Printable Version of Topic

Posted by: DerKrieger 13 Aug 2014, 20:29

First, some information as to what the hell I'm talking about:
http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/another-triangular-mystery-aircraft-spotted-over-the-u-1564690286
http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/so-what-were-those-secret-flying-wing-aircraft-spotted-1555124270
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/05/12/flying-dorito-strange-aircraft-texas/9007123/
http://www.wfaa.com/news/texas-news/bfont-color000000VIDEOfontb-Flying-Dorito-has-eyes-looking-to-the-skies-in-West-Texas-258730351.html



Now that that's out of the way, I stumbled across this news a few weeks ago. Back in May there were sightings of triangular, B2-like aircraft in the skies over the midwestern US. From the pictures they clearly aren't B2s and the USAF stated that there weren't any B2 bombers, much less three of them at once, flying over the areas where these flying wing aircraft were spotted. They also don't appear to be RQ-170 Sentinels, a secret reconnaissance UAV that was classified until one was sighted at an airport in Kandahar, Afghanistan. So what are they?

The second article gives some good theories as to what they are. The indications that it is the alleged TR-3A Black Manta reconnaissance/electronic warfare aircraft or some sort of UAV based on the proposed design makes sense. But if the TR-3A was indeed replaced by the RQ-170 Sentinel, why is it still flying around? Does it have even greater ELINT capabilities than the RQ-170? Can it be used as a low-observable surgical strike bomber? Is it being used as the testbed for some sort of experimental weaponry, like a directed energy weapon? Or is it in fact deploying such weapons in the field? Perhaps this top secret reconnaissance/EW aircraft had or was modified for some sort of strike mission to take the F-117s place. In addition to collecting data from the enemy it could be able to deliver laser guided munitions or JDAMS to a target or even use laser/microwaves to disable enemy radars and electronics, thus clearing the way for less stealthy aircraft.

Posted by: Svea Rike 13 Aug 2014, 20:41

Or maybe, it is, in fact, aliens?

Posted by: DerKrieger 13 Aug 2014, 20:48

Extremely unlikely. So they travel from wherever in the galaxy all the way over here, in spacecraft (using turbofans, no less) that look almost exactly like a speculated secret USAF aircraft, evade detection from radar and the like the world over, and leave no trace save for a few grainy photos made by a few guys camping outside an airport in northwest Texas before going all the way back home?

Posted by: Svea Rike 13 Aug 2014, 21:14

No shit, sherlock, it was a joke.

Posted by: DerKrieger 14 Aug 2014, 0:58

I thought I got the "Aliens" joke out of the way with my first post already.

Posted by: MARS 14 Aug 2014, 6:43

Fascinating stuff. The last time we've had a top secret aircraft 'revealed' like this must have been during the F117/B2 development period

Posted by: DerKrieger 14 Aug 2014, 14:20

If its not some sort of new UAV or a prototype of the Next Generation Bomber, then it could likely be some sort of spinoff/cousin to the B-2 or F-117. What's interesting is that there have been sightings of similar unexplained aircraft during the 1990s and 2000s, implying the latter. The question is, why wasn't this aircraft declassified along with the B-2 and F-117? What capabilities does it have that the US military wants to keep hidden from foreign intelligence services? A surveillance/electronic warfare manned precursor to platforms such as the Sentinel or Global Hawk sounds likely, probably with some sort of strike capability or even directed energy weaponry, explaining why they're still flying around today. Back during the Gulf War there were rumors about some classified stealth aircraft, named the TR-3 Black Manta, using a laser to designate targets for F-117s. But, the F-117 already has a laser designator built into the aircraft. Maybe there's something to this rumor, that this still-classified stealth aircraft has a directed energy weapon designed to burn out enemy radar or electronics.

Posted by: Oliver 14 Aug 2014, 14:34

Am I seing the Aurora Bomber?

Posted by: Svea Rike 14 Aug 2014, 14:56

Or, maybe it IS an alien craft that happens to look like a rumored experimental drone and their engines just looks and sounds like turbofans? You can't say it isn't without conclusive evidence.

Posted by: MARS 14 Aug 2014, 15:17

Occam's razor, mate. Even despite the lack of hard evidence, it -is- more likely a human-made military aircraft than an extraterrestrial entity. We do know for a fact that humans, aircraft and human-made secret aircraft exist, but we cannot (yet) say the same of aliens, so it is more reasonable to assume that it really is just a new USAF machine.

Posted by: DerKrieger 14 Aug 2014, 16:08

It's quite probable that the USAF made a hypersonic spy plane, or at least had a design tender submitted, but I highly doubt this is it. If the Aurora exists and is still flying I doubt it'd be used as a spy plane, as satellites could do the job much cheaper and safer. A flying wing such as this one isn't exactly the best planform for a high-speed aircraft. Large, broad wings indicate that its for stability and endurance at high altitudes and low speed, perfect for a spy/ECM aircraft or bomber. Any modern spy aircraft would be economical, subsonic, and very stealthy. It'd be able to fly undetected at high altitudes over a hostile nation for hours and record anything the mission called for. The weakness of spy satellites is that they only have a very short window of operation due to their high altitude and the earth's rotation, a disadvantage aircraft do not have.

Posted by: (USA)Bruce 16 Aug 2014, 12:04

It'd be nice to see the auora being existant after all of theese years...This is really interesting and caught my eye

Posted by: Pepo 16 Aug 2014, 21:29

maybe a prototype for trying a new technology for a new plane. that could explain the secrety of this very interesting project

Posted by: Oldschool22 17 Aug 2014, 4:40

the contrails indicate a human-made jet engine...as for the shape, it could be a new type of generation 5 aircraft with a smoother designed airframe, it has the same basic shape of a B2, just without the jagged edges at the rear, Boeing or Northrop Grumman ( or someone else i forget the manufacturer ), is currently developing a stealth UAV for the airforce

P.S. F22, B2, F117 all fall under generation 5 aircraft with generation 1 being WW1 era aircraft

Posted by: Oldschool22 17 Aug 2014, 10:24

more info on the "UFO"

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/x-45c-pics.htm