McDonnell Douglas YF-23 Black Widow II

The Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 Black Widow II is a american aircraft that competed with the  to be the new 5th generation fighter of the USAF and regarded as the sister fighter of the same.

The F-22 and the YF-23 competed to be the new fighter of the UFAF, with the F-22 being the winner, because the F-22 had won, the YF-23 had not any operators, in 2004 the the Northrop proposed a bomber version of the YF-23 competing with the projects of the FB-22 Strike Raptor and the B-1R, but the project probably was cancelled, as the USAF required a bomber with longer range, however, as the FB-22 still is in the competition, maybe the FB-23 could still be in the competition.

Description
The YF-23A was Northrop and McDonnell Douglas proposal for the US government's Advanced Tactical Fighter program, whose objective was to create an aircraft designed to replace the legendary F-15 Eagle. It's main rival was the Boeing/Lockheed-manufactured YF-22 Lightning II(which evolved into the F-22 Raptor.) In terms of raw performance, the YF-23 was superior to the Lightning II in terms of speed & stealth, as well as operational range. Furthermore, the YF-23 had a lower production cost due to the unneeded use of tankers and parts from other aircraft (ie. F/A-18, F-15 and B-2 Spirit; said aircraft served as the YF-23A's inspiration. Two YF-23As were developed for the ATF program, both of which sported different engines & paintwork: the black PAV-1 (Black Widow II, Pratt & Whitney YF119) and the gray PAV-2 (Gray Ghost, Pratt & Whitney YF120.) Of note is the fact that the Black Widow II's namesake comes from the P-61 Black Widow aircraft from WWII.

In terms of performance, the YF-23A was superior to the Lightning II in terms of speed, operational range & stealth capabilities, which prompted Northrop to set stealth capabilities as maximum priority. Thus, the company decided to use elements from the F/A-18 Hornet and the B-2 Spirit in the YF-23's mainframe (the V-tail coming from the former.) In order to reduce the development costs, Northrop employed parts from other aircraft in the YF-23's design, such as F-15 Eagle nosewheel units and cockpits (respectively, from the F-15C & F-15E Strike Eagle.) In terms of performance, the YF-23A was superior to the Lightning II in terms of speed, operational range & stealth capabilities, although the Lightning II had the upper hand in terms of maneouverability. However, for reasons unknown, the US government chose the YF-22 as the ATF project's winner. Rumors state that Lockheed's industrial performance was a vital factor in the Pentagon's decision to select the YF-22 over the YF-23: Northrop had financial problems caused by the B-2 Spirit & A-12 Avenger II bombers (the latter of which would be cancelled due to high costs.)

Aircraft on display
Both airframes remained in storage until mid-1996, when the aircraft were transferred to museums. In 2004, Norhrop proposed a Black Widow II-inspired design for the USAF's "Regional Bomber" program, along with other proposed aircraft such as the B-1R missle truck and the FB-22.
 * YF-23A PAV-1 (s/n 87-0800) is now on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. The aircraft was recently put on display following restoration and is located in the Museum's Research and Development hangar.
 * Aircraft PAV-2 (s/n 87-0801) was on exhibit at the Western Museum of Flight in Hawthorne, California. In 2004, it was loaned to Northrop Grumman and used for display purposes. The aircraft has returned to the museum's new location at Torrance Airport, Torrance, CA.

General Characteristics

 * Crew: 1 (pilot)
 * Length: 67 ft 5 in (20.60 m)
 * Wingspan: 43 ft 7 in (13.30 m)
 * Height: 13 ft 11 in (4.30 m)
 * Wing area: 900 ft² (88 m²)YF-23_31.jpg
 * Empty weight: 29,000 lb (14,970 kg)
 * Loaded weight: 51,320 lb (23,327 kg)
 * Max takeoff weight: 62,000 lb (29,000 kg)
 * Powerplant: 2× General Electric YF120 or Pratt & Whitney YF119, 35,000 lbf (156 kN) each

Performance

 * Maximum speed: Mach 2.2+ (1,650+ mph, 2,655+ km/h) at altitude
 * Cruise speed: Mach 1.6 (1,060 mph, 1,706 km/h) supercruise at altitude
 * Range: over 2,790 mi (over 4,500 km)
 * Combat radius: 865–920 mi (750–800 nmi, 1,380–1480 km)
 * Service ceiling: 65,000 ft (19,800 m)
 * Wing loading: 54 lb/ft² (265 kg/m²)
 * Thrust/weight: 1.36

Armament
None as tested but provisions made for
 * 1× 20 mm (.79 in) M61 Vulcan cannon
 * 4–6× AIM-120 AMRAAM or AIM-7 Sparrow air-to-air missiles
 * 4 × AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles