Flying Wings - John K. Northrop's Final Interview - 1979

No copyright infringement intended. Please contact me directly, and I will remove the film. This ultra-rare documentary from 1979 has never been released on home video in any format, and hasn't been on PBS TV since 1980. Includes John K. Northrop's final interview. Also included are test pilots Max Stanley & Robert Cardenas. Be sure to check my channel for the best in VINTAGE & RARE airliner videos!
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[@mikekennedy7378]

Janet Northrop. Jack's grand daughter was standing next to me and my experimental at the Hawthorne Airshow some years ago. I said to her. "Janet look down the approach path; at the thin horizontal line." In another minute, the B-2 came roaring overhead at no more than 500ft. I looked at Janet and she had tears running down her face. She had seen her grandfather's dream come true.

[@terryrodbourn2793]

Mike Kennedy Great Story, wish I could have been there!

[@gerryvandepol8666]

Pastor Paul D ..To my knowledge,just before jack passed he was shown a scale model of of the B 2... there is a film of that scene and to say it is quite touching is a understatement... B2 and B49 have the same wingspan.......

[@joshrussell4878]

Yeah that sounds like my mom

[@joshuamcneal]

My grandfather was included in this movie. He started at Northrop around 1940 because he had heard of the development of the flying wing. He always believed it was the superior aircraft. He loved working for that company.

[@grahamcm]

My grandfather is in the video too (Richard W Millar). So glad he and Jack Northrop took the opportunity to reveal the truth about what happened while they were still alive. They feared revealing it any sooner out of concern for reprisals from the still-powerful Symington.

[@JoshuaMcNeal-or4gv]

@grahamcm I have seen a card that has a picture of your grandfather, my grandfather, and Jack Northrop. It was a 'get well soon' card, it told him to "recreate history". 3 M's and an N. McNeal, Millar, Mannion( I think), and Northrop.

[@Leadblast]

It's a sad story but it has a bittersweet ending. He was shown a model of the B-2 before he died. At least he could go seeing his dream come true.

[@topturretgunner]

I’ve a friend who is familiar with the history of this story. The impression that I am left with is that then Secretary of the Air Force Simington displayed a personal animus toward Northrop Corporation. My feelings personally to be frank is that Simington was simply an unmitigated SOB.

[@sneadh1]

Follow the money!

[@bowlweevil4161]

@@sneadh1 simington was getting kickback under the table from consolidated and killed the wing because JACK would not comply with the corrupt SOB

[@allanhay8466]

I was the kid of a Northrup engineer in the 50's and recall my dad telling the same story about Simington. And, you have to ask yourself why else would he "demand" all those aircraft be destroyed immediately? Another sad selfish part of our history

[@marks8845]

Simington was so corrupt that no less than 30 years would be fair. What a POS whore.

[@Shail131276]

Sad that great minds have to suffer at the hands of petty politics and corruption.. Go Northrop, they are still the best of innovators..

[@matthewchin6454]

Makes one wonder how many times the progress of human civilization has been set back by a shortsighted, selfish, petty fools. The burning of the library at Alexandria comes to mind. If only decent people were allowed to be in charge, we'd have unlimited fusion power and flying cars like thousands of years ago.

[@WilliamJones-Halibut-vq1fs]

It’s worth noting that all jet aircraft, especially swept wings had a high speed snaking that required a yaw damper. EG Boeing 707. All aircraft have a spiral instability and a Yaw/Dutch roll instability. It’s normal to get rid of the spiral instability and deal with the yaw problem with a yaw damper. Yaw, Pitch and Roll dampers were complexly normal and 1950s technology. The Germans were experimenting with yaw dampers in WW2

[@terryrodbourn2793]

Matthew Chin Never forget the Power of stupid corruption in Politics!

[@mothercomet]

Politicians will destroy the human race over control and greed.

[@archiedavis5365]

BS! Northcorrupt was another Edison... a freaking backstabbing thief.... Flying wing was and will always be the intellectual property of Vincent Bernelli Fact! Bernelli didn't like and openly supported FDRs opposition... That got him CANCELLED by the demonicRats.

[@epaulaustin]

Before Jack died he was shown a model of the B-2 Flying Wing which has the same wingspan as the B-49; his dream come true!

[@TyJoyZee]

I just got a VHS copy of "The Wing Will Fly" in the mail today & plan on converting it to DVD so I can watch it on my big screen TV;I've been looking for a copy forever! w00t!

[@kenrussell1093]

I remember as ayoung child, looking up to see a flying wing overhead. I was old enough to it was special, but too young to appreciate it. Still, an awsome memory.

[@kafr8413]

Do you remember what year that was? I have a similar memory and was curious.

[@jrcadet4]

Thanks for posting this---my late wife sat dumbfounded while we watched this documentary on PBS in 1980. I knew much of the story, but she'd never heard about it (my dad worked in aerospace for decades, so I grew up hearing about the industry's inside stories). Glad this is seeing the light of day again.

