Valkyrie was one gorgeous looking bird
Posted by Acceptable-Truth-912@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 306 comments
Posted by Acceptable-Truth-912@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 306 comments
Spartan0330@reddit
Seeing this at the National Air Force Museum in Dayton is just insane. It’s just a marvel of engineering and technology.
EggsceIlent@reddit
Hope they make it in msfs2024.
GeorgeSPattonJr@reddit
Can confirm, went there last weekend. It was really quite impressive
Diarrhea_Donkey@reddit
dat ass
SouthTexasBoy64@reddit
Nice Ass, if you don't mind me saying
patronizingperv@reddit
Slap a NSFW tag on that butt shot.
Spartan0330@reddit
Pretty sure I have the same picture too.
baitingthemaster@reddit
Everyone who sees it has to get a picture of the six pack.
Jackd_up_on_Mdew@reddit
Now i do too!
Dry_Student_6279@reddit
So do I lmao
Pinksters@reddit
I didn't get one from the back...for some reason, but I got the front
OddDonut7647@reddit
WE BRAKE FOR NOBODY
JimmyTango@reddit
She ain’t much upfront but she’s got a real ass on here once you get around
j-c-2000@reddit
Saw the same bird at the same museum in the 1980s and I still tell people about it every chance I get. Awesome to see in person.
lessdothisshit@reddit
I'll counter. It's a total failure of engineering and technology. Because whats is the point of engineering and technology if it accomplishes nothing?
Wolfie_142@reddit
theres all SORTS of good shit there like the SR-71 and Memphis Belle
80hdis4me@reddit
Strawberry Bitch was one of my favorite ones there. B-24 liberator
SeeUatX@reddit
Random redditor here! Was Strawberry Bitch the name of the plane? My grandfather piloted 36 B-24 flights. His main plane was called The Shack Rabbit. I bet he would have liked SB!
roguemenace@reddit
I'm personally a fan of Command Decision.
https://www.war.gov/Multimedia/Photos/igphoto/2002046049/
80hdis4me@reddit
Hell yeah that thing is awesome. I have gotten to check out Doc quite a bit. Always love getting to check out the B-29.
Pinksters@reddit
My favorite, The Mighty Earbanger
Look at all that prop pitch
Mr_Byzantine@reddit
Spent a whole day there and still didn't see it all!
Apexnanoman@reddit
Yeah it and the B-36 are highlights of any trip to Dayton. Both are awe inspiring in person.
Lastminutebastrd@reddit
My first 'proper' air museum trip was last year, to the SAC museum in Omaha. The B-36 is just bonkers, even in person it's tough to comprehend that it was able to fly at one point. My next goal is to get to the Dayton air museum.
MandolinMagi@reddit
Daytona is a two-three day trip. Carillon Historic Park is nice too, and theres' the Wright Brothers stuff as well.
Apexnanoman@reddit
Dayton is absolutely amazing. Bring good walking shoes and don't plan on doing it in a single day. It's absolutely massive.
face404@reddit
The room with 8ish old ICBMs quieted my mind like nothing else. Incredible museum.
Apexnanoman@reddit
The mk 17 that's sitting underneath the B-36 kinda tripped me out. The B-36 only had one purpose. To carry that bomb. And destroy city each time the bomb bay opened. Pretty creepy to look at that stuff and realize what it was for.
MandolinMagi@reddit
It's SOOO TALL
Boeing367-80@reddit
I was driving across country 30 years ago and happened to randomly overnight in Dayton. Back in the day motels had little brochures for local attractions. I was ahead of schedule so went to the AF museum the next day based on seeing the brochure.
Walk into one of those immense hangars and I was like, "hang on... That's a Valkyrie. Wtf? Omigod..."
The whole museum is that way. So many exhibits are examples of aircraft you thought survived only in photos. I had no idea. But the Valkyrie is an obvious standout.
I'm generally more interested in commercial aviation (see my username) but the USAF museum is a must see.
rocbolt@reddit
A good read about flying it (and crashing in it) here
ilovea1steaksauce@reddit
That was amazing, thanks.
I2iSTUDIOS@reddit
My favorite place in the entire world.
viperfan7@reddit
It's shockingly big
Prin_StropInAh@reddit
I got to stand under it as a kid. A wonderful day that further fed my love of aircraft
DependentAgent99@reddit
I stood under it as an adult and 100% agree!
Packfan1967@reddit
Incredible airplane with only one major flaw; It filled up most of the enemies radar screen as soon as it took off.
