No aircraft in contemporary aviation captures the imagination quite as effectively as the Northrop YF-23 Black Widow II. Conceived at a critical juncture in U.S. defense history, the YF-23 was Northrop’s ambitious entry into the Air Force’s Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) competition—a direct competition to design the next generation of air superiority.
It was the late 1980s, and the world seemed to be on the precipice of perpetual alteration. The Cold War continued to loom over the horizon, and the U.S. Air Force knew that its F-15 Eagles wouldn’t last as the absolute air superiority fighters forever. With the advent of sophisticated Soviet designs such as the MiG-29 and Su-27, it meant that the U.S. had to have something totally new—faster, more intelligent, and much harder to detect.
The ATF program was intended to design an airplane that would do everything: cruise at supersonic rates without afterburners, fade away into the background like a ghost, and reign supreme in both long-range battles and close-in dogfights. In collaboration with McDonnell Douglas, Northrop sought to build a fighter that was like no other before—and they succeeded with astonishing accuracy.
The YF-23 seemed alien. Its angular, diamond-shaped wings and canted V-tail weren’t stylistic touches—they were designed to diffuse radar waves and make detection almost impossible. Its sleek, curved body was free of hard angles, and the engines were hidden far within, cutting down both radar and heat signature result was a plane that could pass through enemy defenses almost unseen.
Stealth was only the first piece of the puzzle. The YF-23 was also extremely fast. One of the prototypes was powered by a Pratt & Whitney YF119, the other by a General Electric YF120, and both were capable of propelling the aircraft to Mach speeds without the use of afterburners. This supercruise capability wasn’t merely stunning—it allowed the plane to travel further with less heat and noise, making it much more difficult to trace. Despite having its guns tidily concealed within, the YF-23 had a clean profile and yet was capable of delivering quite a wallop.
The fight against Lockheed’s YF-22 was fierce. Both planes had their own advantages: the YF-23 boasted stealth and speed, while the YF-22 focused on agility. Lockheed installed thrust-vectoring nozzles that provided its fighter with unparalleled maneuverability during dogfights. Defense analyst Isaac Seitz said this pairing of agility with Lockheed’s established production process put the YF-22 in the lead.
Seeing the YF-23 in flight was awe-inspiring. The initial prototype, code-named “Black Widow II,” flew on August 27, 1990, ascending so steeply that it forced an F-16 that accompanied it into afterburners merely to stay with it. Not long afterward, the second test vehicle, “Gray Ghost,” entered the skies.
Both aircraft flew at Mach 1.8 cruise, refueled in midair, and performed high-speed maneuvers with ease. Naturally, there were initial teething problems—there were windshield cracks and engine nicks during early flight tests—but these were soon ironed out. All in all, the YF-23 lived up to its paper promise as much as it did in real life.
When the Air Force officially decided, they selected the YF-22. This wasn’t a dis to the capabilities of the YF-23; the Air Force just emphasized close combat agility instead. The YF-22’s thrust vectoring provides the YF-22 with an advantage during dogfights. Locineed’s veterans at handling military contracts and bringing big programs to fruition also played into the decision. Northrop, still reeling from lessons the B-2 program taught, had issues beyond the performance of the airplane itself.
Even in defeat, the YF-23 made a lasting impression. Its design breakthroughs—stealth, aerodynamics, and supercruise technology—affected subsequent fighter programs. The engineers who designed the YF-23 helped design the F-35 and left a residual impression on other cutting-edge aircraft. Aerospace expert Ali Osman Gündoğan wrote that although the YF-23 never went into production, its influence still affects aviation innovation.
Today, the two YF-23 prototypes rest quietly in museums, their lines and shapes admired by passersby and engineers learning from them. They never dominated the skies of combat, but they continue to be a testament to bold design and innovative engineering. The Black Widow II lost the battle, but it created an enduring niche in the imagination of those who envision what flight is capable of when limits are pushed and rules are broken.