Stealth aircraft are typically associated with the American F-117 Nighthawk, B-2 Spirit, or F-22 Raptor projects. Nevertheless, there is an experimental aircraft that is somewhat buried in short history but that had an influential legacy on the planet away from the combat theater – the Boeing YF-118G or simply the “Bird of Prey.”
The Bird of Prey was built under a 1990s mystery veil at Groom Lake and was not intended for combat. The aircraft was to do a more delicate, but still vital work, i.e., it was to advance stealth concepts without decades of traditional programs proving to be expensive and lengthy. Eventually, many of the tricks they developed here would be what the USA would later use to stay ahead in the air.
Such a program with McDonnell Douglas, which, after that, merged with Boeing, was just what they needed. The company was about to face sth like the ‘underdog’ in the Pentagon competitions, and management was looking for radical new ideas to prove that the company is not dead. It was not long before the Phantom Works research team decided to build a project that was radical, minimalist, and premature.
Stealth veteran Alan Wiechma, who was among the F-117 team, was the man behind this bold move. His team kept the US advantage in stealth but was brave enough to go where very few other researchers would dare–with their unorthodox approach and experimental concepts.
The Bird of Prey was somewhat the opposite of those gigantic billion-dollar projects. $67 million was all it took to get the job done. Besides rapid prototyping, modern computer simulations, and using standard parts wherever they could, the designers made heavy use of creativity. A business jet powered the engine, a Harrier provided the ejection seat, and the cockpit had some controls borrowed from old fighters. Test pilot Col. Doug Benjamin even quipped that the clock that kept time came straight from a store shelf, and the air system was no different from a hairdryer for home use.
The aircraft had a fantastic sci-fi-like appearance. The Bird of Prey with no tail and huge gull wings looked very much like the Klingon “Bird of Prey” from Star Trek, hence the name. Every design feature (the buried engine, smooth transitions, and the absence of vertical stabilizers) was aimed at lowering the radar and infrared signature. Even the paint factor was a contributor to helping it blend with the sky.
In spite of its odd appearance, the plane flew well enough. Simple hydraulic controls were used instead of the expensive fly-by-wire system, but even so, the aircraft was very stable and easy to handle. Its single Pratt & Whitney JT15D-5C engine was enough to accelerate the jet to around 300 miles per hour, and its ceiling was about 20,000 feet – not impressive figures, but enough to give stealth shaping and production techniques a go.
The Bird of Prey made its maiden flight on September 11, 1996. In the following three years, it had 39 flights in which the landing gear drag problem was tackled, among others. By the time it ended in 1999, the program had accomplished its goal of demonstrating that the development of stealth aircraft could be performed proficiently without giving up on the safety or the innovation factor.
Its influence was nevertheless extensive, even though it was not armed or engaged in battle. The knowledge gained went straight into Boeing’s X-45 Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle program and had a considerable impact on the design of aircraft such as the F-22, F-35, and B-21 Raider. As Boeing executive Jim Albaugh puts it, “We revolutionized how we designed and built an aircraft.”
There is only one Bird of Prey, and this is the one that is displayed at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, a few meters away from an F-22 Raptor. The cockpit, which was closed during the flights, remains so with the public, a low crash of its covert origins.
The Bird of Prey might have never performed a bombing run or made a fuss, but its contribution is there. Sometimes the most vital aircraft are not the ones that directly win wars—they are those that silently redefine how the wars of the future will be fought.