Northrop Grumman B-2 Stealth Bomber (1988)
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Scale: 1/200
Initial Release: 1990 Medium: Styrene Kit Rarity: 3 |
About the Design
An outgrowth of the same "Stealth" program that produced the Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, the B-2 "Spirit" was the fulfillment of the late Jack Northrop's life-long dream of an operational flying wing bomber. The tailless, bat-winged aircraft combined numerous state-of-the-art technologies, including a skin made of radar-absorbing composites as well as advanced electronic countermeasures to produce an aircraft that was virtually invisible to conventional detection methods.
Like the F-117, the B-2 was developed under intense secrecy, resulting in much speculation about its design. However, unlike the F-117, which underwent extensive testing before being revealed to the public, the B-2 was rolled out on Nov. 22. 1988 and only then began test flying before being declared operational in December 1993. Although not technically an "X-Plane," the B-2 is radical enough in design to warrant inclusion in this collection. |
About the Kit
The first B-2 kit to hit the American market, this small-scale DML model came with an equally tiny F-117 (not shown). The kit was re-released by China's Zhengdefu Toy Co. in the late 1990s.
This particular model is painted in the two-tone color scheme it bore when rolled out in 1988. The model is built from an original issue. 
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