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Mach 3 Paint Stripper by Stan Stokes.
Originally conceived in the early 1950s as a replacement for the B-52 (which incorrectly was forecast by Gen. Curtis LeMay to have a limited lifespan) the B-70 Valkyrie began life as Weapon System 110A. It was designed to have the same range as the B-52, but with as high a maximum speed as possible to avoid enemy defensive fighters or missiles. However, with the advent of intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the resulting debate over the cost effectiveness and efficacy of manned bombers, the funding for the B-70 program began to be cut. These cuts seemed academic at the time because engineers had not been able to overcome the many technical problems associated with the bombers design objectives. In 1956 a report from the NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics - which would later become NASA) revealed that Mach speeds of between 3 and 5 should be obtainable by an aircraft riding its own shock wave. North American Aviation engineers discovered this report and immediately began serious wind tunnel tests on various models. Their findings resulted in a complete redesign of the aircraft to its final configuration of a 65-degree high winged configuration with six enormous jet engines. There was considerable political debate during the engineering phase of the program, and the Congress finally cancelled the B-70 program except for the completion of a pair of XB-70A prototypes. The B-70 was like no other aircraft before it. More than 70% of its skin was stainless steel, finished to a mirror-like surface. The B-70 was also a huge gas tank with every available area not utilized devoted to holding fuel. The B-70 made its maiden flight on September 21, 1964. During the next 4 and one-half years the two aircraft flew numerous research missions out of the Palmdale test facility. On one such flight the B-70 attained more than Mach 3 for a period of 33 minutes - covering 2700 miles during the flight. On June 8, 1966 one of the B-70s was flying formation with four other GE-powered aircraft when one of the aircraft, an F-104 Starfighter got too close and was caught in the powerful vortex from the Valkyries wingtip. The resulting accident downed both the B-70 and the F-104 and cost the lives of two pilots. In Stan Stokes painting an XB-70 begins its gradual descent over the California desert with its B-58 chase plane close behind. The Valkyrie had reached more than Mach 3 on this flight, and it sports an involuntary new paint scheme as dark patches of stainless steel skin show through areas where the white paint was literally burned off the aircraft. |
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