Sensitive_Koala_9544@reddit
Two flaws - add in six gas-GUZZLING engines to maintain and hope they all stay working for intercontinental strike missions. They never got to that point in the program.
TrippedOnDick@reddit
Eh it worked on Concord. And it's gas guzzling in subsonic regime just like concord. Now once you go supersonic the baby is efficient!
Theron3206@reddit
I don't think anyone would describe any supersonic aircraft as efficient. Even the best burn fuel like crazy.
LeftInTheLumberYard@reddit
And new tech honeycomb body panels that liked to un-sandwich themselves at high speed.
sabresfanfml@reddit
It's reddit, you're allowed to say suisandwich'd themselves^^^^^s
Ironhide90@reddit
All of this sounds solvable now, Time for a new one.
josh6499@reddit
Now they just strap the bombs to a huge rocket and it ends life on Earth as we know it all by itself.
Ironhide90@reddit
Yeah but it will not look as cool.
FlakingEverything@reddit
Better. It was already solved by the 2nd plane. Too bad that one crashed due to no fault of it's own.
sw04ca@reddit
While at the same time being far more expensive and less capable than the ICBMs that made the strategic bomber an utter irrelevancy in the only mission that it had ever been able to perform successfully (nuclear strike).
Nannyphone7@reddit
Six engines practically touching each other, so if one goes, they all go.
GetDown_Deeper3@reddit
True. But it looked great.
Menethea@reddit
Hey, it works for SpaceX
Joaquinmachine@reddit
Was there an option to turn off the other engines for low speed cruising? Like running two instead of 6? This thing looks like it wanted to go straight into orbit
ThePrussianGrippe@reddit
Well if they don’t have enough time to get a lock on it probably doesn’t matter if its radar signature is the size of the sun.
Packfan1967@reddit
Unfortunately the soviets were already designing missiles to chase the SR-71 and this plane only flies about half as fast.
CharcoalGreyWolf@reddit
On the other hand, it made the enemy spend massive amounts of money out of fear to build a plane to combat it.
texasnick83@reddit
On the other, other hand, it made the US spend even massiver amounts of money on their own plane (F15) to combat the enemy's plane (Mig 25). It all started with a bomber that never saw service. Crazy.
CharcoalGreyWolf@reddit
Agreed. It’s The Butter Battle
sunsetair@reddit
Enemy created something brutally flawed and spent a fortune on it Presenting the T-4 , the Soviet Valkyrie
CharcoalGreyWolf@reddit
Also made the MiG-25
sunsetair@reddit
MiG-25
Was extremely successful at what it was actually designed to do.
But it was not successful at what the West originally feared it could do.
:-)
CharcoalGreyWolf@reddit
And also mad the Soviets spend a large amount of money on design, production, and maintenance that never fully paid off and was one of many overspends that arguably hastened the demise of the USSR.
PianistPitiful5714@reddit
It also spawned the F-15 which could do all the things it was feared to do and basically has ruled the skies ever since. Even with the introduction of 5th Gen aircraft, the Eagle has maintained a place of significance in the skies. Her day may be coming, but the US built a jet with the F-15 that more or less dominated air power for a half century. No plane has ever come anywhere close in terms of sheer air to air dominance and numerical supremacy.
KickFacemouth@reddit
It had beam RCS spikes over 100,000 square meters. That's the equivalent of a metal sphere almost 600 feet in diameter.
texasnick83@reddit
Well it likely could have outrun most missiles, but I think what really killed the concept (and the concept of intercontinental bombers as a nuclear first strike option in general) were ICBMs.
Lyuseefur@reddit
Doesn't matter. Close counts in this case.
Close only counts in horse shoes, hand grenades and ... yep. Atom bombs. Guess what she carried?
emotionengine@reddit
Can't believe they built this absolute unit just for carrying horse shoes! Incredible.
ImranFZakhaev@reddit
They tried using it for hand grenades, but they always exploded a few seconds after being let go
libmrduckz@reddit
it could also be retrofit for cornhole… a truly versatile airframe…
Youngstown_WuTang@reddit
I think stuff like this should be flown and given modern technology to fly (nothing more) because it would look cool as shit at a special plane retirement museum along with many other. It'll probably make a shit load of money also , call it the wonder years of yesterday or something
derekakessler@reddit
The last surviving example is at the special plane retirement museum: the U.S. Air Force Museum of Flight in Dayton, Ohio.
notfromchicago@reddit
And if you haven't been GO! Easily top ten coolest thing I've done.
concreteunderwear@reddit
Reverse stealth. Overwhelm their radars.
