Yes I remember this structure from a documentary on the WW2 Nazi German Horten 229 jet fighter/bomber that was recreated by Grumman/LM(?) technicians and this was taken to classified USAF facility where jet/drones were hoisted on top of structures like this and subjected to radars of all types to determine RCS-interestingly they did not reveal the Horten's RCS but stated it was well ahead of its time and used properly(destroying RAF radar stations in a stealthy first strike and would be uncatchable(900-1000km/hr!!!) by the RAF's piston engined planes)amazing.
There are a few inaccuracies here.
The Horten was only a prototype and never made it to production.
The Germans did not understand or aim for RCS reduction during that era. It was a totally happy coincidence that the flying wing was also a airframe design that is conducive to RCS reduction. This wasn't the objective of the flying wing when it was envisaged by the Horten brothers or Jack Northrop.
Northrop was actually the first to experiment with flying wing, before the Hortens. Look up the N1M.
Some American company did eventually do a replica of the Horten and tested its RCS, it was nowhere near a stealth aircraft, proving they didn't design the Horten prototype based on any science of RCS reduction.
It wasn’t even a coincidence it was basically a lie. I remember the Documentary and since then it’s been exposed as something of a scam. The Smithsonian has an actual H229 and preservation work found no evidence of the Renier Horten claimed radar absorbing sawdust charcoal impregnated paint. only oxidation of wood. Hortens claims were made in 1983 when stealth was actually known about. Farther NG’s actual results were that when they tested the reproduction it got a higher RCS return then their control. That Control was a 3/4 inch piece of plywood.
The plans for the product 229 even called for an aluminum skin and Steel structures around the center section and day light operations making its “Stealth” null and void as NG’s model was only wood and a bit of aluminum.
The Documentary didn’t lend much of its much credibility in its claims that the only surviving Ho229 was stored on some secret location out of public eyes… it was in the open In Chicago then a wooden shed then restored by the Smithsonian. Perhaps had it not been in such rough shape we wouldn’t have had people recirculating myths.
It is a long lived myth of German Superiority in everything well forgetting that much of what they had actually matched existing western and in some cases eastern technology. Similar to the Soviet myths of superiority in technology… myths that have at this point been quite thoroughly debunked.
Well the former was named after the latter. Anyway it was Klingon Bird of Prey and a Romulan Warbird.
In TOS Season one mind you) the Romulans had Birds of Prey and the Klingons had battle cruisers. The Romulans would get Warbirds in TNG and the Klingons would get Birds of Prey in Star Trek III. It’s a long debate amongst the Nerdier amongst us as in early Scripts the Klingons in ST III were Romulans.
With the shutdown can they announce a winner?
The Government “Shutdown” just means reduced operations not complete termination of operations. Many of the critical infrastructure is still operating pending the CR.
