YF-23 Black Widow II

The YF-23A Black Widow II is an experimental fighter craft manufactured by Mcdonell Douglas. It is commonly regarded as the "sister craft" of the F-22A Raptor.

Description
The YF-23A was Northrop and McDonnell Douglas proposal for the US government's Advanced Tactical Fighter program, whose objective was to create an aircraft designed to replace the legendary F-15C Eagle. It's main rival was the Boeing/Lockheed-manufactured YF-22 Lightning II (which evolved into the F-22A Raptor.)

In terms of raw performance, the YF-23 was superior to the Lightning II in terms of speed & stealth, as well as operational range. Furthermore, the YF-23 had a lower production cost due to the unneeded use of tankers and parts from other aircraft (ie. F/A-18C, F-15C and B-2A Spirit; said aircraft served as the YF-23A's inspiration. Two YF-23As were developed for the ATF program, both of which sported different engines & paintwork: the black PAV-1 (Black Widow II, Pratt & Whitney YF119) and the gray PAV-2 (Gray Ghost, Pratt & Whitney YF120.) Of note is the fact that the Black Widow II's namesake comes from the P-61 Black Widow aircraft from WWII.

The Black Widow II was supposed to satisfy the USAF's demands for survivability, manteinaince, supercruise & stealth capabilities, which prompted Northrop to set stealth capabilities as maximum priority. Thus, the company decided to use elements from the F/A-18C Hornet and the B-2A Spirit in the YF-23's mainframe (the V-tail coming from the former.) In order to reduce the development costs, Northrop employed parts from other aircraft in the YF-23's design, such as F-15 Eagle nosewheel units and cockpits (respectively, from the F-15C & F-15E Strike Eagle.)

In terms of performance, the YF-23A was superior to the Lightning II in terms of speed, operational range & stealth capabilities, although the Lightning II had the upper hand in terms of maneouverability. However, for reasons unknown, the US government chose the YF-22 as the ATF project's winner. Rumors state that Lockheed's industrial performance was a vital factor in the Pentagon's decision to select the YF-22 over the YF-23: Lockheed had financial problems caused by the B-2 Spirit & A-12 Avenger II bombers (the latter of which would be cancelled due to high costs.)

In 2004, Norhrop proposed a Black Widow II-inspired design for the USAF's "Regional Bomber" program, along with other proposed aircraft such as the B-1R missle truck and the FB-22.

Aces

 * Martin (STFS/AC)


 * Fox Four Force (URF/AC2)


 * Grani (Granite) (BAF/ACZ)


 * Lilie (Lily) (BAF/ACZ)


 * Slon (Elephant) (YAF & AWWNB/ACZ)


 * OADF 8th AD, 32nd TFS, 1st Flight/Wizard Squadron (OADF & AWWNB/ACZ)


 * Gryphus Squadron (AAF/ACX)


 * Spider (LAF/ACX)


 * Falco Squadron (AAF/ACX)
 * Bloodstone (Valahia/ACX2)

Standard Weapons

 * Gun: 1 x 20mm M61A2 Lightweight Vulcan Cannon


 * Missiles: AIM-9M Sidewinder

Special Weapons

 * BDSP: JP-223 Anti Runway Submunitions (ACZ & ACX)


 * NPB: Mk.77 (ACZ & ACX)


 * QAAM: AIM-9X Sidewinder (AC5, ACZ & ACX)


 * ODMM: type N/A (ACX2)

Air Combat

 * Power: 90


 * Defense: 60


 * Mobility: 60


 * Stability: 90


 * Climbing Ability: 80


 * Air-to-Air: 80


 * Air-to-Ground: 80

Ace Combat 5/Zero

 * Speed: 83


 * Mobility: 83


 * Stability: 80


 * Defense: 66


 * Air-to-Air: 97


 * Air-to-Ground: 76

Comparable Aircraft

 * F-22A Raptor


 * F-15C Eagle


 * F/A-18C Hornet
 * Sukhoi PAK-FA/T-50
 * FB-22
 * F-15E Strike Eagle