B-2 stealth bomber crashes on U.S. base
- Thread starter Vanilla Bear
- Start date
Eric Lindros
#88
I heard the news this morning. Amazing that everyone is save.
slowhand
Closed Account
1.2 billion dollars up in smoke.Yep thats what each B-2 bomber costs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B-2_Spiritwiki said:
they are now non-replaceable, but if one were to be replaced in 2008 dollars it would be . . . .let's see. . . . (mummble). . .carry the 4. . . .A LOT!
a purely offensive weapon, designed to fight the last war.
luckily, we've found new uses for this cold war deterrent.
it's called collateral damage.
:thumbsdown: on the emperor's big scary bat thing.
oh, and i'm glad no one was hurt!
It might just be my perception but it seems that stealth planes are involved in a higher proportion of crashes and malfunctions relative to other planes. There have been multiple crashes over the years with them. I know they are not built with maneuverability or even durability with their primary objective, but with their expense every time one goes down it a big sink in resources.
dick van cock
Closed Account
Reminds me of an old Starfighter joke.
Q: What do you need to get a Starfighter?
A: A large cornfield a little bit of patience.
Q: What do you need to get a Starfighter?
A: A large cornfield a little bit of patience.
And? Don't make this sound like they went out and lit the damn thing on fire.
It's a military plane- we lose some of those every year to crashes, training exercises, mechanical failure, etc. In the last ten years, it's just been reported a lot more quickly.The B-2, despite its price tag and capabilities, is still just a big flying hunk of composites and metal. Sometimes those fail, for whatever reason. Now if six of them had crashed all at once, then it would be some cause for alarm, but losing one to this kind of crash, you have to expect that. We've lost just about every air frame we've ever built in our history at one point or another.
I think it's much more noteworthy that two F-15s crashed on a training exercise over the Gulf of Mexico. One of those pilots didn't survive.
Imagine a place like Cold War Russia- how many planes do you suppose they had crash that we never even knew of? My guess is LOTS.
Not that I like seeing over a billion dollars burn up on a runway, mind you... :shocked:
Which 'emperor' are you referring to? You are aware, aren't you, that development of this thing began in the late 1970s, right? That would make the emperor during its inception... Mr. Jimmy Carter. It wasn't rolled out for public display until 1988 (President Reagan's time), and not used in combat until 1993. Guess who was president when it was first used in combat? Yes... Bill Clinton. So while Mr. Bush has certainly used them against Afghanistan and Iraq, he's not the only one to call this thing to combat service. During Clinton's term, they were used over Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kosovo.
H
And? Don't make this sound like they went out and lit the damn thing on fire.
The B-2, despite its price tag and capabilities, is still just a big flying hunk of composites and metal. Sometimes those fail, for whatever reason. Now if six of them had crashed all at once, then it would be some cause for alarm, but losing one to this kind of crash, you have to expect that. We've lost just about every air frame we've ever built in our history at one point or another.
I think it's much more noteworthy that two F-15s crashed on a training exercise over the Gulf of Mexico. One of those pilots didn't survive.
Imagine a place like Cold War Russia- how many planes do you suppose they had crash that we never even knew of? My guess is LOTS.
Not that I like seeing over a billion dollars burn up on a runway, mind you... :shocked:
Which 'emperor' are you referring to? You are aware, aren't you, that development of this thing began in the late 1970s, right? That would make the emperor during its inception... Mr. Jimmy Carter. It wasn't rolled out for public display until 1988 (President Reagan's time), and not used in combat until 1993. Guess who was president when it was first used in combat? Yes... Bill Clinton. So while Mr. Bush has certainly used them against Afghanistan and Iraq, he's not the only one to call this thing to combat service. During Clinton's term, they were used over Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kosovo.
H
I was not trying to infer this was anything other than an accidental crash of the B-2.My point about the 1.2 billion was to make sure everyone realized the astronomical cost of such things.I think that was the point of people like Negators comment also we think these things should not be there to be able to have accidents with in the 1st place and and are an extreme waste of our tax dollars and resources.And for sure the military-industrial complex owns both dems and pubs and does well under both parties.Maybe when there was the cold war these expensive things could be justified but the defense spending is still tremendous and that to me is a sign that it is really about something else and not spending based on realistic threat assesments.
Ike warned us!
Here again is the opening to "Why we fight" where Ike talks about the threat of the military industrial complex.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8y06NSBBRtY
Facetious
Moderated
• It's an old relik, jetsam I say ! (pun unint.).
Retire and dismember this horrible symbol of inequity and aggression !
Maybe secure the remaining assets for aerial target practice at China Lake. Lock up Whiteman AFB at once ! . . . for good !
• If not for America's aggressive weapons mfgr bureaucracy, all would be safe in the world . . . forever and ever ah'med !
I don't much care for the barons involved with its mfgr. but it sure beats having to stand out in the long cold line for bread, potatos and porage everyday ! Or become a bar of soap and / or lampshade, for that matter !
Retire and dismember this horrible symbol of inequity and aggression !
Maybe secure the remaining assets for aerial target practice at China Lake. Lock up Whiteman AFB at once ! . . . for good !
• If not for America's aggressive weapons mfgr bureaucracy, all would be safe in the world . . . forever and ever ah'med !
I don't much care for the barons involved with its mfgr. but it sure beats having to stand out in the long cold line for bread, potatos and porage everyday ! Or become a bar of soap and / or lampshade, for that matter !
the emperor i am referring to is the president of the united states of america. i'm an avid student of military ordinance, so i can admire the B-2 for what it is, and i've followed it's development from the beginning. what i can't admire, is the fact that we have this purely offensive weapon after it's purpose-on-paper has expired. we now have an executive branch with powers well beyond what the constitution defines. the result of the gas can and the match is that our cold-war deterrent has been used in belligerent, immoral, elective hot aggression. it's too expensive and we don't need it; military hardware that has become the end itself, rather than the means to an end.:2 cents:
Facetious
Moderated
The expenditure is tremendous (we're still paying for it . . right ?) It's like a naive young twentysomething arriving at their auto dealership of choice . . . "How much are the monthly payments" and they sign the papers w/out a query about how many months they are legally obligated to pay a sum unforeseen.
IIRC - The Russians have defied stealth works, have they not ?
If yes, is it foreseeable that the American tax payers will be paying incomprehensible sums of freely / freshly printed paper for defunct, obsolete, yet shapely sheets of military ordnance? To this end ?
IIRC - The Russians have defied stealth works, have they not ?
If yes, is it foreseeable that the American tax payers will be paying incomprehensible sums of freely / freshly printed paper for defunct, obsolete, yet shapely sheets of military ordnance? To this end ?
Vanilla Bear
Bears For Life
well it happened a few times before...
not with the B-2 I guess but at least with a few F117
They cost a few hundred million dollars each.
not with the B-2 I guess but at least with a few F117
They cost a few hundred million dollars each.
Vanilla Bear
Bears For Life
but an F22 is not as expensive as an B2 bomber.
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