museum built. While I don't know this for sure I suspect that the following are museum built: -Air speed measurement device -cockpit and it's windshield -leading edge (which isn't the same shape as the real thing) -Radar absorbing paint is simulated with normal paint As to the cost, if one takes the whole program cost and divides by the number of flying aircraft built, your number is about correct. The cost to build one more was about $500million since all the research and tooling costs were done. The reason for the high program cost is that the development program included as much development as had been performed since the Wright Brothers. Except for some fastners inside and some other small items inside everything was new, except the RAM which had been developed earlier, but on the B2 is improved. On the high maintenance cost , Northrop developed a corn husk blasting method to remove RAM and recycle it. Northrop also developed the 1st system that used computer aided design and no paper blue prints. Northrop also used computer modeling of radar reflections that advanced that practice significantly. The B2 had when built the most advanced fly by wire system in the world. This overcame the problems of bombing platform stability attributed to the YB-49. A great deal of effort went into the buried engines as it was a conflict between radar stealth and getting enough air to the engines.
Thanks for the info - I definitely noticed that the wing leading edges didn’t look right. I’m guessing the shape would be almost impossible for a museum to fabricate on their own, but they did a surprisingly good job still.
@@EstorilEm the leading edge is undoubtedly not made from the same materials as the real thing. Another issue for the museum substitute is how to attach the fake leading edge as the test article probably didn't come with the the fastening points. The museum doesn't have an unlimited budget to fabricate the very large part. If I had an unlimited budget, I would make the fake out of balsa wood and simply carve it shape. Then the correct paint color would make it look good. But the museum did a fantastic job of preserving important history. I was also surprised (and appreciated) that I could walk up to the test article at the museum. It is a lot closer than ever got at Northrop with the flying B2 Spirts.
I really enjoyed the video you presented some information that most people neglect to do like the pre-engine air intakes to cool the exhaust and the differential thrust produced by the engines to aid in steering the aircraft. Something I didn't know about and has never heard mentioned in any of the other talks about the B-2 I've seen.
Air planes are so cool and fascinating and I hope to fly / build many aircraft both in super sonic and not, this is such a fun topic 🙀🤩 and thanks to u for filming this too!🥰
You’ve done a great job presenting this beautiful aircraft. One of the greatest unexpected plane spotting experience I’ve ever had was seeing this aircraft fly over while I was attending the NFL experience before the super bowl many years ago in Tampa. I had no idea they were going to do the fly over and then suddenly there it was.
Good one Paul. Back in the 90’s, as a trucker, I made a delivery to Whiteman AFB in Missouri. I got to see these bombers, under open covers on the tarmac. I assume the covers were to protect them from spy satellites. This was post Cold War but, I think they took security seriously and I did not dare take any pictures. Still, amazing planes. Thanks for the post. Keep em coming
They’re docks, the jet isn’t designed to be left out in the elements all day every day. Plus consider that while in a dock the aircraft is secured in its own “Vault” and as long as the doors remain closed/locked there isn’t a need to have a “Babysitter” to stick with the jet. Not to mention every dock is built to streamline any maintenance (we averaged about 20 man hours per flight hours during my time) with external “pit” power and cooling air for powerups w/o engines- as well as piping to make refueling easier by having a way to refuel directly from within the dock.
Yeah, tooling is a fixed cost, so building a small number sometimes costs you a lot more in the long run. not to mention fewer spare parts at the inevitable end-of-life cycle.
Hey mate, great insight into one of the worlds most successful bombers to date and the fact that this bird has been flying for quite some time is a testament to her (or his) design. Safe travels.
I felt my eyes watering when you said the cost! Wow!! We could get half the Collins Class Submarine fleet (3) for 1 of these!! Cost the same to maintain it too!! 😭 (I digress!!) Amazing footage of the B-2! I can't believe how big it is and that it's so 'flat'!! You wouldn't have thought it could fly, let alone carry a payload of bombs/missiles! Great stuff!
For some reason I had in my head until now that it had 2 engines. It actually makes sense to use 4 as they can have smaller diameter than equivalent 2 keep the cross section thinner.