[@MdvGau]

In the 1950's, as a young boy I got to climb the ladder and take a peek inside a Flying Wing. The aircraft was parked outside at Ontario Airport for several years. My dad was a Northrop employee at the time. Those were pretty cool days to be involved in the aircraft industry. My dad was Martin "Hubba" Valadez.

[@jonathangoode546]

God bless your family.your dad took you too see that spectacular plane that’s so cool ..

[@petelyczek5728]

Before John. Northrop died, he was invited to a millitary base and shown a model of the B2. He died knowing that his vision would come to pass.

[@kimhorton6109]

My dad was in the army air corps in Hickman before Dec 7 and later said he flew as a navigator on a multi engine flying wing out of Edwards AFB. He said the plane was very stable, had loads of room for the crew and they were all looking forward to seeing what came of the program.

[@MrCrystalcranium]

Wow. Amazing vodeo. John Honey's documentary a decade later on the Discovery channel "The Wing Will Fly" also tells this amazing story and includes other details of the extent of the dirty tricks including the possible sabotage of the YB-49 on its return trip to Muroc from Washington when it was discovered that 7 of the 8 engines had their oil drained from them and all suffered similar failures on the flight. Implicated in that was a maintainance engineer who died several weeks later under mysterious circumstances. A real tragedy because Jack Northrop was one of the most honest and decent corporate heads in industry.

[@fw1421]

MrCrystalcranium Sounds like the engineer died of Clinton’s disease!

[@ThePostal67]

Hilarity did it!

[@thetreblerebel]

Yes...truth man..truth! Like the guy said, it set American aviation back decades

[@jgstargazer]

I remember seeing the "flying wing" in the 1953 motion picture "War of the Worlds"

[@anthonyc-carnell6596]

Thank you for sharing this. I did not know the story; this was a tragedy and extremely ungentlemanly on the part of Secretary Simington. The testimony of both Northrop men was both touching and very disturbing, I am now inspired to build a model Northrop flying wing; as a tribute to these great men.

[@jonathangoode546]

We have been set back by 50 years .look at what the Russians and Chinese have now .advanced technology and designs in military aviation .yeah look at WTF HAPPENED ?

[@tjstevens001]

The swamp was in full sludge back then too.

[@oliversmith9200]

Eisenhower told us and warned us of worse coming back in 1961. JFK fought it, MLK denounced it, only one died a natural death.

[@puffnstuff12]

@@oliversmith9200 The military industrial complex keeps our enemies at bay so it does serve a purpose.

[@Walterwaltraud]

@@oliversmith9200 In all fairness, Northrop would have to be defined as part of that complex as well. BUT, as seen here, what's the solution to get the best bang for the buck for taxpayers and soldiers? If the offspring of the Air Force Secretary serves at the same time and might go to war in that aircraft.

[@thetreblerebel]

Yes. Big money in contracts , defense spending was triple of what it is today. Jack was stabbed in the back and sabotaged

[@pepecohetes492]

Even Generall Cardenas believes sabotage was involved in the last fatal crash of the wing, forever sealing its fate in cancellation and killing Capt. Edwards and crew. This is one of the most beautiful aircraft ever made!

[@howardlittman269]

The official report, when it was finally declassified, blames pilot error. Capt. Edwards exceeded the limiting mach number in a dive and then pulled out too sharply causing a structural failure of the joints where the outer wing panels attached to the center section. The center section went straight into the ground. The tumbling reported by observers was the outer wing panels falling to the ground.

[@mcdonnell220]

Thanks as always Commander. :-)

[@noahdavidson8733]

Beautiful aircraft, and the Star Wars music at the beginning caught me by surprise! Awesome video.

[@HappiKarafuru]

An old man who likes to fly, ambition high up the sky. Soar up into heaven, Rest in peace, Jack Northrop.

[@kjetilskotheim1712]

With friends like that, who needs enemies.

[@terryrodbourn2793]

That is Life sometimes! Big money talks in any bureaucracy!

[@archiedavis5365]

Tell that to Vincent Bernelli....

[@pyotty]

Jack Northrop received the same kind of underhanded and dirty deal that Preston Tucker did. Both men were years ahead of their time, Jack Northrop with the YB-49, and Preston Tucker with the Tucker Torpedo. Corrupt politicians kept both of these advanced, superior designs from ever becoming a reality and in doing so set back the aviation and auto industry by years. We can now only imagine if they had been developed and refined, what if, that's the question, the answer, we will never know.

[@jwenting]

And the TSR.2 in England, and the Avro Arrow in Canada. The one constant is politicians profitting in person from killing promising projects in favour of products from business rivals who can't sell them on their own without resorting to bribery and subterfuge.

[@aps-c1766]

@@jwenting dont forget. some of these politician even give some sum of company stock. just to make they can move forward and pull some of their competition.

[@georgechristoforou991]

Not that Northrop ripped off the design of the Horten 229, eh?

[@bowlweevil4161]

@@georgechristoforou991 you mean the nazi 229?

[@georgechristoforou991]

@@bowlweevil4161 yes it was developed under the nazi regime. But then again so was the space program by Vonn Braun

[@1776vtgmb]

Congressional/senatorial seats in some powerful states benefited from the B36 being built instead.... my guess.