Important_Power_2148@reddit
ChmeeWu@reddit
Raspberry!
OddDonut7647@reddit
My favorite part of the entire movie used to be when Dark Helmet threw the mic away, but after literal decades of laughing at that, because I'm slow, I finally noticed at the end of that scene, when the camera starts to zoom in on Dark Helmet, he sees the camera coming and pokes Colonel Sandurz on the chest - who looks at the camera, realizes it's coming, and backs out of the shot. It's obvious once you notice it, but it sailed over my head for so many rewatches, so now it's my favorite bit.
https://i.imgur.com/kh8zyqJ.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/5jg8f4o.jpeg
That bit, at the end of this clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGvblGCD7qM
Sandruz's expressions are just perfect.
mysteryofthefieryeye@reddit
What the hell, I come to aviation for some plane time and end up learning something new about Spaceballs?!? lmao
So random but I love it. Thanks!
OddDonut7647@reddit
<3 <3 <3
Half the time when I post this (which has been like a half dozen times over the course of several years, maybe?) I get lots of "DUUUHHHHHH" replies, so I love it when I get to spread the love for this to someone like you <3 :)
Extension-Rabbit3654@reddit
Wrong movie but great referrence
Nu3roManc3r@reddit
You're really a Spaceball... you know that, don't you?
aiusernamegen@reddit
I'm surrounded!
LeFishTits@reddit
More like a big boy 😂
chrisreverb@reddit
ALaccountant@reddit
If the signatures big enough, can they really tell where it is?
I think we’re on to something here, folks
supercoolhomie@reddit
“Captain! There’s an aircraft carrier flying straight towards us at 1,739 mph!”
LivingtheDBdream@reddit
It’s the size of Texas, Mr President
Flesh_And_Metal@reddit
What is the technical term for reverse stealth?
Bon-Bon-Boo@reddit
HT⅃AƎTƧ
blobops@reddit
serever
PerfectPercentage69@reddit
Jamming. Instead of hiding, you flood the sensors so they can't see anything specific and target it.
SoyMurcielago@reddit
Ahhh the flood the zone strategy that is proving successful
MoodooScavenger@reddit
mershed_perderders@reddit
Lone Star!!
Rem888@reddit
There's only one man that would dare give me the raspberry.
Mc9660385@reddit
Visible
concreteunderwear@reddit
Unstealth
SwimmingThroughHoney@reddit
Back when the strategy was just "We don't care if you know we're coming. We're moving so fast there's nothing you can do about it".
TrippedOnDick@reddit
That's basically the strategy of an hypersonic missile.
The fucker glows on radar and Radio Frequency due to plasma envelope when it hits Mach 7.
sputnikmonolith@reddit
Git gud.
Bane8080@reddit
They can't get a lock if their radar just says "Yea, there's something west... Where? Like, all of the west."
UnDopedNrestless@reddit
"Sir! A cardinal direction is heading our way!"
Horrison2@reddit
This situation is turning south real quick.
SoyMurcielago@reddit
Are we sure it’s not north by northwest?
algaefied_creek@reddit
JOHNSON!?
AngryWWIIGrandpa@reddit
This is the first reddit comment in my history to make me actually cackle. Damn you to hell.
mynadidas5@reddit
“I said WEST!!”
aiusernamegen@reddit
The basis for the movie Everything Everywhere All At Once
9577_Sunset_blvd@reddit
You seem to be under the naive impression that the USAF wouldn’t operate appropriately 1,500 of these if it ever hit full production
Metahec@reddit
A plane that sexy deserves to be noticed
p1749@reddit
Passive jamming
pooter6969@reddit
Hot take: it’s not gorgeous.
Impressive, gigantic, imposing, absurd, insane, powerful, unbelievable feat of engineering.. yes. But it’s not gorgeous. It’s boxy and the proportions are cartoonish. It looks like what 6 year old would draw if you told them to draw the fastest plane in the world. The front cylindrical section of fuselage with the canards looks like it was bolted onto a completely separate delta wing design. The cockpit windows combined with the canards make the “face” of the jet look like a sad bird.
There’s one specific inflight side view that makes the jet look good primarily because it hides the ludicrous proportions of the delta wing.
It’s not gorgeous and I will die on this hill.