Yeah I also thought that they had two engines also , yeah makes sense to use four, what a beautiful plane , I sure hope that they build all the B21’s and don’t reduce the allotment, we need all 100 or more for the future unless China wants to have an treaty to limit the number of bombers cause right now they are trying to out build us.
Love this aircraft. I've had the pleasure of going inside the cockpit because my father was the commander of the the maintenance crew out of Whiteman. Nothing is better than being at Arrowhead stadium watching one of these fly over.
Great video Paul! I love swing aircraft museum tours and the B2 Spirit is my favorite stealth jet! LOVE IT! ❤️ Cheers 🥂 Caleb’s Aviation Also I just realized that you’re at the National Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio right?? Talk about karma! I was going to visit that museum today and it would’ve been awesome to run in to one of my favorite TH-camr’s ever!! Unfortunately I had a last minute schedule conflict!!! Very disappointed indeed! 😢
Great to see! Incredible that it was designed going on 30 years ago. I’ve heard similar info about the susceptibility of the stealthy surface coatings on the F-22 Raptor, to the point where it is detrimental to expose the aircraft to rain.
Actually, the B2 LOA/RCS coatings can be exposed to rain. The reasons cannot be spoken about, as to why some believe they could not be exposed to rain. They could with no problem, but there was another problem that was corrected in a quick amount of time, that factored into not flying around rain or lightning and thunderstorms. Rather than correct a myth, it worked as a deterrent to the real reason, which like I said was corrected quickly going way back to 1996. One would not want to bomber That couldn't fly in the rain. But that is a case of mistaken information, which worked to our advantage, for our potential enemies thinking it could not.
That was one of the six test vehicles they had at Edwards Air Force Base. That one was used for climatic testing. Why it was called fire and ice. The hot deck aft of the engine exhaust is made out of solid titanium.
So, you have been to my favorite museum. And given special permissions to enter areas off limits to the general public. Awesome! How much time did you spend at and in the museum? It takes considerable time, days in fact to properly absorb all there is. Interesting sideline to the B2, Jack Northrup was said to have been handed a model of the aircraft and told of it's existence shortly before his death.
Seeing these currently advanced aircraft always makes me wonder what's currently flying that we don't know about yet. We don't know of any fully classified aircraft that were developed after then F22 in the 90's. Of course since the 90's computing and resulting materials and manufacturing technology accelerated exponentially and made possible to design and fly what may be close close to unimaginable. We can safely bet on hypersonic flight at least, and even better stealth. There were glimpses of chrome like F22s being tested, and considering electo color changing paint is available for cars, it's possible close to visible invisible may be flying as well.
There is considerable value to being sneaky. Can't hit what you can't see. Granted, you may receive a random round, "to whom it may be addressed ", but what are you going to do?
My grandfather (who actually turned 91 years old today) built this plane in complete secrecy. He mentioned there were to be a lot of B-2's built, but when the plan was changed to build less, the workers had to become airforce certified to work on multiple components since they would no longer be hiring more workers. The security clearance meant that not many people would have the privilege to build it, let alone ever speak of it. He also helped build the B-1. He gave me more information, but considering the secrecy, I'll hesitate to mention anything further.
It has got to be a pretty difficult thing to manage ones contrails. I assume they must start with as much meteorological data as they can get to create to create a flight plan that takes advantage of certain temperatures and moisture at specific altitudes en route to the target . It probably just comes down to going up or down as the need arises . I have seen many an airliner create thick contrails over a long distance then as if they shut down the engines they just dissapear only to pick back up again in earnest 20 miles later . My point is the upper atmosphere is a fickle undulating mix of air masses doing whatever they want to and keeping that aircraft free of contrails must make up a large part of somebody's workload in the B-2 cockpit.
Thanks for watching everyone! If you enjoyed the video, please give it a thumbs up. And feel free to subscribe as I have many more videos coming over the next few months... X-15, F-22, YF-23, the first 747/727/737, B-17, B-29, B-36, B-47, XB-70, Hughes H-4 Hercules, YF-12, Space Shuttle Orbiter and more... (footage is already captured so I just need to edit it!)