[@Ken-fw9dh]

Yes I heard it was Boeing that engineered this sabotage

[@saibabax]

The demise of most empires in history didnt come from external sources, but internal corruption... The fall of the U.S. empire is just another name on that list.

[@sigmaforge5088]

@William Gruff wrong, meets every definition of an empire

[@sigmaforge5088]

@William Gruff look at me I know lots of big words

[@gfodale]

I would imagine, if the stockholders of Consolidated were made known, the secretary, or close friend thereof, would be found within that list.

[@joemadden1783]

I heard a story , don't know if it's true or not that the Air Force gave special clearance so that Northrop could see the plans for the B-2 s stealth bomber shortly before his death in 1981.

[@georgeorwell4534]

Joe Madden it’s a true story. When Northrop held the model of the B-2 in his hands, he shook for several minutes and started to weep. When he was able to talk, he said, “now I know why God allowed me to live this long.”

[@marcliebhold9625]

@George Orwell Absolutely True! A friend of mine who worked for Northrop back then, now retired, saw Mr. Northrop after he’d been briefed on the B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber. He could he’d been crying, but he was happy! MR. Northrop shook hands with him and all the other Northrop employees in the area, as Mr. Northrop cared for ALL of “his” employees, even though he’d retired from his company years ago! He truly was a Great Man in so many ways, as you heard in the video, even committing perjury to save his company AND his employees! You don’t see men like that any more, sadly.

[@TheOregonOutlaw]

@@georgeorwell4534 In 1981 less than a year before his death, he was given clearance to see materials, plans, and models of the B-2 Spirit that was in the advance design stages. It has been reported that unable to speak, Northrop wrote on a note "I know why God has kept me alive the past 25 years".

[@georgeorwell4534]

@@TheOregonOutlaw Thanks Outlaw, it's a great story. The man was truly a visionary and followed his star to the very end.

[@cadude145]

great documentary I never knew this story.

[@brianmorgan5739]

Two great aircraft that would have led the way in Arial defence for generations to come. The Northop flying wing and the Canadian Avro Arrow.

[@leftcoaster67]

Wonder how much of this type of influence was to kill the Avro Arrow?

[@leftcoaster67]

Why would the Soviets infiltrate when the UK just GAVE them a set of Rolls Royce engines? You do know the Avro Arrow was built in Canada not the UK? Would you like to show any news links of any FACTS of soviet infiltration? If there was such a security risk why would the Assistant Secretary to the US Air Force offer Fred Smye of Avro a fire control and missile system before it was cancelled.

[@charlesodonnell2993]

I met Jack Northrop through his grandson when I was a young paratrooper. I found him to be quite enjoyable to speak with and listen to.

[@archiedavis5365]

Forrest Bird might be enjoyable for aviation history and pioneers..... John Wilkes Booth and Jack Northcorrupt more comparable..... not nice folk.

[@thetreblerebel]

Fun Fact : Edward's AF Base is named after the pilot who died in the sabotaged Flying Wing Bomber

[@michaelwarlow4398]

Great video thanks for sharing it :-)

[@jaydee5156]

I read in an article that Jack Northrop was shown an early model of the B-2, not long before he died. According to the article, upon taking the model in his hands, looked and it and commented, "Now I know why God let me live this long". His dream was finally realized.

[@wandawong]

Thanks so much for this. I also recorded this on VHS via KVIE 6 -Sacramento. My tape rotted away and became unplayable years ago. Also, good to have this publicly available to show how Bob Cardenas has been changing his story over the years with every interview.

[@terryrodbourn2793]

In other words a darn Texan cancelled the best Aircraft at the time to protect a dying company! Sounds like crony greasing!

[@ljcook8102]

+Terry Rodbourn So do you think that today's military equipment is not the same. If you fail to see, that such funding is a political move, and not exactly done for the ''good of the services'', you are not following the script. Even the issuing of contracts has a great political factor in it. Like the re-building of the C-5 aircraft, when it was found that the wing box was failing. Or the tanker contract award. Me, I do not think that America should be buying from a foreign nation, when we can produce such in our own nation.

[@terryrodbourn2793]

LJ Cook No it looks like typical Progressive greasing to me!

[@albertpatterson3675]

Whoa hoss! Symington was from Missouri, as was President Truman, and McNarney was from Pennsyvania. Consolidated's main plant was in San Diego.

[@phil4826]

Albert Patterson Ya, but their really big plant was in Ft. Worth and it desperately needed orders.

[@georgeorwell4534]

Phil don’t slight the men and women doing their job. Slight the Missouri Mule who sat in the chair while in the Air Force.

[@Buzzbox3rd]

What a damn tragedy, again stupid politicians interfering

[@sneadh1]

Politicians who were corrupted by crooked big businessmen.

[@scottrichardson8158]

As General Cardenas stated: It was ahead of its time. That is why it was (unfortunately) cancelled.

