Stealth aircraft
Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection by radar, infrared, sound and sight — from Have Blue and the F-117 Nighthawk to the F-35, the B-21 Raider and the next generation of fighters.
About stealth aircraft
Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection using a variety of technologies that reduce the reflection and emission of radar, infrared, visible light, radio signals and sound. Their shape sends radar waves away from the radar, radar-absorbing materials cover the skin, weapons are carried inside the aircraft and the engines are hidden deep in the fuselage.
Full-size stealth combat aircraft demonstrators have been flown by the United States (in 1977), Russia (in 2000) and China (in 2011). The Lockheed Have Blue led to the F-117 Nighthawk, the first operational stealth aircraft, followed by the B-2 Spirit bomber and the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II fighters. Today stealth is also used for drones, stealth aircraft and the sixth-generation fighters of the future.
| Stealth aircraft | Designation | Manufacturer | In service | Type | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing Quiet Bird“Model 853” | Boeing | 1962 | Low-observable test aircraft | Prototype | ||
| Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird | Lockheed Skunk Works | 1964 | Strategic reconnaissance aircraft | Retired / museum | ||
| Lockheed Have Blue | Lockheed Skunk Works | 1977 | Stealth technology demonstrator | Prototype | ||
| Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk | Lockheed Skunk Works | 1981 | Stealth attack aircraft | Retired | ||
| Northrop Tacit Blue“Whale” | Northrop | 1982 | Stealth technology demonstrator | Museum | ||
| Northrop B-2 Spirit | Northrop Grumman | 1989 | Stealth strategic bomber | In service | ||
| Northrop YF-23 Black Widow II | Northrop / McDonnell Douglas | 1990 | Stealth fighter prototype | Prototype / museum | ||
| Boeing Bird of Prey“YF-118G” | Boeing Phantom Works | 1996 | Stealth technology demonstrator | Museum | ||
| Boeing–Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche | Boeing / Sikorsky | 1996 | Stealth reconnaissance / attack helicopter | Cancelled (2004) | ||
| Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor | Lockheed Martin / Boeing | 1997 | Stealth air superiority fighter | In service | ||
| McDonnell Douglas X-36 | McDonnell Douglas / NASA | 1997 | Tailless fighter research aircraft | Museum | ||
| Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut“Firkin” | Sukhoi | 1997 | Experimental fighter (forward-swept wings) | Prototype | ||
| Boeing X-32“JSF” | Boeing | 2000 | Joint Strike Fighter prototype | Prototype / museum | ||
| Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II“JSF” | Lockheed Martin | 2006 | Stealth multirole fighter | In service | ||
| Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel | Lockheed Skunk Works | 2007 | Stealth reconnaissance drone | In service | ||
| Sukhoi Su-57“Felon” | Sukhoi | 2010 | Stealth multirole fighter | In service | ||
| Chengdu J-20“Mighty Dragon” | Chengdu Aircraft | 2011 | Stealth air superiority fighter | In service | ||
| Northrop Grumman X-47B | Northrop Grumman | 2011 | Stealth combat drone demonstrator | Museum | ||
| Shenyang J-35“FC-31 Gyrfalcon” | Shenyang Aircraft | 2012 | Stealth multirole / carrier fighter | In service | ||
| Dassault nEUROn | Dassault Aviation | 2012 | Stealth combat drone demonstrator | Prototype | ||
| BAE Systems Taranis | BAE Systems | 2013 | Stealth combat drone demonstrator | Prototype | ||
| Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie | Kratos Defense | 2019 | Low-cost stealthy combat drone | In service (testing) | ||
| Boeing MQ-25 Stingray | Boeing | 2019 | Carrier-based tanker drone | In production | ||
| KAI KF-21 Boramae | Korea Aerospace Industries | 2022 | Multirole fighter (4.5 generation, stealth shape) | In production | ||
| Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider | Northrop Grumman | 2023 | Stealth strategic bomber | In production | ||
| TAI Kaan“TF-X” | Turkish Aerospace | 2024 | Stealth multirole fighter | Development | ||
| Scaled Composites Model 437 Vanguard | Scaled Composites / Northrop Grumman | 2024 | Low-cost combat aircraft demonstrator | Prototype | ||
| Boeing F-47“NGAD” | Boeing | Sixth-generation stealth fighter | In development | |||
| GCAP / BAE Tempest“Tempest” | BAE Systems / Leonardo / Mitsubishi | Sixth-generation stealth fighter | In development | |||
| Lockheed Martin SR-72“Darkstar” | Lockheed Skunk Works | Hypersonic reconnaissance aircraft (concept) | Concept | |||
| EADS Mako / HEAT“HEAT” | EADS | Advanced trainer / light fighter (concept) | Concept | |||
| Sikorsky stealth Black Hawk“MH-X Silent Hawk” | Sikorsky | Stealth special-operations helicopter | Secret | |||
| Sikorsky Raider X | Sikorsky | Reconnaissance / attack helicopter (FARA) | Cancelled (2024) | |||
| Bell 360 Invictus | Bell Textron | Reconnaissance / attack helicopter (FARA) | Cancelled (2024) |
No stealth aircraft found.