Could you please do the Douglas X-3? my grandfather worked on it and I am trying to build a model!
@@TheCodyLaxton hi mate, I'm afraid I am now back in Australia and didn't record any footage of the X-3 but maybe some time in the future :)
@@PaulStewartAviation yes please do!
@Paul Stewart
*Thank you Paul, you did an excellent job detailing the technological marvel and beauty that is the B2 Spirit!*
Great series Paul. Planning a trip to Dayton in a couple of years and wondering how long you recommend i set aside for the museum. Is 1 day enough? Cheers
I flew these jets for over 11 years . Wonderful memories
Cool. How similar was this test version to the real thing?
What's your Spirit number?
Whadda lucky duck!
Can you make videos? Not of anything inside of course but of your experience snd stories. I've always been infatuated with everything about this jet and want to know anything about it and the awesome pilot to fly them. Hope you see this and may considsr starting up a YT channel of your own about the B-2 bomber. You'll grow a following pretty quickly. Cheers and thanks for your service.🇺🇲
@@Chief305 The inside of the cockpit actually isn't classified if/when the MFDs are powered off. THAT'S where all the truly classified shit is.
The B2, F117A, B1-B and the SR-71 design still blow my mind today. I was but a wee nipper when the aircraft were unveiled (SR-71) and they just look so incredible to this day.
The amazing thing is, to the engineers and designers, when these aircraft enter service, they're immediately old news as the next gen is already in development.
I got to see this particular aircraft when it first arrived at the museum. The right wing was still broken and all of the wing leading edges had been removed as they were considered classified. The museum staff did an amazing job fabricating the missing parts and putting it back together for display.
The test article did not come with many parts of a flying aircraft. The leading edge was never attached
I was lucky enough to pilot it in. Good memory. 💪🏽
@@TheGarlicMan What are they like to fly?
Hate to ruin it for everyone but this isnt a real B2 its a fake painted scale model used for stress testing. None of the avionics, engines or stealth tech is on this piece. Per museum curator the only part of the plane that is real is the front nose gear.
There would be no point in having an operational 2 billion dollar aircraft on a museum display.
@@AirzGamingTTV what was on the test article was not disclosed. The "body" which includes the wings and "fuselage" were part of the test article because it was built to find the failure point. Since any structure inside the skin was classified, and I have seen no public information about the internal structure, we don't know about what else was included. For sure they didn't put in expensive components like the engined, electronics.
BTW Northrop built another test article nicknamed the Iron bird. It had no skin. It a full cockpit, control surfaces and everything required to fly the B2 except the engines. It was used to test how everything worked when plugged together. The cockpit was a flight simulator. I had the privilege to fly it for a few minutes.
Dang, I remember the day B-2 was unveiled to the public. I was 8 at the time and totally in awe. Still looks as amazing as ever. I've got to say the B-21has alot to live up to!
Yes what an experience! The B-21 will be the first new aircraft launch that I'll be watching live and can't wait
The amount of work, time and brains put into this Aircraft is absolutely mindblowing and insane.
Yes indeed.
Almost a replica of the Horten 229
Same could be said about the Concorde in the 70s. It's amazing what humans can achieve with a clear goal in mind.
Not nearly as mindblowing and insane as the amount of taxpayer money it cost I guess.
In fact we cannot say anything less about a lot of other aircraft, just thinking about the B36 for example at the time when it was designed and developed...
That museum is amazing. I went there in 2017 and I was blown away by just how big and diverse it is. The Air Force did a great job putting it together
Agreed. So much to see.
Best part of that museum is that its free. Really a great visit if you like history, military or aviation.
I fully agree! It's incredible and does require at least 2 days to see
Uhhh great, this video will be awsome. I cant wait to get a better feeling for the size of the B2-Spirit. I will just grab a quick coffee and enjoy this before the family wakes up. Aren`t these the best minutes of the day?
I live 50 miles west of Whiteman AFB and see these flying over the house often. I think we are on the flight path to one of the runway approaches. It surprises me how quiet they are even when low to the ground. Sitting in the house they sound similar to the HVAC turning on .