[@davidmartin7889]

General Joseph T. McNarney, mentioned first at the 4 minute mark by Jack Northrop, was actually the head of the Materiel Command for the Air Force. Scratching the surface further, it is germane that after retirement McNarney became president of Convair (Consolidated Vultee), the maker of the rival B-36. Wikipedia and his official Air Force biography disguise that fact by saying that he held "executive positions with General Dynamics." Convair was swallowed up by General Dynamics, becoming only its Convair division.

[@gabrielbennett5162]

Seeing the YB-49 and its predecessor, the XB-35, fly over his hometown, Coalinga, CA was what inspired my grandfather, Vic Horton, to pursue a flying career. He joined the Air Force after high school, went to college on the GI Bill and eventually ended up flying for NASA, including the F-104 Starfighter, YF-12A and SR-71A Blackbirds and the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.

[@aandc2005]

Met Robin Olds, Yeager, and talked with Russ Schleeh (also got a signature on a air force t-shirt) in 1995 at the EAA in Oshkosh WI. To bad the government destroyed all of those great flying wings...why?? That would be so incredible if there was one that didn't get destroyed and brought to the EAA show after restoration!!!! Also in other note, during the building of the B-2 Stealth bomber, they wheel chaired Jack Northrup (80 or so at that time) to a secret location and showed him a large model of the B-2 (if fact the from wing tip to wing tip the B-2 and the YB49 are the same length) holding the model in his hands, shacking slightly, he said "Now I know why god has kept me alive so long..." that made a big impact on me, in fact it brings tears to my eyes just writing this

[@RussRamey6]

thank you for that, it does make you angry as an American...

[@aandc2005]

Yes why wouldn't it..it should make anybody mad thats into aircraft

[@georgeorwell4534]

I remember that story. America lost the services of a patriot and a great asset.

[@gerryvandepol8666]

Yes it does...

[@leneanderthalien]

Why? this wings (and the Horten too) was unsafe to fly (uncontrolable in some situations), so no interrest to preserve such big aircrafts, smaller Northrop wing was preserved, that's ennough...the only safe flying wings with simple controls are gliders with vertical controls , and Fauvel type flying wings...booth are not usable to fly high speeds...

[@SeaYaSailing]

what is seriously funny is that most of the interviews of the engineers and designers, are the guys that worked on/built the F 117 and B-2, this was going on at the same time and no one knew it.

[@DonMeaker]

The B-2 test group had a visit by Max Stanley, a B-49 test pilot, to talk to us about the test effort for the B-49. He made a remark about the B-49 test configuration, and the engineers laughed. We were admonished that Mr. Stanley was not cleared to our program, and if we did it again the commander would clear the room.

[@alanhill4957]

My father was one of the original Air Force test pilots for the B-35's. Luckily, he was not in the fatal accident during the (as John puts it) "first final checkout". If I remember right, my Dad thought the plane, and the whole concept, "sucked", in the vernacular of his day, and never wanted to fly it again..Of course, memories can fail first final checkouts, just like airplane "acceptance tests".

[@hernandoospina6060]

There is a prototype in a Museum ? Always I was surprised by this type of aircraft.

[@keeshahdarkfurr8328]

@@hernandoospina6060 not anymore, The last of the 4 proof of concept, proto types was crashed and destroyed 4-22-2019

[@grimfandango6137]

The narrator introduces this aircraft as "The flying wing was like no aircraft ever developed", but he is wrong! The Northrop flying wing is vintage 1948. In Germany back in the early 1930's the Horton brothers were already working on this very type of design. Ultimately a twin-jet powered prototype successfully flew on Feb 2, 1945. Göring believed in the design and ordered a production series of 40 aircraft. The Allies air superiority bombing made sure he never took delivery of all 40. There is a single example of the Horton 229 left in the word, and it is being painstakingly rebuilt for a static museum display slated for the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in DC. You can read about it here: airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/horten-ho-229-v3 And also contribute financially to the private effort to fund this work at: horten229.org/ The US "Operation Paperclip" brought captured German aircraft and rocket engineers to America, and out of this advanced talent the US Space Program, and superior military aircraft evolved to become the finest in the world.

[@peterson7082]

Northrop's first flying wing was the prop powered _N-1M_ and _N-9M._ Which flew in 1940 and 1942 respectively. The latter of which still flys to this day. The aircraft is in pretty bad shape in some warehouse under ownership of the Smithsonian. A replica of its intended completed design was made in the mid '2000's. Northrop and the Hortens independently developed their designs since the twenties.

[@FiveCentsPlease]

@@peterson7082 The model build in the 2000s was not a replica but just a mock-up shape made of wood and fiberglass for a radar study. It is only just a shape. The Smithsonian is working on conserving the last prototype V3 of the 229 program. Fungus has eaten the wood into a powder so they have a lot of work to do. In my opinion it would be easier to just duplicate all of the wood components to display the design as intended and just save the original bits in the archives.

[@FiveCentsPlease]

+Grim Fandango Realistically it is only the third prototype V3 which survives today having never even flown. What would have emerged as the production-ready Ho-229 or Go-229 design is unknown because they had not reached the production phase of the program.

[@Ziggy_Moonglow]

"In Germany back in the early 1930's the Horton brothers were already working on this very type of design" - That's cute since at 3:15 of the video, you can see Northrup's design, which flew in 1929..