Acceptable-Truth-912@reddit (OP)
Hot take: its gorgeous just like the victor
pooter6969@reddit
That’s not what a hot take is
TheBookie_55@reddit
Forgot see her flying with her gear down around Edward’s, either in ‘65 or ‘67. Would have preferred clean but still awesome with the gear down.
funnyguy99207@reddit
I'd be kinda frightened if I saw that formation in the sky. It totally says that someone has definitely fucked around and is about to find out.
Gandalf-Esq@reddit
But does the snoot droop?
ZippyDan@reddit
Where are these high-resolution videos coming from?
I assume this plane hasn't flown in a while.
prehensilemullet@reddit
So you’re saying, good Rule 34 material?
Appropriate-Count-64@reddit
What’s interesting is that it would’ve actually have been able to outpace missiles at altitude. It could just straight up fly into contested airspace like it’s nothing. It’s like, the only non stealth bomber ever to be able to make that claim. Though it’s terrible fuel economy and expense to create, plus ICBMs, killed it.
JonstheSquire@reddit
It could not. That is one reason why it was produced. It absolutely could have been shot down by surface to air missiles.
https://appel.nasa.gov/2015/04/21/this-month-in-nasa-history-nasa-took-over-the-valkyrie-program/
Appropriate-Count-64@reddit
That’s interesting though, because the SR-71 had a broadly similar flight profile but was never able to be shot down by SAMs. So what made the XB-70 so much more vulnerable? Just its size and Radar signature?
PotatoFromFrige@reddit
It was fired at in 1981 by a North Korean SA-2, which exploded 2 miles (3.2km) behind it at an altitude of 80,000 ft (24.3km). Do note that at mach 3 the SR-71 was flying at, 2 miles took about 3 seconds, so this was quite a close call.
https://www.cia.gov/resources/csi/static/Lessons-from-Four-North.pdf
JonstheSquire@reddit
Because the SR-71 never flew over the Soviet Union.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_aerial_reconnaissance_of_the_Soviet_Union
MrNewking@reddit
Not officially
Old_Wallaby_7461@reddit
Not unofficially. SR-71 flew courses that took it along the borders. Over the USSR was suicide in the age of the S-200 and the MiG-25
iamthinksnow@reddit
Also note the the F-111 was a near peer in speed (mach 2.5 max vs 3.08 for the XB-170) and payload, while needing only 2 crew in it's fancy side-by-side cockpit.
Chicago_Blackhawks@reddit
fascinating
syngyne@reddit
It's what this guy was named after in the original series (VF-1 Valkyrie)
JohnTheMod@reddit
On top of that, Hayato Kobayashi flies the actual XB-70 Valkyrie in an episode of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
closetsquirrel@reddit
This painted black, not the XR-71, is totally the X-Jet.
NoDoze-@reddit
Imagine how much air was rushing into those intakes for all those engines. Incredible plane.
tiorzol@reddit
Wowsers. It doesn't even look real it's too cool.
What was the use case for it?
NCRnchr@reddit
Strategic nuclear bomber. The idea was to fly high and fast enough that air defenses would have trouble shooting it down. Like a nuclear armed SR-71.
However advances in antiaircraft missile technology and the advent of ICBM's ended the project before it went to production.
StrayWalnut@reddit
That and the fact that the main test aircraft was destroyed in an air disaster. They only ever built two and after the second was destroyed they decided to shelve it for the reasons above. It just wasn't worth rebuilding unfortunately.
SpeedBlitzX@reddit
Mustard has a pretty in-depth video about the XB 70 Valkyrie!
https://youtu.be/Yl32c352thE?si=TsYinsredfaKxpp2
drako1117@reddit
Only one was destroyed. Other is in the Air Force museum
Old_Wallaby_7461@reddit
Valkyrie was cancelled years before the crash. It was canceled as a bomber program before the first flight.
caustictoast@reddit
Yeah the S200 really fucked the plans for this thing up so thy just gave up and went stealth
Nannyphone7@reddit
It was obsolete before it flew.
D2WilliamU@reddit
And the mig25 was cool as shit
Chicago_Blackhawks@reddit
so cool
kil0ran@reddit
Not quite as unreal but the UK's V Force bombers were Mach 0.9 capable and converted low level nuclear and conventional bombers. Three different designs - Victor, Valiant, and Vulcan. Vulcan is probably best known but the Victor has an other-worldly look about it, definitely a big influence on manga artists. Designed to fly at 60,000 feet. Three very different responses to the design brief. They could carry conventional weapons too and all saw combat, most recently in 1982 in the Black Buck raids. Had the pleasure of being under the flight line of the Vulcan's final display and final flypast and also a mid-70s display at Greenham Common which was the birth of my interest in aviation, the absolute definition of a visceral experience.