That place would be my Mecca! Not just the B-2 but so many other phenomenal aircraft I grew up trying to learn as much as possible about, some of which I saw in the background in this! The YF-12 and the Valkyrie just blow my mind! To see them in person must be such a surreal experience!
B2 was the first stealth plane to be designed with the benefit of modern computers. The older mainframes they used for the F117 weren't powerful enough to model curved surfaces, so they were forced to use flat angled facets instead. In comparison, the B2 is so astonishingly smooth it looks like they hand shaped it out of wet modeling clay. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to machine all those curved panels so they perfectly matched with no gaps big enough for a radar beam to fit into. Your $1 billion at work, I suppose.
When you say "modern" you must mean supercomputers from the late 70s and early 80's, which by today's standards had less power than the average PC.
@@white-dragon4424 indeed
The B2 Spirit is one menacing plane, absolutely amazing. So cool to see the Xb-70 Valkyrie in there as well. awesome!!
The plane that truly gets your attention at the USAF Museum is the B-36. The XB-70 is amazing but you're able to get closer to the B-36 and see it from above.
Let me tell you why the B-2 is my forever favorite military plane. When I was 13 my father was a Chaplin at Whiteman AFB. He had a buddy that ran the flight simulator for the B-2 training. My younger brother and I were fortunate enough to be allowed to "fly" in this gigantic room-sized box on a hydraulic platform. The trainer boarded with each of us one at a time. Sitting at the pilot seat, I got to taxi to the runway, fly a takeoff, refuel off a KC-10, bombing of Whiteman AFB (no kidding lol), and finally a landing. Talk about a unique childhood experience. Now, post 9/11, I think it would be tough to have something like that happen for another couple lucky kids.
I'm guessing the bombing was with dumb bombs because simulating a nuclear release - even with fake codes... >.>
@@pbdye1607 oh I am sure it was something like that. Just a fun afternoon so I am positive no secrets were given to this 12 year old (at the time) haha.
Wow...that must've been absolutely amazing 😲
The ultimate video game at the time of life you enjoy it the most. Awesome 😎👍
@@juniorballs6025 for real!! My brother, today, is in the military flying drones. To say we were impacted by that experience is an understatement. Totally awesome 🙂
very good video about northrop grummans b 2 spirit strategic bomber.
Stopped there many years ago specifically to see the XB-70, looks like I need to make another trip to see the B-2! Thanks for the video.
Wow! I went to the Airforce Museum just 2 days ago and saw this B2! All of the planes I saw were a lottt bigger than what I imagined. Walked around for like 5 hours in that museum. Very fun experience, I got some of the tokens too, and an F16 shirt. Got to walk around in some presidential aircraft too, like the VC-137C that JFK used.
It's great, isn't it?!
Back in 2018, during my senior year of high school. I had the chance to see them in person at Whiteman AFB. It was so amazing, you were spot on when you said its bigger than it seems. It is a massive wide aircraft.
Surprisingly though the inside is vary cramped. I was able to sit in the cockpit and it is a tight fit for a 5'10 highschooler. They had just enough room for the stairs going in, the cockpit, a toilet and a microwave.
It was such a wonderful experience seeing it in person. And an F16 buzzed the runway for us.
He is a very good speech about our new B21 , and give us a good knowledge ! Thanks 👍👏👏👏👏👏💐💐💐
Went here for Vacation back in August, loved the amount of awesome Aircraft the museum has!
Couldn't agree more!
I was there in August too! Amazing place.
Glad you are out and about again Paul
the quality and attention to detail with which the B-2 was constructed is just astonishing.
It’s sad 2 think though this is used four the purpose of killing people..
I was at Edwards Air Force Base when the B-2 moved from Plant 42 in Palmdale, California to Edwards. I still have my letter that was carried in the bomb bay during this maiden flight.
I live in San Diego (Poway)... I see f22s and f18s flying around ALL DAY. Nothrop, Lockheed, Gen Atomics, and Gen Dynamics are within walking distance; but, I've NEVER seen anything as awesome as THIS. The B2 Spirit is truly terrifying.
Great seeing it up close. The true size of it becomes evident as you walk along the wing! Thanks Paul!