[@ActiveAtom]

What an honor to get to see this we understand John Northrop when did Jack go, he was the founder so John is the son of this GREAT man? Deals are made in many ways, this is global thinking in our opinion. Thank you for this video we were very happy to watch every minute of it. Lance & Patrick.

[@donarnold8268]

Thank you!

[@normansilver905]

Thank you for posting. My father knew Jack well. He worked for Floyd Odlum. Both men had a high respect for Jack's aviation design knowledge.

[@jacobmoses3712]

The question needs to be asked as to whether Symington was in the pocket of Convair. Obviously he was a good friend of theirs

[@672egalaxie6]

Yup. A corrupt and greedy politician in cahoots with a military industry. There's dozens of similar stories out there. But, that being said, America is still full of exceptionally good people, at all levels of civilian and government positions. Folks that will not compromise their integrity for a few dollars.

[@demej00]

He became president of Convair.

[@paulmoffat9306]

This was originally released on TV as a Clete Roberts report, and I managed to record it off air onto VHS (a PBS TV broadcast). Sad that they have not released this on DVD or other format, in its full resolution - somebody knows/the truth is out there.

[@bobsanders2353]

Sounds so much like the Canadian Avro Arrow!

[@telumears]

Curious that the investigator/narrator didn't "follow the money" and investigate why USAF Simonton wanted that small manufacturer to succeed sooo much! Bet he was a major share holder.

[@stevewilson9792]

The story I read was that Symington was to be named CEO of the Convair+Northrop combined company. Symington had ORDERED the merger as condition for the AF contract.

[@hillbilly4christ638]

I wonder if symington is related to the Clinton's.

[@BillHalliwell]

Perhaps the most disgraceful episode of corrupt politics in American, even in world, aeronautical history. Mr Northrop could have persisted with the truth of the matter but no, he was a man of honour. He chose instead to let them kill off his dream aircraft of 40 years in favour of keeping as many of his employees in work as he possibly could. The then Secretary of the Air Force knew Mr Northrop was a man of integrity and a man who cared about the people in his employ; so he used the man’s very qualities against him. This would make a fantastic film but before that a tell-all book must be written that looks closely at the relationships that certain aircraft manufacturers had, and have, over many decades, with the AAF and then the USAF. One wonders if ‘the powers that be’ would allow such a book to be published. I’d be willing to work on such a book if there is anyone out there who wants to tackle a huge project with several serious risks involved. The world deserves to know what a great man Jack Northrop was. Cheers, BH

[@demej00]

What a loss. Symington's legacy is a box of dirt. I love flying RC flying wings - my favorite planform.

[@pyotty]

Northrop received another bad deal when the Air Force chose the Lockheed YF-22 Raptor over the Northrop YF-23 Black Widow. Many, including aviation experts and Air Force personnel considered the Northrop YF-23 a superior design, but politics once again raised it's ugly head and Lockheed was awarded the contract.

[@aps-c1766]

Actually in that time air force thinking maneuverability more important than stealth. Raptor superior in manuver but kinda suck at stealth. Blackwidow is kinda opposite. But remember that time. The powerful airplane same like raptor was su 27. I dont think blackwidow can win dogfight with flanker.

[@hydrolox3953]

​@@aps-c1766according to the specifications, both the YF-22 and YF-23 had to be more maneuverable than the Su-27. The Pentagon stated that both aircraft met or exceeded contract requirements. This means that both the YF-22 and YF-23 were more maneuverable than the Su-27.

[@brucedeville3810]

Beautiful airframe.

[@brianthebarbarian7860]

Loving the Star Wars music, the flying wing looks very sci fi to begin with

[@Doggeslife]

Today we know so much more. 3 issues defeated the Flying Wing... 1. The thick wing built to hold everything created too much drag at jet speeds, making the B047 and B-52 more attractive. The B-2 solved this by using a relatively thin wing and adding bulges where the engine and cockpit were to go. 2. The aircraft took too long to stabilize in pitch as well as yaw, and the best artificial systems of the day didn't fully solve the issue. 3. In a time at the beginning of the atomic age, when everyone in the Air Force and government was thinking "nuke", the flying wing could not carry one. That limitation could do it in alone.

[@JFrazer4303]

Not according to what we know of the concept. Higher L/D, and almost all of the wetted surface is contributing to lift, nothing extraneous to that. Carry the same payload 2+times the distance, or 2+times the payload to the distance compared to a usual plane with same engine & fuel load. Burnelli's 'early '40s design could have done all of this or the Peacemaker, carrying a nuke, but institutional corruption and inertia ignored it. Thicker body than this, higher speed, as the later B-754 "Husky" studies, and a very much more recent "future planes" NASA/Industry studies showed. Same thing for the Burnelli lifting body fuselage concept, even if it's not "all wing" or BWB. Boeing's own internal work confirmed Burnelli's assertions about lifting -fuselage craft, showed the B-754 could outperform including (higher max & cruise speeds and ceiling and better handling) compared to contemporary planes. Only stupid politics prevented it from being built. Boeing will never build a BWB plane as depicted in "aircraft of the future" stories or the X-48C, until they buy Burnelli's patents, as Northrop's work was acquired before the B-2 could be built. Burnelli's '52 design flew rings around the B-52, even if for some reason he designed with 16 V-12 engines driving 4 sets of contra-rotating props.

