Secret Projects Flying Saucer Aircraft - Bill Rose and Tony

Page 52 of 180

Page 52 of 180
Secret Projects Flying Saucer Aircraft - Bill Rose and Tony

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The dismantled Horten Ho 9 V1 experimental glider, discovered by US military personnel at Brandis in May 1945 and subsequently destroyed. US Army Artwork showing the proposed Horten Ho XVIII America Bomber, which bears a considerable resemblance to the modern Northrop-Grumman B-2A Spirit stealth bomber. via Bill Rose Second configuration for the Horten Ho XVIII America bomber. via Bill Rose vice in 1946, being described as the next Volksjdger (People’s Fighter). The Hortens also worked on a series of jet bombers and the most interesting project was a long-range flying wing, capable of crossing the Atlantic. In early 1944 the RLM began to look at ways of attacking targets on America’s eastern seaboard and they issued arequirement to several major design teams. The high-speed, high-altitude jet aircraft they required had to deliver four tons of bombs or possibly one atomic weapon (perhaps radio- logical) to the US East Coast and return from this 7,000 mile (11,265km) round trip without refuelling. The major aviation companies considered this challenge too great with pre- vailing technology, but the Hortens (who had not been approached to participate in the project) started to work on a flying wing con- B cept, giving it the designation Ho XVIIIA Amerika Bomber. During January 1945 the Hortens com- A pleted several proposals for a flying wing Amerika Bomber, which only varied to any degree in their engine layout. Their stealthy aircraft would have possessed a 172ft (52m) wingspan, which surprisingly was about the same size as the Northrop XB-35 and YB-49 50 Secret Projects: Flying Saucer Aircraft