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Description
| Manufacturer: | North American |
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| Base model: | B-70 | ||
| Designation: | XB-70 | ||
| Nickname: | Valkyrie | ||
| Designation System: | U.S. Air Force | ||
| Designation Period: | 1924-Present | ||
| Basic role: | Bomber | ||
| Status: | Experimental | ||
| First Flew: | 1964/09/21 |
Specifications
| Length: | 185' 10" | 56.6 m | |
| Height: | 30' 9" | 9.3 m | |
| Wingspan: | 105' | 32.0 m | |
| Gross Weight: | 534,700 lb | 242,494 kg | |
Propulsion
| No. of Engines: | 6 | ||
| Powerplant: | General Electric YJ93 | ||
| Thrust (each): | 30,000 lb | 13,605 kg | |
Performance
| Range: | 4,288 miles | 6,904 km | |
| Cruise Speed: | 2,000 mph | 3,220 km/h | 1,740 kt |
| Max Speed: | 2,056 mph | 3,310 km/h | 1,789 kt |
| Ceiling: | 77,350 ft | 23,575 m | |
Examples of this type may be found at
| Museum | City | State |
| United States Air Force Museum | Wright-Patterson | Ohio |
XB-70 on display
United States Air Force Museum |
Recent comments by our visitors
| Christopher J Hubert Shelby Township, MI | I am building this scale model. I want to show the model in the gear down and wing tips fully down (65 deg). That configuration does not exist unless the plane did a test flight with gear down and tips fully down. The wing tips would hit the ground if it was on the runway. Does anyone know if there was a test flight with this configuration. The compression lift with the wing tips was a real interesting part of this aircraft but so is the landing gear. However, I don't want to build this model without some authenticity. There is one roll out picture that I saw with the wing tips down (25 deg). 05/10/2011 @ 08:53 [ref: 37844] |
| Dale R. Messimer , CA | For Mr. Donald E. Black - can you contact me regarding your involvement in the XB-70 program?
Dale R. Messimer rtepak6@aol.com 03/12/2008 @ 20:53 [ref: 19995] |
| Kevin Frisco, TX | For Zane in Arlington, Texas- This link will take you to pictures of the XB-70 appearing at Carswell AFB (March 1966). Enjoy!
http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=12713 04/26/2007 @ 11:45 [ref: 16313] |
| Doald E. Black Rossville, TN | I started to work for NAA at USAF plant #42 Nov 6, 1961 at USAF plant #42 in Palmdale, Ca.
Spent about 3 years on the B-70 project as a "weld developement mechanic" (5643). It was the most pleasureable experience of my entire carreer. 01/15/2007 @ 09:38 [ref: 15190] |
| Stan , CA | I must agree with Mr. Wilde above on the single use strategic design regarding the B-70 and it not being very useful in the multi-role function. However, I would submit the following:
By far the greatest legacy of these two aircraft (besides being one of the coolest planes to ever get airborne) was that it forced the Soviets to spend billions and billions more dollars (that they didn’t have) preparing to defend against it than we spent in the entire program. In the mid 1960's, the Soviets saw nothing but fleets of B-70's coming over the horizon at Mach 3 dropping H-bombs that they could not defend against. They were probably more terrified of this aircraft than even the B-52, which also sent cold shivers down their spine. They even designed an entire aircraft system (the MIG-25) in response to this threat, its sole purpose being to shoot down the B-70. The B-70, the B-52, the Apollo program, the Strategic Defense Initiative--all of these systems/research programs and more like them literally bankrupted the Soviets into oblivion. It makes no difference that we did not build and deploy some of them--they THOUGHT we would and they spent heavily in response. We beat them economically and the XB-70 helped us do it. A very cost effective plane when put into perspective. 09/19/2006 @ 16:23 [ref: 14224] |
| spin Honolulu, HI | Looks as though AW&ST may have found my B70 aircraft #3, that is the YB70 that was not assembled back in the 1964 time frame. Also the USAF X20 lifting body space craft may have got into production as well... set on the back of some type of B70 aircraft mothership..hope it all is true. We in the USAF still could use a B70 type strategic bomber. We are going to look into putting into production a new strategic bomber or space bomber, (not we my have one at this time) over the next few years..and so it go's. 07/10/2006 @ 21:53 [ref: 13704] |
| Zane Arlington, TX | I am looking for nay photgraphs of the XB-70 that made an appearence at an airshow at Carswell AFB, Ft. Worth,TX in March of 1966.
Thank you, 04/06/2006 @ 21:11 [ref: 13072] |
| TOMMY MOZISEK EAST BERNARD,, TX | About ten years ago my wife and I were watching an episode of "Wimgs" on the Discovery channel.
this airplane was featured. I told my wife I saw that airplane. She asked when and Isaid back in about 1962 or so when I was about 12 years old. As the show went on they talked about making only 2 planes and that one crashed when hit by a chase plane. My wife said see you couldn't have seen thst plane. what happend next made us both wide eyed. they said the one remaining plane did make one cross country flight from Edwards down the U. S. & Mexico border, up the Gulf coast and back to Edwards. Thats when I saw it as it flew overhead just Northeast of Victoria, Texas. I remember looking up and seeing the smaller front wing and the large swept back delta wing. Beig around cropdusters as a young kid Iwas very interested airplanes and vividly remembering the sight of this airplane flying overhead. I have not read any reports of this crosscountry flight but I know they talked about the flight on that show. If anyone can confirm this flight, it would truly be appreciated. Then I would surely go to the museum and become reaquainted with an "Old Friend". as the show i 0 04/01/2006 @ 09:56 [ref: 13001] |
| ethan , PA | I love this plane, if we gave it a second chance today, I think it would be the best plane if the USAF fleet. If Joe Walker wouldn't have crashed his F-104 chase plane into the NASA plane, then it would probably be around today. The only real problems with the plane was that when flying at top speed, the materials couldn't withstand the forces of Mach 3.1 flight. And it's radar and infra-red signatures were huge. The materials that we use to make planes today are the same as in the XB-70, but now we have perfected them so they can withstand Mach 3.1 flight. And as goes for the radar and infra-red signatures, we have RAM now to fix those problems. I also think that this plane is the argualby the most exotic plane ever created by anyone. I think that we should use it today, planes like this would make all our enemies below us! 03/27/2006 @ 15:50 [ref: 12940] |
| Roger McDonald Bothell, WA | I worked for Boeing as a 'parts chaser' in Flight Test in 1965-66 and travelled to Edwards on several test aircraft (B727 liquid cooled brakes and a B720 test). I was lucky to see many test/experimental aircraft around Edwards (X15, YF12A, XC142, a fan-ducted Army fighter). I remember them moving the XB70 one day and dragging wide boards with magnets on them in front of the siler coated tires to pick up FOD. I saw the XB70 fly and remember the fantastic acceleration as it pulled away from the chase planes; a real treat watching something that big leave a F104 behind in just a matter of a few seconds. 03/25/2006 @ 15:10 [ref: 12918] |
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