Glad you enjoyed it
No. The stealth jab at the beginning had me. Not bad!
Love this airframe, did 4 years at Whiteman and many tours of the B2, got to fly the simulator twice. Awesome 👌
What a cool plane! Who else is here waiting to see the new B-21?!
I was a crew member on F-4C's back in the mid-60's, I would love to have crewed one of these incredible birds ! They are a beautiful example of American ingenuity and sophisticated design. Thanks for this walkabout !
You're welcome! What did you do on the F-4s? I am working on a F-4 video and would love to have someone proof read what I say.
Glad to see you back in the states.
Really cool that you went to this museum, looking forward to the next vid!
I worked for Northrop Grumman 1989-1998 on the B2 Stealth Program in Pico Rivera, California, as a DBA; even got told not to sit on the Cray used for flight test analysis. Installed a lot of Oracle on various servers for different applications. Got to see one up close (25 feet away) in Palmdale and made a few visits to Edwards for IT support (had a great Solaris laptop we used when doing IT support at different locations)
Quite an aircraft!
"even got told not to sit on the Cray used for flight test analysis"
But those things were made for sitting on (if an X-MP or Y-MP, idiots designed the Cray-2 in between without seating), they even had foam padding for the butts!
MiniMe, stop humping the supercomputer!
The ordnance on display next to the B-2 are, from left to right: B-83 "strategic," B-62 "tactical" nuclear gravity bombs and GBU-31 2000 lbs JDAM.
Love the Dayton AF Museum... so cool........ seeing the XB-70 up close is..........unreal.
I love that museum !! I have my picture taken with that very aircraft!! I could live in the museum with all the history and aircraft!! Awesome Place!!
I like what you're doing straight forward information. Subscribed. Out camping in the Owens Valley Calif. saw a B-2 fly directly above me very high in the sky leaving a contrail, early in the morning the sun hasn't come up above the mountains yet, it turned east going away from me then turned south, it lit up like a UFO with a contrail, I said to myself it's not so stealthy now. I took a pixelated zoomed in shot of it. Makes me wonder why it lit up like that.
This museum looks incredible!
Definitely going on my bucket list.
It really is!
I was here many many years ago (when I was a kid), and yeah it's amazing. Probably even better. I've seen that XB-70 in person and that's another huge aircraft.
I've been there many times since I was a kid, I have my own kids now and have taken them a few times. Luckily it is just a little over an hour drive for me. You should absolutely go if you can.
And from what I remember it is free to get in! It is really worth it.
@@metaspark7260 yep free entry
Seen the B-2 "Spirit" fly overhead, along with 2 F-117 "Nighthawk" aircraft at Nellis AFB, Nevada... AWESOME Is An UNDERSTATEMENT!!!
Next time you’re in the states, you should check out the Evergreen museum in McMinnville, OR. The home of the Spruce Goose, another Blackbird, 2 747s (one of which is on the roof of the campus water park) and a Titan II rocket among other space age displays.
I’m literally visiting there today :)
Wow, Paul !!!
That is soooo cool !!!
Really interesting, too.
I look forward to watching the next video from your tour of this museum 😊
Very nice tour. Subscribed. We are lucky in the UK that Spirits, Buffs and Lancers visit one location (RAF Fairford) I have quite a few videos of them in action on my site.
Cheers I'll have a look. I hope to visit the UK and film more videos next year :)
@@PaulStewartAviation 👍
Fascinating and interesting commentary and video footage on topics such as "continuous curvature" and the way the aircraft controls yaw... without compromising its "stealth". With the state of the world at the moment we need technologically superior aircraft for national defence and offence. Well done Paul.
He said it's "fairly defenseless," but it's more accurate to say "it uses (classified) passive defense."
Thanks for all those interesting close up details 👍
Glad you enjoyed it
I am just down the road in Cincinnati, and try to make it up there at least twice a year. It may no be a big change, but it seems like there is something new each time.
Warren county representing here also lol
One of my A&P teachers was tasked with changing the engines in the B2 when in service. She said they did not use cold AC in the summer.
