Northrop YB-49
American flying-wing bomber prototype / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Northrop YB-49 was an American prototype jet-powered heavy bomber developed by Northrop Corporation shortly after World War II for service with the United States Air Force. The YB-49 featured a flying wing design and was a turbojet-powered development of the earlier, piston-engined Northrop XB-35 and YB-35. The two YB-49s built were both converted YB-35 test aircraft.
YB-49 | |
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YB-49 | |
Role | Strategic bomber |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Northrop Corporation |
Designer | Jack Northrop |
First flight | 21 October 1947 |
Status | Prototype only |
Primary user | United States Air Force |
Number built | 3 converted from YB-35 two YB-49 one YRB-49A |
Developed from | Northrop YB-35 |
The YB-49 never entered production, being passed over in favor of the more conventional Convair B-36 piston-driven design. Design work performed in the development of the YB-35 and YB-49 nonetheless proved to be valuable to Northrop decades later in the eventual development of the B-2 stealth bomber, which entered service in the early 1990s.