North American Aviation XB-70 Valkyrie
The North American Aviation XB-70 Valkyrie was the prototype version of the proposed B-70 nuclear-armed deep-penetration bomber for the United States Air Force's (USAF) Strategic Air Command. Designed by North American Aviation in the late 1950s, the Valkyrie was a large six-engined aircraft able to fly Mach 3+ at an altitude of 70,000 feet (21,000 m), which would have allowed it to avoid interceptors, the only effective anti-bomber weapon at the time. The introduction of effective high-altitude surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), the program's high development costs, and changes in the technological environment with the introduction of intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)s led to the cancellation of the B-70 program in 1961. Although the proposed fleet of operational B-70 bombers was canceled, two prototype aircraft were built as the XB-70A and used in supersonic test flights from 1964 to 1969. One prototype crashed following a midair collision in 1966; the other is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Ohio. Performance Maximum speed: Mach (2,056 mph, 3,309 km/h) Cruise speed: Mach (2,000 mph, 3,200 km/h) Range: 3,725 nmi (4,288 mi, 6,900 km) on combat mission Service ceiling: 77,350 ft (23,600 m) Wing loading: lb/ft² ( kg/m²) lift-to-drag: about 6 at Mach 2[99] Thrust/weight:
Size: 4287px × 2848px
Location: Dayton, Ohio.
Photo credit: © Paul Briden / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: american, aviation, north, valkyrie, xb-70