Weekly_Injury_9211@reddit
The use case was non existent by the time they made it, sadly.
VanillaTortilla@reddit
Which is funny considering the 52 is still flying like it's going out of style.
caustictoast@reddit
Yeah but that’s a different use case. The B-52 will only be deployed if we have complete air dominance. Otherwise it’s just a huge sitting duck. This was meant for contested space, but the Mig25 and S200 SAM were enough to get it cancelled
Old_Wallaby_7461@reddit
52 is flexible. You want it to fly low? Sure, it can do that. Cruise missile carrier? Sure. A zillion conventional bombs? Sure.
B-70 was barely faster than B-52 down low, couldn't carry all of those conventional bombs, couldn't carry cruise missiles hanging from the wings.
VanillaTortilla@reddit
It was indeed niche, I just find it funny that the 52 is just the eternal aircraft and will fly forever.
Hobear@reddit
Do you want a Harmonica but in a jet?
NoGoodMc2@reddit
Super sonic nuclear bomber.
Nuclear weapons weren’t much good if you couldn’t deliver them to a target. B29’s were fine at dropping bombs over Japan during WW2 but by the 50’s high speed super sonic interceptors and USSR being so vast in size we needed a bomber that could penetrate deep into Soviet territory and fast. Unfortunately for the XB-70 icbm tech advanced quickly rendering the aircraft obsolete before they finished deployment.
StrigiStockBacking@reddit
Supersonic delivery of nuclear weapons. By the time it was done, alternative nuclear warhead delivery platforms were more economical and simpler to operate, so it was cancelled.
Ok_Rich_9010@reddit
I get it. it's thee party plane
SouthTexasBoy64@reddit
Beautiful
Theory_Crafted@reddit
I think it looks like if someone made a paper plane in real life...
Sickinmytechchunk@reddit
I really want to see the fuel gauge when it uses all 6 burners on take off.
Feeling-Income5555@reddit
How come the front fuselage was so longing front of the body. It doesn’t seem like the extra length has any real purpose.
FlyinRyan123456@reddit
I’m happy I can go see her whenever I want.
Vestat1@reddit
DAMN, she's sexy!!! Made my eyes widen and all 🔥🔥🔥
horny_on_main2@reddit
The biggest impression I have of this plane is that she could've been an Ace Combat boss if she was bigger. Not that that's a bad thing, mind you.
Single_Engine_Jockey@reddit
Still is. One of my favorite aircraft at Dayton.
dpdxguy@reddit
Still is, even though she's grounded. :)
Saw it the first time in the early 70s when my grandfather took me to the National Museum of the US Air Force. Now I live near Dayton and see it every time I have a visitor who's interested.
It's a unique aircraft among four buildings full of interesting and unique air and space craft at the museum.
iamthinksnow@reddit
She used to sit out front, so you could see her any time you were driving by (or skipping school to go to the museum.)
dpdxguy@reddit
Yep. When my grandfather took me, I remember walking out to see a B-36, the XB-70 (Valkyrie), and a bunch of other aircraft on one of the old WWII runways.
Glad they're all out of the elements now, though there are still a few static displays at the museum.
Se2kr@reddit
Why does it look like the Concorde’s cousin?
HamsterVeil@reddit
Has a SST Concord look.
TheIdeaArchitect@reddit
Why have I never seen this?
STEVE_FROM_EVE@reddit
I just can’t agree. Nothing about the plane exhibits aggression. Give me a Warthog, a B-52; something awe inspiring and dangerous.
But goddamn those are some fucking clean lines
heathe70@reddit
Odd choice for a name though…
mummifiedclown@reddit
Cue the Blue Danube waltz.
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
[removed]
AutoModerator@reddit
Your comment or post has been automatically removed from /r/aviation. Posts/Comments from new accounts are automatically removed by our automated systems. We, and many other large subreddits, do this to combat spam, spambots, and other activities that are not condusive to the sub. In the meantime, participate on Reddit to build your acouunt age and this restriction will go away. Also, please familiarize yourself with this subreddit's rules, which you can find in the sidebar or by clicking this link. Do not contact the moderation team unless you feel you have received this message/action in error. We will not manually approve comments or posts from new accounts.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
Cautious_Buffalo6563@reddit
It’s like they tried to make a Buber from a Concorde
archlich@reddit
A slow concord. Xb70 did Mach 3.1. Concord was 2.
