The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk is a stealth ground attack aircraft formerly operated by the United States Air Force. The F-117A's first flight was in 1981, and it achieved Initial Operational Capability status in October 1983.1 The F-117A was "acknowledged" and revealed to the world in November 1988.
A product of the Skunk Works and a development of the Have Blue prototype, it became the first operational aircraft initially designed around stealth technology. The F-117A was widely publicized during the Gulf War of 1991.
The Air Force retired the F-117 on 22 April 2008, primarily due to the acquisition and eventual deployment of the more effective F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.
About the size of an F-15C Eagle, the single-seat F-117A is powered by two non-afterburning General Electric F404 turbofan engines, and has quadruple-redundant fly-by-wire flight controls. It is air refuelable. To lower development costs, the avionics, fly-by-wire systems, and other parts are derived from the F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet and F-15E Strike Eagle.
Among the penalties for stealth are lower engine power thrust, due to losses in the inlet and outlet, a very low wing aspect ratio, and a high sweep angle (50°) needed to deflect incoming radar waves to the sides. With these design considerations and no afterburner, the F-117 is limited to subsonic speeds.
The F-117A is equipped with sophisticated navigation and attack systems integrated into a digital avionics suite. It carries no radar, which lowers emissions and cross-section. It navigates primarily by GPS and high-accuracy inertial navigation. Missions are coordinated by an automated planning system that can automatically perform all aspects of a strike mission, including weapons release. Targets are acquired by a thermal imaging infrared system, slaved to a laser that finds the range and designates targets for laser-guided bombs.
The F-117A's split internal bay can carry 5,000 lb (2,300 kg) of ordnance. Typical weapons are a pair of GBU-10, GBU-12, or GBU-27 laser-guided bombs, two BLU-109 penetration bombs, or two Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs), a GPS/INS guided stand-off bomb.
Despite its productive combat service, the F-117 was designed with late 1970s technologies. Its stealth technology, while more advanced than that of any other aircraft except the B-2 Spirit, F-22 and F-35, is maintenance intensive. Furthermore, the facet-based stealth design has been surpassed by newer technology. Program Budget Decision 720 (PBD 720), dated 28 December 2005, proposed retiring the entire fleet by October 2008 to permit buying more F-22As. PBD 720 called for 10 aircraft to be retired in FY 2007 and the remaining 42 aircraft in FY 2008 and stated there were more capable Air Force assets that could provide low observable, precision penetrating weapons capability including the B-2, F-22 and JASSM.43 The Air Force originally planned to retire the F-117 in 2011. The Air Force later decided to retire the F-117 sooner to shift funds to modernizing the rest of the fleet.27 This would save an estimated $1.07 billion.44
A pair of specially painted F-117 Nighthawks fly off from their last refueling by the Ohio Air National Guard's 121st Air Refueling Wing
In late 2006, the Air Force closed the F-117 pilot school,4 and announced the retirement of the F-117. The first six aircraft to be retired made the last flight on 12 March 2007 after a ceremony at Holloman AFB to commemorate the aircraft's career. Brigadier General David Goldfein, commander of the 49th Fighter Wing, said at the ceremony, "With the launch of these great aircraft today, the circle comes to a close — their service to our nation's defense fulfilled, their mission accomplished and a job well done. We send them today to their final resting place — a home they are intimately familiar with — their first, and only, home outside of Holloman."
Unlike most other Air Force aircraft which are retired to Davis-Monthan AFB, the F-117s were retired to the Tonopah Test Range Airport. At Tonopah, their wings were removed and the aircraft were be stored in their original hangars. On 11 March 2008, it was reported that the last F-117s in service would touch down on 22 April 2008 in Tonopah Test Range Airfield in Nevada, the site of the F-117's first flight. The F-117 was retired during ceremonies at Palmdale and Tonopah on 22 April 2008. Four aircraft were kept flying beyond April by the 410th Flight Test Squadron at Palmdale for flight test. By the beginning of August, two were remaining, and the last F-117 left Palmdale to fly to Tonopah on 11 August 2008. With the last aircraft leaving for retirement, the 410th was inactivated in a ceremony on 1 August 2008.
A product of the Skunk Works and a development of the Have Blue prototype, it became the first operational aircraft initially designed around stealth technology. The F-117A was widely publicized during the Gulf War of 1991.
The Air Force retired the F-117 on 22 April 2008, primarily due to the acquisition and eventual deployment of the more effective F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.
About the size of an F-15C Eagle, the single-seat F-117A is powered by two non-afterburning General Electric F404 turbofan engines, and has quadruple-redundant fly-by-wire flight controls. It is air refuelable. To lower development costs, the avionics, fly-by-wire systems, and other parts are derived from the F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet and F-15E Strike Eagle.
Among the penalties for stealth are lower engine power thrust, due to losses in the inlet and outlet, a very low wing aspect ratio, and a high sweep angle (50°) needed to deflect incoming radar waves to the sides. With these design considerations and no afterburner, the F-117 is limited to subsonic speeds.
The F-117A is equipped with sophisticated navigation and attack systems integrated into a digital avionics suite. It carries no radar, which lowers emissions and cross-section. It navigates primarily by GPS and high-accuracy inertial navigation. Missions are coordinated by an automated planning system that can automatically perform all aspects of a strike mission, including weapons release. Targets are acquired by a thermal imaging infrared system, slaved to a laser that finds the range and designates targets for laser-guided bombs.
