20 radical military aircraft that didn’t make the cut
Northrup HL-10
There are flying wings, which are wings without fuselages, then there are lifting bodies – fuselages without wings. One example of a lifting body is the Northrup HL-10 (right), which would be dropped from a B-52 at high altitudes, then landed at Edwards Air Force Base’s Rogers Dry Lake after a brief flight, paving the way for future “space shuttle” operations. Also pictured are Martin’s X-24A (left) and Northrop’s M2-F2 (center).
As soon as I finish my “slideshow” on Cold War-ERA TAC warplanes — which has become more of a full-length article with 1,500 words and counting — I’ll jump right on that, Colonel!
Thanks for your service,
Chris
Excellent article and fascinating pictures. Would like to see a similar one for pre-ww1, ww1 and post-ww1 aircraft. Thanks, Colonel Buzzsaw, USAF-ret. Retired SADO/13B/DO for 601 AOC.