Everything I say is in the public domain. The B2 at the museum is a test article and never had the ability to fly. It was used in destructive testing. The external mend plates are there to hold the broken off wing in place.
The only part of the test article that flew is the "Fire and Ice" landing gear door. It was removed after hot and cold testing for analysis and given to the museum separately from the test article. Many parts of the aircraft were built at the museum as the test article did not come with all the parts. The heat tiles for the engine are represented by paint applied by the museum. Anyone who had seen a B2 up close will see the differences between the museum parts and the real thing. The docents will tell you which items are museum built.
While I don't know this for sure I suspect that the following are museum built:
-Air speed measurement device
-cockpit and it's windshield
-leading edge (which isn't the same shape as the real thing)
-Radar absorbing paint is simulated with normal paint
As to the cost, if one takes the whole program cost and divides by the number of flying aircraft built, your number is about correct. The cost to build one more was about $500million since all the research and tooling costs were done. The reason for the high program cost is that the development program included as much development as had been performed since the Wright Brothers. Except for some fastners inside and some other small items inside everything was new, except the RAM which had been developed earlier, but on the B2 is improved. On the high maintenance cost , Northrop developed a corn husk blasting method to remove RAM and recycle it. Northrop also developed the 1st system that used computer aided design and no paper blue prints. Northrop also used computer modeling of radar reflections that advanced that practice significantly. The B2 had when built the most advanced fly by wire system in the world. This overcame the problems of bombing platform stability attributed to the YB-49. A great deal of effort went into the buried engines as it was a conflict between radar stealth and getting enough air to the engines.
Thanks for the info - I definitely noticed that the wing leading edges didn’t look right. I’m guessing the shape would be almost impossible for a museum to fabricate on their own, but they did a surprisingly good job still.
@@EstorilEm the leading edge is undoubtedly not made from the same materials as the real thing. Another issue for the museum substitute is how to attach the fake leading edge as the test article probably didn't come with the the fastening points. The museum doesn't have an unlimited budget to fabricate the very large part. If I had an unlimited budget, I would make the fake out of balsa wood and simply carve it shape. Then the correct paint color would make it look good. But the museum did a fantastic job of preserving important history. I was also surprised (and appreciated) that I could walk up to the test article at the museum. It is a lot closer than ever got at Northrop with the flying B2 Spirts.
Thank you for this info, I was wondering why it looked so different from photos of real B2s
@@nivlacyevips it's real, it wasn't supplied with parts to make it fly, then they broke it
@@saltyroe3179 In my opinion, if it was never intended to fly, it’s not a real B2.
I would love to see a B2 sometime in my life!
I really enjoyed the video you presented some information that most people neglect to do like the pre-engine air intakes to cool the exhaust and the differential thrust produced by the engines to aid in steering the aircraft. Something I didn't know about and has never heard mentioned in any of the other talks about the B-2 I've seen.
I'm happy I actually got to watch that very interesting video. It was private when you first posted it but happy you resolved that issue
Yep fixed now :)
Air planes are so cool and fascinating and I hope to fly / build many aircraft both in super sonic and not, this is such a fun topic 🙀🤩 and thanks to u for filming this too!🥰
Love the videos. Can't wait until we see the Shuttle. Shame Buran is not available as I would give my right arm to see inside that amazing beast.
Beautiful looking machine 😮
You’ve done a great job presenting this beautiful aircraft. One of the greatest unexpected plane spotting experience I’ve ever had was seeing this aircraft fly over while I was attending the NFL experience before the super bowl many years ago in Tampa. I had no idea they were going to do the fly over and then suddenly there it was.
Glad you enjoyed it
Good one Paul. Back in the 90’s, as a trucker, I made a delivery to Whiteman AFB in Missouri. I got to see these bombers, under open covers on the tarmac. I assume the covers were to protect them from spy satellites. This was post Cold War but, I think they took security seriously and I did not dare take any pictures. Still, amazing planes. Thanks for the post. Keep em coming
They’re docks, the jet isn’t designed to be left out in the elements all day every day. Plus consider that while in a dock the aircraft is secured in its own “Vault” and as long as the doors remain closed/locked there isn’t a need to have a “Babysitter” to stick with the jet. Not to mention every dock is built to streamline any maintenance (we averaged about 20 man hours per flight hours during my time) with external “pit” power and cooling air for powerups w/o engines- as well as piping to make refueling easier by having a way to refuel directly from within the dock.