[@CorrieBergeron]

An additional factor: The form factor of the early A-bombs was so secret that the ARC would not share them with the USAAC/USAF. So, Northop's designers had no idea what size or shape the bomb bay had to be. In a conventional designed like the B-36, that wasn't really a problem. Not so with the XB-35/49.

[@jnichols3]

Shortly after this 1979 interview, he lost the ability to walk and speak. In 1981 less than a year before his death, he was given clearance to see materials, plans, and models of the B-2 Spirit that was in the advance design stages. It has been reported that unable to speak, Northrop wrote on a note "I know why God has kept me alive the past 25 years". The wingspan of the B-2 is the same as the B-49. I suspect that the YB-49 was the starting point for designing the B-2. If the one flying YB-49 had not been scraped, it is very possible it might have taken to the air again in the 70s for research.

[@kitsouk1]

@Truth seeker Absolutely dead on. I have been reading comments like "who was paying these people that scraped the B-49" and the answer is as clear as day, destroy the planes, hide the research and hope the Russians had not figured it out, I mean the B-2 was meant to start and end WW3. You can see the test pilots, wanting to yell out "The thing flys beautifully!" Lmao Makes you wonder what they're working on now? Have you seen the original flying wing and interview with Northrop? kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqLPmZKXaJVqers 11:58 worth watching.

[@BlueBaron3339]

Yes, back when the Discovery Channel was about...you know....discovering things. kzbin.info/www/bejne/g5zLq5yHe5V0n6s

[@kaylaandjimbryant8258]

@@kitsouk1 Nah, the stability problems play out in simulation if you factor in the controls they had then. Remember, although they had the gyro mod mentioned (Honeywell), it took small fast-enough computers to make it happen, and this really wasn't available until the late 1970's and early 1980's in a form factor to make it practical. The key was microprocessors and VLSI. Like the General said, it was touchy. The Colonel IMHO was probably not as good a pilot as the General was, which would explain his reaction to the question on stability. They all said it was a sound design, but all agreed it was touchy to control, and if you know basic aerodynamics, you can see that it would be touchy to control. It wasn't like it had the tail section of the N1. I think you guys may be onto something with the radar cross section though. Five bucks they kept at least one out at Area 51.

[@mikem2736]

The small flying wing you see in the video with the two propellers above the wing is still in existence at the Planes of Fame Museum in southern california. It is still airworthy but is only flown for special events. I saw it in the air a while back at an open house. It uses counter-rotaing propellers and Franklin Co. made VERY few of the left-hand-rotating engines. If I remember correctly the museum does not have a spare left-hand engine.

[@Bialy_1]

" I suspect that the YB-49 was the starting point for designing the B-2." B-2 was all about stealth and because of that you can not use non-stealth plane as starting point, that would be counterproductive. YB-49 design needed that 4 vertical stabilizers to fly and just that would kill B-2 stealth capabilities... Horten Ho 229 on the other was showing some stealth alike capabilities and USA loved to use that kind of spoils of war.

[@johnpshitek2473]

Jack would not be happy with the current military situation.

[@oliversmith9200]

True!... The Greatest Generation would not be happy with the current military situation!

[@snowvalleyrat]

Nobody knew that while they were making this documentary, Northrop's vision was being revived as the greatest bomber of all time. :)

[@ericblair4650]

Frank Pirolo "Northrup's vision"..?

[@snowvalleyrat]

The Flying wing was being revived as the B-2 Bomber when this documentary was made.

[@user-gu1hl2kx2k]

Frank Pirolo B-52

[@TrikeSquadron]

+a Umm no... B-2... the stealth bomber... not the B-52

[@JosephHF]

+dregerclock Haha...

[@4u2cJoeD]

Thanks for sharing. It is said that those in high places faver there own. Instead of new growth

[@tadecker82]

What it comes down to, is that government officials had lots of stock in Consolidated. Their stock would go up with the forced Northrop merger. When Jack refused, the Air Force Secretary yanked the contract, and gave it to Consolidated...which eventually went under anyway. It's a well known, historical FACT, that Consolidated dumped every penny into the B-36, and failed to deliver a quality aircraft. The B-52 came to pass before the B-36 every really had a chance.

[@rayman4449]

This is amazing. You should also read up on the story on why the YF-23 wasn't selected as the next stealth fighter. Why? Cause Lockheed needed the contract more than Northrup.

[@thorshammer8033]

Music is a nice touch

[@paulmoffat9306]

Seems that they taped the same PBS broadcast that I did, but I think that my VHS copy to digital is a little bit higher quality.

[@greglittell9109]

Does anybody think it may have been invisible to the radars of the day and someone knew? Or maybe it was more simple...Symington had stock in Convair.

[@volleyballjerry]

Possibly a reduced radar signature but not full stealth. The body panels were still aluminum which is anything but radar invisible where the B-2 is a composite design with radar absorbing paint that greatly reduces its signature.