Cautious_Buffalo6563@reddit
I mean 2 more engines right? Or 4 more?
archlich@reddit
Just two more
Cautious_Buffalo6563@reddit
There’s your problem.
And a lot less civil aviation equipment weight probably?
Almost_Sentient@reddit
That would be a Vulcan. Although I think it might have preceded it.
egg651@reddit
The Vulcan was subsonic and pre-dates Concorde by nearly 20 years
Luckynumberlucas@reddit
Spicy concorde
Complex-Act-8970@reddit
If only
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
[removed]
AutoModerator@reddit
To reduce political fighting this post or comment has been filtered for approval. Submission of political posts and comments are not allowed, Rule 7. Political comments can result in a ban.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
TheScottishPimp03@reddit
Best bird ever made. Suck it SR-71!
truthhurts2222222@reddit
All those exhaust ports at the stern make it look like a Star Destroyer from that angle
MandolinMagi@reddit
And the X-24 makes a decent A-Wing!
zsaleeba@reddit
I don't think that's a coincidence, more like it was inspiration for George Lucas.
DeepPermission4786@reddit
I actually made some titanium parts for the jewel years ago… never saw this vid, thanks!
ThanosWasRightAnyway@reddit
It does not look like it could carry enough fuel for those engines
pilostt@reddit
One step away from an imperial cruiser
MegaPegasusReindeer@reddit
Just needs some bright colours and then could be in r/TerranTradeAuthority
Hot-Refrigerator6583@reddit
Wish I knew this existed yesterday
MegaPegasusReindeer@reddit
I think some of the books are available on archive.org. The stories are pretty good and the illustrations are amazing.
1004Hayfield@reddit
I still think it looks like a bigger version of Clint Eastwood’s Firefox.
Weekly_Injury_9211@reddit
Klingon……?
Ok_Interaction_6711@reddit
Yes I thought Klingon Battle Cruiser
slowpoke2018@reddit
Qapla!
uslessgodness@reddit
looks like concorde 2.0 'da amurica way'
MrPdxTiger@reddit
D’amurica way 😁
M-Div@reddit
So the fastest bird in the inventory was… a duck?
Invictus7525@reddit
Probably one of the US greatest aviation show offs!! Hold my pocket protector and watch this…
S4Guy2k@reddit
Having seen this thing in person... my brain had to reset itself when I saw it... because it is staggering that something that large could fly.
AlarmDozer@reddit
No. This is a variation on a form to test engines, in this case. The form has been used in others. Maybe the X-59? I don’t know. I’ve seen it used elsewhere so you’re not aware of them all.
Fluffy_Muffins_415@reddit
I wish I could have seen it fly
Beautiful-Parsley-24@reddit
Same - as long as I wasn't in the chase plane. :)
melancholy_dood@reddit
"ABSOLUTELY BAD ASS!"
No-Expression-2404@reddit
My phone just burned a thousand pounds of jet fuel playing that video
jamesdmays@reddit
Rookie numbers
Ill-End3169@reddit
this one goes to 11
Kongbuck@reddit
Why don't we just make 10 faster?
Ill-End3169@reddit
?
these go to 11
Substantial-Map-6524@reddit
Not sure id go that far
Threedawg@reddit
I made my wedding ring out of the one that crashed
funk-the-funk@reddit
🤯
cash8888@reddit
Hey, you know how we put 2 of those badass engines on the black bird? Now hear me out, what if we put 6 of them on a plane.
International_Buy_59@reddit
Looks like the tupolev from temu
archlich@reddit
Which tupolev? They never made anything remotely like it.
gedrazeli@reddit
Haha, that Valkyrie's one sleek bird—beats any competition!
SpecialistPlastic729@reddit
It had to slow down to employ ordinance. If high speed did reduce susceptibility the effect was diminished near the target.
A friend of mine who should know said the cockpit would oscillate around the fuselage centerline at speed because it was basically cantilevered out from the wing. Pilots got airsick due to the constant motion.
A modern control system that used the canards to damp the oscillation would have helped but the state of the art was more primitive
Lopoetve@reddit
A bunch of they looked AI in air,., but damn, I don’t mind
BaggyBloke@reddit
Nah - Concorde's ugly grandchild.
Nah only joking - aviation engineering is always awesome, love it!
mutonzi@reddit
more like concordes mother
BaggyBloke@reddit
Fair point!
barkingcat@reddit
Don't make em like they used to.
bill_delong@reddit
Do the wing tips move up and down?
mutonzi@reddit
fold down at supersonic speeds so it can ride its own shockwave
FranklinCheese@reddit
Shit was MASSIVE in person
Aggravating_Pay1948@reddit
Let's make a petition to bring back the stupid cold war era aircraft.