I just discoverd your channel and you are the best!
Welcome :)
This was absolutely fascinating Paul. Please keep these great videos coming!
Glad you enjoyed it! I’m working on the XB-70 video as we speak :)
@@PaulStewartAviation Cheers Paul; can’t wait to see it! Stay well and keep up the great work mate.
there was one piece of this B-2 that flew which was the nose gear door from another airframe. heard that the last time I was at the Museum
8:35 The B2 production number was cut from over 100 down to 20. That drove the price of each individual plane up dramatically.
Yeah, tooling is a fixed cost, so building a small number sometimes costs you a lot more in the long run. not to mention fewer spare parts at the inevitable end-of-life cycle.
Good point
@@DFX2KX Not just tooling but all the time and effort to design and engineer the plane too.
@@TheInsaneShecklador That is VERY true.Facilities, parts contracts, all that stuff isn't going to get much cheaper past a certain point.
Great vlog as always Paul ! The humor was acceptable 😂
Glad you enjoyed it
So beautiful. Thanks!
Looks flying saucer - ish love it!!!😊😊😊
Superb presentation. Thank you.
Hey mate, great insight into one of the worlds most successful bombers to date and the fact that this bird has been flying for quite some time is a testament to her (or his) design. Safe travels.
Definitely “his” - Jack Northrop’s brainchild.
Thanks Paul.. do more military aircraft sir.
Love the vid.
Definitely my favorite aircraft
Hi Paul very interesting video thank you
I felt my eyes watering when you said the cost! Wow!! We could get half the Collins Class Submarine fleet (3) for 1 of these!! Cost the same to maintain it too!! 😭 (I digress!!)
Amazing footage of the B-2! I can't believe how big it is and that it's so 'flat'!! You wouldn't have thought it could fly, let alone carry a payload of bombs/missiles!
Great stuff!
Fascinating video, Paul. BTW, the only total loss of a B-2, at Guam, was caused by moisture entering those skin-flush air-data sensors.
That's right....I definitely remember that video, too
Good Job & Have a Great Christmas 🎅👍
Thanks, you too!
this particular aircraft is just a test article you would never be able to get this close to a real one great video though been to the museum 4 times
Excellent video very informative great looking museum 👍👏
Glad you enjoyed it
Such a beauty.
Such a cool looking plane, most planes just look like flying machines, but this looks like a falcon in flight.
For some reason I had in my head until now that it had 2 engines. It actually makes sense to use 4 as they can have smaller diameter than equivalent 2 keep the cross section thinner.
Yeah I also thought that they had two engines also , yeah makes sense to use four, what a beautiful plane , I sure hope that they build all the B21’s and don’t reduce the allotment, we need all 100 or more for the future unless China wants to have an treaty to limit the number of bombers cause right now they are trying to out build us.
Love this aircraft. I've had the pleasure of going inside the cockpit because my father was the commander of the the maintenance crew out of Whiteman. Nothing is better than being at Arrowhead stadium watching one of these fly over.
Great video Paul! I love swing aircraft museum tours and the B2 Spirit is my favorite stealth jet!
LOVE IT! ❤️
Cheers 🥂
Caleb’s Aviation
Also I just realized that you’re at the National Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio right??
Talk about karma! I was going to visit that museum today and it would’ve been awesome to run in to one of my favorite TH-camr’s ever!! Unfortunately I had a last minute schedule conflict!!!
Very disappointed indeed! 😢
The spirit of b2 lives on to b21!
God bless USA. Forever. 🇺🇸
was wondering when this was going to be released as it was private a few hours ago! another great vid!
haha I made a mistake in the first version from a few hours ago. 72,000 tonnes was a little too heavy. :) This is version 2.
