North American "Silent Night" Stealth Fighter Concept (1972)

Scale: 1/72
Initial Release: 2009
Medium: Resin
Wingspan: 12 inches
Kit Rarity: 3

About the Design

The "Silent Night" stealth attack fighter was the baseline configuration included in a feasibility study North American Aviation had with the Office of Naval Research between 1971 and 1973. This was during the later stages of the Vietnam War, when losses over North Vietnam to Soviet metric radars were disturbing. The Navy wanted options to defeat these radars, then destroy them. The "Silent Night" was the result of this study.

Although the "Silent Night" never became a full-fledged project, many of the concepts it utilized, including a tail-less "flying wing" configuration, an internal engine and internal weapons bays, eventually made their way into the actual Stealth aircraft and UCAVs of the the late 20th and early 21st centuries

About the Kit

The "Silent Night" was one of Fantastic Plastic's first kits to be designed in CAD and then printed using computerized stereo lithography, allowing for superior symmetry, fit and detail.  The CAD for this kit was done by Scott Lowther.