B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber (Unusual Aircraft Collection)

The B-2 Spirit is the world's only stealth bomber, with an extraordinary shape driven by its mission, and a price tag which makes it literally worth its weight in gold.

The B-2 might look futuristic, but the basic design isn't new at all, the same manufacturer Northrop did two very similar designs just after World War Two, the propeller-driven XB-35 and the jet-driven YB-49.   With no vertical tail it looks completely other-worldly, but the B-2 actually flies much like any other more conventional aircraft.   This one is called "The Spirit of New York", and is based at Edwards Air Force Base rather than atWhiteman AFB in Missouri, which is the only operational base for them in the United States.   You can see that they've put the Edwards "ED" tail code on the landing gear door, since there's no tail to put it on!   What's less obvious is that the lettering on the undercarriage doors was done incorrectly and so the letters lean the opposite way to all other B-2s.

Each B-2 costs somewhere between $2.2 and $2.4 billion apiece, making it by far the most expensive plane in the world.   This price tag is primarily due to the small number built, only 21 rather than the 132 which were originally requested.   The empty plane weighs 158,000 pounds, and with gold currently at about $1000 an ounce, this makes each plane worth the same weight of gold.

Flying wings like the B-2 are very efficient aerodynamically, with much less drag than ordinary aircraft.   This gives the plane greater range, but it also makes it reluctant to come down, so the crews land the plane with a distinct downward trajectory, much like naval aviators flying onto aircraft carriers.   There's no drag chute, so to reduce the landing run the two rudders on each wing are deflected in opposite directions to act as air brakes.   In this photograph you can see this, and also the covers which open up to allow air to flow into auxiliary inlets for the jet engine, a necessity when the plane is moving slowly during takeoff or landing.