F117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter Essay Research Paper
F117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter Essay, Research Paper
F117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter
Introduction
My paper is on the F-117A Nighthawk Stealth Fighter. I am making this research on an history of the Nighthawk being an interesting, modern, and technological topic. Some may confound this combatant with the B-2 Stealth Bomber. The B-2 s building was provoked by the Nighthawk due to the Nighthawk s public presentation in many sallies.
Body
Specifications
The specifications and dimensions of the Nighthawk may be difficult to understand, but if you have any inquiries, experience free to inquire me about them. The primary map of the Nighthawk is to be a combatant or aggressor. The length from nose to rise up is 65 & # 8242 ; 11 & # 8243 ; , the tallness of the Nighthawk is 12 & # 8242 ; 5 & # 8243 ; , and the empty combatant weight is 29,500lbs. The maximal entire weight this combatant can keep is 52,500lbs. The wingspread from side-end to side-end is 43 4X and the country of one wing is 1,140 ft. squared The velocity of the Nighthawk is in the high subsonic scope because the sail velocity is from Mach.8 to Mach.9 and the maximal velocity is Mach 1 at 36,000 foot. The scope of the Nighthawk is limitless with air refueling from another plane. The engines of the Nighthawk are two
12,500lb. General Electric F404-F1D2 non-afterburning fanjet engines with 10,600 pounds. of push. The Nighthawk s armament is a non-fixed internal arms passenger car and the primary arms on the Nighthawk are the paveway series GBU-10 and GBU-27 optical maser guided bombs. There is normally one individual to wing the Nighthawk and the cost to construct each Nighthawk is about 45 million dollars. The United States Air Force has produced 59
Night owl with the aid of Lockheed s & # 8220 ; Skunkworks. & # 8221 ;
Stealth Technology
What makes the Nighthawk so furtive are Radar Absorbent Materials or RAMs for short. The primary RAM for the Nighthawk is Dow Chemical s Fibaloy. ( Jones, 1989, p.45+77 ) Fibaloy is black and has great radar-energy absorbency. ( Jones, 1989, p.45 ) Fibaloy is made by infixing glass fibres into plastic. ( Jones, 1989, p.45 ) Another RAM is Reinforced Carbon Fiber. Reinforced Carbon Fiber absorbs and diminishes radar-energy. It besides helps cut down the Nighthawk s infrared signature. ( Jones, 1989, p.77 ) The form of the Nighthawk besides contributes to the stealing. The Nighthawk has rounded surfaces so radar moving ridges resile off in different waies. All of these surfaces are dead set in different angles so one surface does non portion a common brooding angle with another surface.
There are besides other alterations to assist the Nighthawk s stealing abilities. For illustration, a particular modified fumes system decreases the sum of heat from the Nighthawk s fanjet engines. Besides, the inside is classified because it is believed that RAM is besides used internally.
The Nighthawk is non truly a combatant. The Nighthawk does non hold the ability to contend air to air combat. There
are at least two grounds for this. One, the Nighthawk has perfectly no defences like husk, flair, pensers, etc. Two, the Nighthawk relies wholly on its stealing abilities and the dark to avoid hostile steps and countermeasures.
Development and History
The Nighthawk was developed:
& # 8220 ; ..developed in response to an Air Force petition for an
aircraft capable of assailing high value marks without
being detected by hostile radio detection and ranging systems. & # 8221 ; ( USAF Museum Archives, 1998, p.1 )
The determination to construct the Nighthawk was made in 1978 while the contract was awarded to Lockheed Advanced Development Projects. After this, the first stealing paradigm was codification named & # 8220 ; HAVE BLUE. & # 8221 ;
There were some of import day of the months in the history of the Nighthawk.
The first flight of the Nighthawk was in 1981.
The first Nighthawk was delivered in 1982.
The first group to have a Nighthawk was the 4450th Tactical Group that gained operational capableness in October 1983.
The Nighthawk was foremost used in combat in operation & # 8220 ; JUST CAUSE & # 8221 ; on December 19,1989 when two stealings from the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing attacked military marks in Panama.
The last Nighthawk was delivered in 1990.
The Nighthawk besides participated in operation & # 8220 ; DESERT STORM & # 8221 ; and & # 8220 ; DESERT SHIELD. & # 8221 ; In operation DESERT STORM, Nighthawks flew 1,271 sallies, had an 80 % million success rate, and they besides suffered no losingss or conflict harm. The Nighthawks were besides the first aircraft to strike Baghdad in the gap proceedingss of the air war.
Discussion
The Nighthawk is a good stealing aircraft because of its radar-energy absorbent abilities. This aircraft was specifically made for stealing onslaughts. Lockheed has used good RAMs and form engineering on the Nighthawk. The USAF can non utilize this aircraft to strike in the daylight, though. They did really good in operation & # 8220 ; DESERT STORM & # 8221 ; due to its mission success rate.
Decision
I think that the Nighthawk is a genuinely brilliant technological wonder.
Lockheed has made a great aircraft that I think will act upon conflicts to come. This aircraft likely has a long hereafter in front of it.
Mentions
Department of the Air Force: Fact Sheet: F-117A Nighthawk.
hypertext transfer protocol: //www.af.mil/news/factsheets/F_117A_Nighthawk.html.
found October 31,1998.
Jones, Joseph. Stealth Technology. Pennsylvania: Tab Books Inc. ,
+1989.
Lockheed F-117A Stealth Fighter.
hypertext transfer protocol: //alpha1.fsb.hr/ da961463/f-117.html. found October 31, 1998.
The Stealth Fighter.
hypertext transfer protocol: //www.bangalorenet.com/system1/chungw/spage.html.
found October 31, 1998.
Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk.
hypertext transfer protocol: //home.c2i.net/halsaker/Aviation/fighters/f-117/f117.htm.
found October 31, 1998.