That was great, thank you for the tour
Glad you enjoyed it
Cool plane!... we love your channel ✈️
Thanks for visiting
Great to see! Incredible that it was designed going on 30 years ago. I’ve heard similar info about the susceptibility of the stealthy surface coatings on the F-22 Raptor, to the point where it is detrimental to expose the aircraft to rain.
Actually, the B2 LOA/RCS coatings can be exposed to rain. The reasons cannot be spoken about, as to why some believe they could not be exposed to rain. They could with no problem, but there was another problem that was corrected in a quick amount of time, that factored into not flying around rain or lightning and thunderstorms. Rather than correct a myth, it worked as a deterrent to the real reason, which like I said was corrected quickly going way back to 1996. One would not want to bomber That couldn't fly in the rain. But that is a case of mistaken information, which worked to our advantage, for our potential enemies thinking it could not.
@@Genjo_N_Mojave So, disinformation like the carrot thing.
glad to see a F-22 video is on your list!!
That is so beautiful
That was one of the six test vehicles they had at Edwards Air Force Base. That one was used for climatic testing. Why it was called fire and ice. The hot deck aft of the engine exhaust is made out of solid titanium.
I liked the stealth joke in the beginning
So, you have been to my favorite museum. And given special permissions to enter areas off limits to the general public. Awesome! How much time did you spend at and in the museum? It takes considerable time, days in fact to properly absorb all there is.
Interesting sideline to the B2, Jack Northrup was said to have been handed a model of the aircraft and told of it's existence shortly before his death.
I spent a full Tuesday there and probably around 5hrs on the Wednesday. It’s an awesome place!
Playing Jane's ATF game in 1997 with this plane was fun. Load up a huge amount of 500lb bombs and just carpet bomb everything.
If the bomb bays can hold a pair of 30,000 pound bunker busters, then the 40,000 pound bomb payload is definitely understated :P
I've always liked this aircraft, but watching this video makes me like it more. Everything is just so smooth and refined compared to the nighthawk.
Got to visit 🤯🙏🙏🙏
Seeing these currently advanced aircraft always makes me wonder what's currently flying that we don't know about yet. We don't know of any fully classified aircraft that were developed after then F22 in the 90's. Of course since the 90's computing and resulting materials and manufacturing technology accelerated exponentially and made possible to design and fly what may be close close to unimaginable. We can safely bet on hypersonic flight at least, and even better stealth. There were glimpses of chrome like F22s being tested, and considering electo color changing paint is available for cars, it's possible close to visible invisible may be flying as well.
There is considerable value to being sneaky. Can't hit what you can't see.
Granted, you may receive a random round, "to whom it may be addressed ", but what are you going to do?
I find it fascinating that this and the yb49 flying wing share the same wingspan..... got to be more than a coincidence surely?
My grandfather (who actually turned 91 years old today) built this plane in complete secrecy. He mentioned there were to be a lot of B-2's built, but when the plan was changed to build less, the workers had to become airforce certified to work on multiple components since they would no longer be hiring more workers. The security clearance meant that not many people would have the privilege to build it, let alone ever speak of it. He also helped build the B-1. He gave me more information, but considering the secrecy, I'll hesitate to mention anything further.
I forgot to mention, he reckons, out of the 31 built, he probably walked across the top of 17 of them.
It has got to be a pretty difficult thing to manage ones contrails. I assume they must start with as much meteorological data as they can get to create to create a flight plan that takes advantage of certain temperatures and moisture at specific altitudes en route to the target . It probably just comes down to going up or down as the need arises . I have seen many an airliner create thick contrails over a long distance then as if they shut down the engines they just dissapear only to pick back up again in earnest 20 miles later . My point is the upper atmosphere is a fickle undulating mix of air masses doing whatever they want to and keeping that aircraft free of contrails must make up a large part of somebody's workload in the B-2 cockpit.
Great informative video. Love this series. However it seemed the audio was rather low, the YT advertising at end of video blew me away. Thanks.
Yes sorry about the volume, I’ll be more careful in future to make it louder :)
Any ideas if the "mock up" used in S02 of the "Last man on Earth" TV series has any bearing on reality ?
To me it looks like a mock-up with landing gear. The cockpit "windows" for example.
Removing all the secret stuff was necessary, I guess.