Raaazzle@reddit
Like a freaking star destroyer
BraidRuner@reddit
What could we build if we built it today with all of the advances in materials science?
luffydkenshin@reddit
Obligatory: My grandfather was on the design team that developed the engines they used on these, the GE YJ93.
MeLuckyDragon@reddit
They should build another one, just because it is so bad ass and for no other reason!
koolerb@reddit
Beast
JasonBourne1965@reddit
Before significant advances in anti-aircraft technology, this baby had the Rooskies peeing their pants every night.
qiyubi@reddit
1 more engine bro I swear just 1 more it will be redundant enough
KinksAreForKeds@reddit
"gorgeous"
It was actually a bit goofy-looking, imo. But it was an amazing bird... design- and tech-wise.
D2WilliamU@reddit
It looks like a skinny dork with bad neck posture
fiittzzyy@reddit
Literally looks like something straight out of Thunderbirds, so freaking cool...
Windtalk3r@reddit
It looks like Firefox from the Clint Eastwood movie.
LT_Ted_Striker@reddit
She's even more impressive in person at the Dayton Airforce museum in Ohio.
Worth a day trip.
ToeSniffer245@reddit
Still looks like it came out of a Gerry Anderson show
WhitePantherXP@reddit
It's always looked like something that came out of Russia to me. I don't trust it.
MeinHerzIn_Flammen@reddit
Looks similar to Tu144 from the front with those canards
unperturbium@reddit
I wish there was high quality audio of it operating.
Open_Priority1498@reddit
This dogshit song paired with a random snippet of Oppenheimer isn't high quality enough for you?
elliotcook10@reddit
It’s called phonk and it’s art
Stoner_Space_Wizard@reddit
That’s not phonk that’s a lady gaga song 😭😭😭😭
Mavgaming1@reddit
I think the actual song is a slowed version of the song "Government Hooker".
elliotcook10@reddit
slowed down, bass boosted, and reverbed to sound like phonk, sorry I didn’t specify
VanillaTortilla@reddit
Can't spell fart without art.
MrNewking@reddit
Wait people actually want unedit slop?
WhitePantherXP@reddit
I've ALWAYS thought this aircraft looked like it was designed by the USSR
qtpss@reddit
Ride of the Valkyrie indeed.
bryangcrane@reddit
Ah yes, the era of infinite budgets and politicians who understood complexities of foreign policy.
Dttison@reddit
Gorgeous? Nah. It looks ugly and weird but it’s so cool I don’t care about that.
Rex_Mundi@reddit
Secret_Cranberry_595@reddit
Shitty gas mileage 😂
Ok-Wasabi2873@reddit
Klingon Bird of Prey.
happyexit7@reddit
How much fuel did that use, with all those engines?
crosstherubicon@reddit
Made Concorde look like the fuel economy model.
Helmett-13@reddit
"Y-You want how many engines in your delta wing aircraft?"
"All of them...wait."
"...I worry what you just heard was, 'Give me a lot of engines.' What I said was, 'Give me all the engines you have.' Do you understand?"
nods in fear and awe
Frosty-Improvement-8@reddit
I recognize that Ron Swanson quote anywhere
Helmett-13@reddit
:)
CoachDonut82@reddit
Why would anyone build planes with anything other than breakfast foo... I mean all the engines they have?
People are idiots, Leslie.
Fijihot@reddit
Looks unconventional
Empire_of_walnuts@reddit
That clip of it flying alongside the Starfighters 😍
Smoky_Dojo@reddit
What purpose did having the wingtips fold down in flight serve?
Ill_WillRx@reddit
A couple things, but mainly compression lift at supersonic speeds, trapped shockwaves producing lift.
hartzonfire@reddit
Concorde’s evil cousin? It reminds me so much of it.
Elios000@reddit
shame no sim gets compression lift right... this would be such fun to thing fly around in X-plane or MSFS
TSLAog@reddit
This thing always made me feel like we’re finally building scyfi in real life, legit looks like a spacecraft! Ever since i saw the one in Dayton when I was like 5yo it’s remained my favorite airplane to exist.
navagrw@reddit
wow i had no idea......reminds me of when i discovered concorde
mz_groups@reddit
The US Air Force procurement office ordering YJ93 engines:
airpab1@reddit
Cool looking, but ill conceived
sharrancleric@reddit
Fuckin flat boi
K_Linkmaster@reddit
Thanks for the 15 cuts of Liam neeson jumping over a fence.