The F-117A's split internal bay can carry 5,000 lb (2,300 kg) of ordnance. Typical weapons are a pair of GBU-10, GBU-12, or GBU-27 laser-guided bombs, two BLU-109 penetration bombs, or two Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs), a GPS/INS guided stand-off bomb.
Despite its productive combat service, the F-117 was designed with late 1970s technologies. Its stealth technology, while more advanced than that of any other aircraft except the B-2 Spirit, F-22 and F-35, is maintenance intensive. Furthermore, the facet-based stealth design has been surpassed by newer technology. Program Budget Decision 720 (PBD 720), dated 28 December 2005, proposed retiring the entire fleet by October 2008 to permit buying more F-22As. PBD 720 called for 10 aircraft to be retired in FY 2007 and the remaining 42 aircraft in FY 2008 and stated there were more capable Air Force assets that could provide low observable, precision penetrating weapons capability including the B-2, F-22 and JASSM.43 The Air Force originally planned to retire the F-117 in 2011. The Air Force later decided to retire the F-117 sooner to shift funds to modernizing the rest of the fleet.27 This would save an estimated $1.07 billion.44
A pair of specially painted F-117 Nighthawks fly off from their last refueling by the Ohio Air National Guard's 121st Air Refueling Wing
In late 2006, the Air Force closed the F-117 pilot school,4 and announced the retirement of the F-117. The first six aircraft to be retired made the last flight on 12 March 2007 after a ceremony at Holloman AFB to commemorate the aircraft's career. Brigadier General David Goldfein, commander of the 49th Fighter Wing, said at the ceremony, "With the launch of these great aircraft today, the circle comes to a close — their service to our nation's defense fulfilled, their mission accomplished and a job well done. We send them today to their final resting place — a home they are intimately familiar with — their first, and only, home outside of Holloman."
Unlike most other Air Force aircraft which are retired to Davis-Monthan AFB, the F-117s were retired to the Tonopah Test Range Airport. At Tonopah, their wings were removed and the aircraft were be stored in their original hangars. On 11 March 2008, it was reported that the last F-117s in service would touch down on 22 April 2008 in Tonopah Test Range Airfield in Nevada, the site of the F-117's first flight. The F-117 was retired during ceremonies at Palmdale and Tonopah on 22 April 2008. Four aircraft were kept flying beyond April by the 410th Flight Test Squadron at Palmdale for flight test. By the beginning of August, two were remaining, and the last F-117 left Palmdale to fly to Tonopah on 11 August 2008. With the last aircraft leaving for retirement, the 410th was inactivated in a ceremony on 1 August 2008.
by stevekilledu June 17, 2009
Get the F-117 Nighthawk mug.Someone who preffers night over day and walks around at night, sometimes looking for criminal activity, usually goths.
by stealthsniper23 February 15, 2008
Get the NIGHTWALKER mug.Related Words
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uhh just about the most legendary travel baseball team that has ever taken the field in Garden City. Team that was coached by the dumpiest man you will ever meet. This would not stop the team from winning on and off the field. Often got on the bad side of umpires for being loud and obnoxious. The least serious team in the entire world that actually wins. Gets wrecked at tournaments but has a good time. The players on team are spoiled by their parents and have some of the nicest gear out there. You can tell they're from Nassau County just by looking at what kind of sunglasses they wear(sweet oakleys).
Friend-"Yo did you see the Garden City Nighthawks game?"
Other friend-"Yeah man, they crushed that team and looked amazing doing it."
Other friend-"Yeah man, they crushed that team and looked amazing doing it."
by William Peter June 1, 2011
Get the Garden City Nighthawks mug.Hell, no, I'm not pulling an all-nighter! I've got an army of nighthawks in Bangalore to do that shit.
by Richard Gurley January 23, 2008
Get the Nighthawk mug.A dirty bastard that hangs out in truck stop restrooms, waiting for young boys to innocently wander in, or perhaps even for infants to be abandoned, so that he may do horrendous sexual acts to them, and then scuttle off into the night to weep openly about nothing in particular. Just a sad, filthy troll that must remain nocturnal, so as to better avoid an enraged general public, who would certainly play jump-rope with his intestines, were he to be captured. Nighthawks are also fond of maintaining a fragile self-importance through the enjoyment of silly mmorg's (massively multiplayer online roleplaying games), that no one with a real set of balls would bother to take seriously.
Dude, I know this guy who's a total nighthawk! Yeah, he spends his nights in bathroom stalls at the local Flying J truck stop, lapping at the choads of young boys who wander in to tinkle. This one poor kid's dad almost caught the guy, but the nighthawk was crying so loud, it burst the dad's eardrums, and the nighthawk escaped into a maze of dumpsters, out back of the place. Oh, he also runs a "football" team on some goofy mmorg game. Yeah, he talks shit like it's somehow redeeming next to the fact that he's a filthy letch, who should be the victim of diaherea bukakke. Goddamn nighthawks are sad bastards, man.
by Torgo777 December 31, 2008
Get the Nighthawk mug.1. A person who enjoys going to random parties in the middle of the night to hook up with some random drunk girl and then leaves right after the hook up without giving your name or number.
2. A person who gets super high at night and goes to buy fast food.
2. A person who gets super high at night and goes to buy fast food.
is that guy a nighthawk?
i have no idea who that guy is, but he's hooking up with that kids girlfriend.
i have no idea who that guy is, but he's hooking up with that kids girlfriend.
by Mr_Artard July 8, 2009
Get the Nighthawk mug.by Brent Richardson January 2, 2006
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