[@volleyballjerry]

I am enjoying the prospect of Symington cleaning hot, stench-filled outhouses in hell using nothing but a toothbrush.

[@greglittell9109]

@@volleyballjerry Joe McCarthy was looking for commies in the gov't around this time! I believe he was getting uncomfortably close to finding them. I believe radar controllers could've easily noticed a lack of signature even with props and if that plane got jets upon finding out about the current radar signature, it could easily become a clear and present danger to our enemies. One thing was clear. Jack Northrop was an aeronautical genius unwilling to kiss government butts. IMHO - Trump would have listened!

[@geoh7777]

Stuart Symington was essentially a fascist by definition of the word. .

[@irishguy13]

He could do nothing without a system that absolutely supported him.

[@entiller]

Channel owner: where did you get this great video?

[@Shmeegsify]

love the star wars music at the beginning!

[@alanfenick1103]

When President Eisenhower warned us about the military industrial complex he know the dirty games the played and continued to play. Stuart Simington went on to be a US Senator wielding incredible power. More powerful than any of our current politicians.

[@piekielrl]

Love your videos! Do you have video footage of the actual XB70 collision? I know it exists and clips of it could be found here on YT prior to 2009. The segment of the collision is only a few seconds long. I know people who worked on the project and state today that the footage exists. I've been trying to get a copy from Clay Lacy but so far no luck. Many thanks.

[@danield679]

I would LOVE to see that fly again, maybe it could get lipo powered brushless motors?!

[@brianday6433]

They saved The Spruce Goose but not one B-49. That's just like Canada's Avro Fighter, and it was totally destroyed. Even the tools and dies to build them.

[@cds162]

where would we be if the Northrop wing had been built, instead of the Convair B-36??

[@andrewheffel928]

We would be flying the B2 Bomber. You can't keep a good idea down.

[@landtuna8061]

The B-36 had been overtaken by technology and had a very limited lifespan ahead of it.

[@Hateline]

The Russians would've built one too

[@Skywalker8562]

@@andrewheffel928 in 1958 instead of 1988

[@andrewheffel928]

@@Skywalker8562 Maybe, but not with radar absorbing skin or advanced avionics in it. But I agree with your point. The Northrup wing was killed for political reasons, and because it was a radical design for its time. It's a shame that defence decisions are made on a political basis. The F-35 is so full of pork, I am amazed it can fly! Not that I admire Russia at all, but they make first class military aircraft at a fraction of the cost of ours.

[@machia0705]

Jack got to see the B-2, used the specs of the old flying wing.

[@terencehaydn]

What a scandal! it seems like our uk TSR2 plane that was broken up too

[@arodrigues2843]

Terence Haydn AND the Avro Canada CF-105 "Arrow"!!!

[@trevortrevortsr2]

We had the same kind of Issues with the TSR2

[@JLanc1982]

TSR2 was a amazing bird!

[@garymathews9534]

very advanced for its time .

[@Mr1986capri]

Just think as this documentary was being produced the B2 was probably already in the works The wing had its ultimate victory

[@f4udhorn]

Mr. Pink, One of the builders, said with todays technology, the small pitch and yaw problems to be solved would be "duck soup" fixes if we had continued the programs, providing superior cargo and long range goals.

[@glenne1427]

Does anyone have "The Wing Will Fly"? I was hoping that Zeno might but I don't see it. I have an old VHS copy somewhere in a box but it's probably bad by now. This is a great interview with a visionary way ahead of his time.

[@JERIGNUSS]

HARD TO FIND A DVD ON AMAZON THAT WILL PLAY IN CONUS. SO FAR I HAVE FOUND EUROPEAN FORMATS

[@mcdonnell220]

Hi Glenn, I have The Wing will fly on US DVD,get with me off list if interested.

[@TyJoyZee]

I too am looking for a copy of 'the wing will fly' but all I can find are US VHS & region 2 dvd's; does anyone have one left?

[@TyJoyZee]

Classic Airliners & Vintage Pop Culture p.s. I don't know how to contact anyone off-list; can someone show me how? Thanks!

[@rmyrvold]

Glenn E I have and original Northrop issued VHS copy. I got it when I started working for Northrop, on the B-2 program in 1987. But haven't looked at it in years, might be bad now since it is VHS. I'll check it out and if is still good, I will transfer it to DVD.

[@mechamax7919]

funny that the star wars theme is playing in the background

[@jonathangoode546]

I love this FLYING WING it looks like a FLYING BOOMERANG.

[@kathleenhoward9901]

From Paul Howard, In 1949 The B52 flow South over my house in Venice California

[@geraldswain3259]

The whole project Rotten to the core, with plenty of sculldugery thrown in !.

[@comander402]

hello friend as fabulous grateful for great video greetings and take care ok ..?

[@ivorholtskog5506]

They did the ssme with with the Avro Arrow in 1958.

[@keysontrains538]

Whats with the Star Wars nusic?

[@bebereyes5514]

Have a look at Vader's star cruisers, anything looks familiar?

