Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter (Air Vanguard) - Softcover

Crickmore, Paul F.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1472801164 ISBN 13: 9781472801166

Publisher: Osprey Publishing, 2014

Synopsis

From its questionable debut over Panama, the shoot-down of a Nighthawk during Operation Allied Force over the former Yugoslavia, to the mind-boggling successes enjoyed by the type in the two Gulf Wars, this is the story of another 'Skunk Works' icon that took aircraft design and operational capabilities to previously unprecedented levels.

Even from the earliest days of 'dog-fighting', when pilots attempted to attack their advisories with the sun on their backs, one adage has held true - "you can't destroy what you can't see". Even with the advent of radar the precept remains valid, however, the "But how?" conundrum had perplexed aircraft design engineers since the Second World War. Although designers and engineers had a number of tools available to help reduce an aircraft's Radar Cross Section (RCS), ranging from its physical shape, to the use of Radar Absorbent Materials (RAM) - as seen in the A-12/SR-71, any reductions achieved by the mid 1970's were at best modest and certainly not enough to gain "an explicit operational advantage". The magnitude of the problem faced is demonstrated by the radar equation "detection range is proportional to the fourth root of the radar cross-section." That is to say, in order to reduce the detection range by a factor of 10 in number, it is necessary to reduce the target aircraft's RCS by a factor of 10,000 or 40 dBs!

However utilising the unrivalled talent available within the legendary Lockheed 'Skunk Works' and what was at the time, ground-breaking computer technology, project 'Have Blue' validated the concept of stealth and evolved into the highly classified 'Senior Trend' (F-117A) programme.

About this title

About the Authors

Paul F. Crickmore is the author of the much-acclaimed Lockheed Blackbird: Beyond the Secret Missions. He was commissioned to write his first book for Osprey 35 years ago and that since then he has written 20 books, including 12 for Osprey. He is also an honorary member of several A-12 and SR-71 veterans' associations.

Adam Tooby is an internationally renowned digital artist and illustrator. His work can be found in publications worldwide and as box art for model aircraft kits. He also runs a successful illustration studio and aviation prints business. He is based in Cheshire, UK. To buy artwork, or contact the artist, visit http://www.adamtooby.com/.

Henry Morshead is the Chief Designer for the Hill HX50 helicopter. He also works in the automotive and bespoke sectors, with clients including BAC Mono and Arrival, and is a STEM Ambassador with the Bloodhound supersonic car project. A former officer in the Royal Engineers and illustrator for Jane's, he maintains a keen interest in the design and use of military land and air vehicles.

Edition details

• Publisher: Osprey Publishing
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1472801164
• ISBN 13: 9781472801166
• Binding: Paperback
• Illustrator: Tooby Adam, Morshead Henry
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 64