[Michael_K_Sr]

F-117 flies off into retirement tonight.

[Blu]

Wonder if this will reduce the number of UFO sightings......

[Joseph DeMartino]

And here I was thinking ths someone had bumped off Kyle Richmond.

Regards,

Joe

[Philip Hamm]

I thought this thread was going to be about the Honda Nighthawk motorcycle! I never knew that the F117 was named "Nighthawk".

[Chuck Mayer]

We did hardly know ye. That was a LOT of money spent on an aircraft that never quite lived up to the cost.

[Joseph DeMartino]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuck Mayer

We did hardly know ye. That was a LOT of money spent on an aircraft that never quite lived up to the cost.

I don't know. It was a proof of concept and helped work the bugs out for succeeding generations of low-visibility aircraft, and it proved invaluable in the first Gulf War. Hard to put a price tag on all the aircraft and air crew we didn't lose because the Nighthawks flew so many sorties without the loss of a single plane, softened up (or totally elimnated) the air defenses for more conventional planes coming behind them and pretty much wiped out the opposing airforce. (Scaring what it didn't destroy into internment and inaction in a neighboring country.) Not bad, all things considered, and the B-2, F-22 Raptor and other planes owe a lot to the Nighthawk.

Regards,

Joe

[Chuck Mayer]

I recognize that it was a proof of concept. I also know a B-2 is half the cost of a nuclear powered attack submarine, which has a much longer loiter time, much greater weapon capacity, a broader sensor suite, and lasts a lot longer. And it actually can't be found

And trust me...the Pentagon can absolutely put a price tag on aircrews They do it all the time.

I was expecting more years out of the 117. That's not a long lifespan for that kind of dough. That's my point.