PurpD420@reddit
I love the xb70 so much I got a tattoo of it lol
BassKitty305017@reddit
Little wind direction indicator on the nose 20 seconds into the video? That thing ain’t sticking around at Mach 2.
aleopardstail@reddit
there are a few seriously beautiful aircraft, not many are American
the XB-70 is however remarkably near the top of the list, this has the "kids cartoon drawing of something fast" look nailed
kd8qdz@reddit
Nah, it looks like it was built by someone with only 15 hours in KSP.
concreteunderwear@reddit
I was thinking really really ugly. But I guess once you get soo ugly it becomes good looking to some people.
PicnicBasketPirate@reddit
I generally agree with you. But that thumbnail shot up her skirt....It did things to me.
That wall of engines......each big enough to make a Mig-25 feel inadequate
ltsmash1200@reddit
Wish there was still one flying around for air shows.
No-Rush396@reddit
A beautiful plane, in fact one that was probably ahead of her time, but far, far too expensive to ever operate or fly. Apparently if they had built the airframe entirely from gold, that would have been cheaper than the final version!
Rocket123123@reddit
It's a bit wrinkly up close but yes a nice looking airplane.
Kalorama_Master@reddit
As a kid I had a Brazilian board game (War II) that had this plane on the cover. When I moved to the US, I went to the hobby and described the plane. He offered a SR—71. I told him it was bit more like the Concord, he said no such plane existed
StunningError4693@reddit
Wow. Ist that AI or a new Spaceship?
HansSprungfeld90@reddit
Sorry guys, I need to ask. AI ruined everything for me. At 19 seconds is this CGI or AI generated? Any source available?
Orruner@reddit
It's hand-made, free range CGI
1969Malibu@reddit
I think it's CGI from this video by Mustard https://youtu.be/Yl32c352thE?si=_lPLbEhPXDrGVwQD
SummerInPhilly@reddit
I’m guessing AI or CGI; that’s where the chase planes crashed into it from. I can’t imagine there’s much XB-70 footage out there the avgeeks in this sub haven’t seen
fatmaneats17@reddit
I don’t think beautiful is the way to describe this plane. Looks like a adolescence giraffe
Tasty-Distribution75@reddit
It's like a Lego version of Concorde or the Vulcan bomber.
Pasco08@reddit
Looks like a concord on steroids.
rufos_adventure@reddit
it looks like a huge canadian goose. that butt shot of the engine is pure sex!
robo-dragon@reddit
Always love seeing her in person at Dayton! That row of gigantic engines on the back is the coolest thing! Looks like the ass-end of a sci-fi spaceship!
DasFreibier@reddit
how does it route the intakes?
Blurny@reddit
Bagsy not doing the boroscope inspections!!
Dangerous-Salad-bowl@reddit
I kinda wish what it came in black too. (X15, SR71 etc)
taruclimber8@reddit
What a majestic beast!
vampyire@reddit
Got to see it once in person, I did a cross country RV trip and diverted one day to Akron.. 100% worth it!!! the Museum if fantastic
Malcolm2theRescue@reddit
Sexiest airplane ever built!
7stroke@reddit
Sorry, but that’s one ugly airplane. I have seen it in person, too. ‘Enormous’ isn’t even the word… it’s a building unto itself.
Poker-Junk@reddit
I’ve been crushing on that beauty for five decades.
Maximum-Tap6389@reddit
I think the gov has silently fixed its flaws. Last summer I saw its silhouette strangely fixed over a group of trees by my yard. As my dogs started barking, the massive silhouette disappeared without any noise or making the trees move. The next day a massive group of oaks were flattened on their sides with the root balls up. Oh wait, it could have been a Chinese supersonic weather. balloon.
KiloCharlieXray@reddit
Hello.👋
elemental-mind@reddit
*plays Imperial March*
Super-Resident11@reddit
One of the most beautiful airplanes ever made.
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
[removed]
AutoModerator@reddit
Your comment or post has been automatically removed from /r/aviation. Posts/Comments from new accounts are automatically removed by our automated systems. We, and many other large subreddits, do this to combat spam, spambots, and other activities that are not condusive to the sub. In the meantime, participate on Reddit to build your acouunt age and this restriction will go away. Also, please familiarize yourself with this subreddit's rules, which you can find in the sidebar or by clicking this link. Do not contact the moderation team unless you feel you have received this message/action in error. We will not manually approve comments or posts from new accounts.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.