One of the closest experiences to flying this thing came in 1991, in the form of "F-117A Stealth Fighter" PC game, made by MicroProse. It was a masterpiece for its time in terms of the detailed console one had to learn to fly this. If you never play the game, you should just consider flipping through the incredible manual: <a href="http://www.abandonia.com/files/extras/25631_game_extra_1.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.abandonia.com/files/extras/25631_game_extra_1.pdf</a><p>The game and the manual had a ton of jargon that one had to learn to play the game, adding to the feeling of being in a real sim :) The section on evasion and defense systems was especially charming (Basically, this game was a dream for a kid who was into PC games and flying sims).
The paper version that came with the box explained tons of small details about the plane e.g. how radar absorption paint works (I learned later from a documentary that F-117 had to be repainted after every mission, making maintenance very expensive).<p>Two highlights of the gameplay were: a) landing on an aircraft carrier and b) learning capabilities of different types of missiles and how to deploy them (i.e. one was forced to read the manual!).<p>When I hear about F-117, I can't help remember this hidden-gem PC game.<p>Relevant links:<p>1) Steam: <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/328920/F117A_Nighthawk_Stealth_Fighter_20/" rel="nofollow">https://store.steampowered.com/app/328920/F117A_Nighthawk_St...</a><p>2) Wikipedia: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-117A_Nighthawk_Stealth_Fighter_2.0" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-117A_Nighthawk_Stealth_Fight...</a>
Got to see one in person at an airshow with my dad back in the late 90s. It was in an random hanger we were checking out. The main door was opened maybe five feet with a gate in front of it and guards were supervising people looking in. We had no idea what to expect. I will never forget looking around the door and there it was, gave me chills. It was the coolest thing I have ever, or will ever see.<p>As is hackernews tradition, I will now recommend "Skunk Works" by Ben Rich, fantastic book.
A bloke I was talking to had an interesting theory as to why it was labeled the F-117, despite being a ground attack aircraft rather than a fighter, and the number being out of sequence (everyone was expecting an F-19.<p>Around the same time as the F-117 aircraft was being developed, Pratt & Whitney PW2000 engine was being developed, which went on to be used in the C-17. The PW2000 was designated by the USAF as the F117 engine. By labelling the F-117 aircraft with the same designation, they were able to hide the development in plain sight. If anyone heard or saw anything about the F-117, they'd assume it was related to the engine, rather than the secret stealth aircraft.<p>I've never read anything on the internet regarding this theory, but it's an interesting theory nonetheless.
Fun fact: The F-117 looks like a low-poly model on an underpowered computer because that's exactly what it is. Optimizing the shape to minimize radar cross-section took a whole lot of math, and it got too complex for '70s-era supercomputers unless you stuck with flat surfaces.<p>The B-2 Spirit stealth bomber was curvier because they had better computers by then.
If anyone is interested, F-117's are on display at Blackbird Park at Palmdale, CA, Nellis Air Force Base north of Las Vegas, Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio, and Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade, Serbia (only portions of aircraft).
The Chinese got something amazing out of the junk they bought from the F-117 shot down in Bosnia. This has to be something at least a little like when the U2 went down in USSR. Whatever they got, and reverse engineered, and are putting into their F-35 knock-offs, it has "us" worried, and we have to have tried-and-true countermeasures in place for when China uses those against our assets, or our allies in the next few years.<p>Politics and "sealed fates" are strange bedfellows.
For those who haven't heard of them before, people might find the Janet flights interesting:<p><a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=janet+flights&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8" rel="nofollow">https://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=jan...</a><p>DoD commuter flights between Las Vegas and Groom Lake.
geoblocked here :( getting redirected to
<a href="https://geoscripts.meredith.services/public/html/no-access.html" rel="nofollow">https://geoscripts.meredith.services/public/html/no-access.h...</a>
As a child of the 80s and 90s, I sort of miss the public unveiling of secret aircraft. It seems like there hasn't been anything matching the mystery of the B-2 or F-117 in a long time.