High Gallery
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Military Aircraft XB-70 VALKYRIE Photo By Coll B. Thouanel |
| AT the instigation of General Curtis LeMay, head of Strategic Air Command, the US Air Force during 1954 issued a requirement for a strategic bomber to secedes the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. The final design competition between Boeing And North American was decided in favor of the latter in December 1957, and in December 1959 the USAF ordered full project definition. Three XB-70A Valkyrie prototypes were ordered in October 1961, though the third aircraft was latter canceled. The bomber offered the possibility of Mach 3 speed and a very long range through its combination of a mainly stainless steel airframe, and canard configuration with a large delta wing, whose tips folded down in supersonic flight for improved stability, and six powerful reheated turbojets. The Valkyrie program was downgraded to research status, and the first prototype flew in September 1964. The second prototype was lost in an accident in June 1966, and the first aircraft continued its research flights up to 19969. The sole surviving example is displayed by the US Air Force Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. |
TECHNICAL DATA
| Description | Specifications |
| Manufacturer: North American | Length: 196 ft. 6 in. |
| First Flight: September 1964 | Height: 30 ft. 3 in. |
| Model: | Wing Span: 105 ft 0 in. |
| Crew: Four | Wing Area: 6,297.0 sq. ft. |
| Nickname: Valkyrie | Empty Weight: 205,000 lb. |
| Basic Role: Strategic heavy bomber. | Max. Weight: 550,000 lb. |
| Other Versions: XB-70 Valkyrie sole variant. | Armament: Up to 14 free fall nuclear bombs carried internally. |
| Principal User: USA. |
Propulsion |
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Performance |
Power Plant: General Electric J93-GE-3 turbojets. |
| Range: 5,000 miles. | Horsepower: 27,200-lb reheated thrust. |
| Max. Speed: 2,035 mph, or Mach 3.8 at 36,000 ft. | No. Of Engines: Six |
| Ceiling: 75,000 ft. | |
| Climb Rate: |