[@BobbyGeneric145]

What is the beginning music from? I can't place it... Star Wars, Star Trek? Indiana Jones?

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

thefactorypilot145 >>> STAR WARS.

[@jpatt1000]

I would be great if there was an airframe squirreled away to be displayed one day. (Much like the engines for the Soviet N1 moon rocket escaped destruction.)

[@FiveCentsPlease]

+jpatt1000 If there was one, it would be known. The YB-35/YB-49 program was killed partly for political reasons to retaliate for Northrop refusing to merge with Convair who built the B-36. The Secretary of the Air Force refused a request by the Smithsonian to preserve one airframe for the museum. The B-36 was a boondoggle from the beginning.

[@flyingcatsofthesalishsea.]

Rest easy David, rest easy....

[@ratchestyler6909]

Tragic that Mr. Northrup didn't live to see the B2 Spirit go into service. This video should be paired with one outlining the development of that plane for the full story of his design.

[@nimrodquimbus912]

He actually sort of did, someone gave him a model of the B-2 and said, "it works". Before he died.

[@lawrieflowers8314]

Fascinating story - and a pretty sad one too. Just looking at that flying wing shorn of fuselage structure, common sense tells you it must have had immense advantages in weight-saving and aerodynamic efficiency…

[@SteveBueche1027]

Maybe they went and adapted the SR71 stealth into the secret design while waiting for the science and materials to catch up?

[@allanradcliffe6204]

Ahead of its time! LIke the CF-105 Arrow. Both cancelled inexplicably if one follows logic. (the reasons given were inadequate)

[@tom7601]

Instead we get the F-35, a multi billion dollar rat hole.

[@Ken-fw9dh]

good to mention Arrow also politically sabotaged

[@altaloma7789]

I was in the room when Mr. Northrop was interviewed by Mr. Roberts and originally "spilled the beans". It was at a meeting of the Los Angeles chapter of the Antique Airplane Association and was held in Glendale, California. A small frail man was wheeled into the room after we were told of a special meeting that night, one that we would never forget. We certainly didn't. Mr. Roberts was a member of the association, but we were shocked when he accompanied Mr. Northrop into the room, with camera and sound people. For the next hours, we were spellbound by the tale that was told. That night, our understanding of how the aerospace industry operated was completely shaken, and many of us who were actively part of it at the time were never able to see it as the honorable endeavor of visionary engineers again. This is but one chapter of the story of the fall of US industrial might. Since that time, it has continued a downward spiral into the depts. of mediocrity, with much of our engineering and manufacturing being sent overseas by the people running our industries because they could make more money that way, at least temporarily. We weren't ready for WWII because of just this sort of chicanery, and it's probable that we will fade from our leadership roles in many if not most industries as a result. The people running the show want it all, and see us little guys as tools to drive their wealth. Eventually, we will become also-rans in the economies of the world, because the wealth of our country has been drained away by the rich and powerful. Pay attention to what Mr. Chomsky has been saying about consolidation of wealth. It will ring true. And this episode is proof.

[@righteousred723]

No mention of the Horten Ho 229, although I am not surprised. Americans also think they invented the canopy style gas stations which can be found in every city, large or small. Just two items from a long list of stolen innovations. Great video, nonetheless...

[@peterson7082]

You do realize John Northrop had been working on flying wings since the Horten brothers were teenagers?

[@righteousred723]

@@peterson7082 took them long enough

[@jonathangoode546]

Here is a man building something out of science fiction. . And they did him dirty how awful HOW HORRIBLE ! …Rest in power jack Northrop .

[@tomupchurch4911]

The government has a way of doing this. Look what happened to Mr.Garand

[@Linda69P]

A weakness of Northrop was that 100% of its business was with the government, and that it was run by honest men. The corruption of government by other aircraft companies was despicable. @@tomupchurch4911

[@harrihiltunen3126]

fine fighter video....star wars theme on the back round.

[@Zoydian]

Those were real men!

[@floriankupper5300]

Northop had received a mostly finished third generation prototype of the german "nurflügler" . The 2nd generation was the first that flew on jet engines ... for an hour before it crashed ..due to engine failure. Search for Horton Ho 229. The stabilisation piece was a great improvement and great to see that fly.

[@peterson7082]

Not the case. Northrop never saw it.

[@floriankupper5300]

@@peterson7082 I don't know the man himself or what he saw or is allowed to say he saw. Acoording to the wikipedia page of the ho 229 he had one special team dedicated to analysing the paint alone. That secret plane went over the pond... do You beleive the smithsonian had befriended a general because the thing looked fancy?

[@peterson7082]

@@floriankupper5300 Not sure what you're going on about here.

[@floriankupper5300]

@@peterson7082 I only provided reference, as well as reasoning why and in how far (at least) northop was exposed to said plane. If You are confused with the reasoning, I suggest You start by reading the reference.

[@Ziggy_Moonglow]

WRONG - Northup was developing flying wing designs in the 20s, flew a tailed prototype in 1929 and spent the next decade working on the tailless designs. Try again, but this time, stay with in the confines of reality and history instead of making stuff up.