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"EW aircraft is taking fire from a YF-23!"
AWACS Long Caster[1]

The YF-23 Black Widow II (referred to as the YF-23A Black Widow II in some older games) is a prototype fighter aircraft.

The aircraft debuted in Air Combat and subsequently appeared in numerous titles since.

History[]

Strangereal[]

The Black Widow first saw use during the Skully Islands insurrection and the Belkan War.

During the Skully Islands insurrection, the Scarface Squadron and the rebel forces both used the aircraft.

During the Belkan War, the Belkan Air Force was the most prominent user of the aircraft. It was also used by the paramilitary terrorist organization AWWNB, most notably the renegade Wizard Team, replacing the F/A-18C Hornets they previously flew while they were still a part of the Osean Air Defense Force. During the Usean coup d'état, the Usean Rebel Forces used the aircraft against the Usean Allied Forces. Notable pilots include URF ace Max&Goose and the Z.O.E. Colonel.

During the Circum-Pacific War, the Belkan Air Force once again used the aircraft.

Black Widows were fielded in the Lighthouse War, especially late in the war, the YF-23 was operated by the Erusean Air Force as an advanced fighter, along with planes such as the Su-33 Flanker-D, Su-57 and the F-22A Raptor. One notable pilot included Erusean ace Major Benjamin Neumann, callsign "Lynx". YF-23s were also deployed by the Erusean Air Force to defend the submarine Alicorn from an Osean capture operation.[1]

During the Aurelian War, the Black Widow had seen plenty of use from both the Leasath Air Force and the Aurelian Air Force. On the Aurelian side, notable pilots include the Aquila Squadron and the Falco Squadron. On the Leasathian side, one of the LAF's aces, callsign Spider, used the aircraft.

Joint Assault universe[]

During the Valahia Crisis, only one known pilot used the aircraft. This was the Valahian ace Bloodstone.

Assault Horizon universe[]

The Black Widow was available for use by Warwolf Squadron.

Infinity universe[]

Duirng Operation Eternal Liberation, both the USEA Federation and the UNF used Black Widows. A notable unit was the federation's Shadow Squadron.

Game Analysis[]

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown[]

"A large stealth fighter and finalist in the Advanced Tactical Fighter competition. Its advanced speed and stealth capabilities make it ideal for preemptive strikes. One nickname for the prototype was "Black Widow II"."
Hangar

How to Unlock

The YF-23 is available on the Aircraft Tree and costs 875,000 MRP. It requires purchasing the F-15E Strike Eagle.

Statistics

YF-23 AC7 Statistics

Weapons

Part Slots

BODY: 32
ARMS: 32
MISC: 32

Named Pilots

  • Benjamin Neumann (LYNX)

Skins

  1. Osea: "Grey Ghost" livery
  2. Erusea: "Black Widow II" livery (Unlock: Finish first in the Battle Royal multiplayer mode three times)
  3. Special: Light grey with dark grey tiger stripes (Unlock: Shoot down LYNX)
  4. Mage: Osea skin with Mage Squadron markings
  5. Spare: Osea skin with Spare Squadron markings
  6. Strider: Osea skin with Strider Squadron markings
  7. Wizard: Wizard Team livery
  8. Z.O.E.: Zone of Endless red (Unlock: Acquire the Experimental Aircraft Series DLC)

Gallery

Ace Combat Infinity[]

"A prototype fighter with high stealth capabilities and excellent high speed flight. A candidate from the ATF (Advanced Tactical Fighter) program, with diamond shaped wings and a Y-shaped tail, reducing radar reflection surfaces and air resistance to absolutely minimal levels. Its nickname is the "Black Widow II"."
Hangar
Lv. Cst Price GUN MSL SAAM HVAA HCAA SP MO ST AA AG DF
1 750 315,900 343 120 10 B+ C+ D B+ D E+
2 795 63,180 377 122 14 B+ C+ D+ B+ D D
3 840 88,460 411 124 16 A B D+ A D D+
4 885 128,470 445 126 18 14 A+ B+ D+ A+ D+ C
5 930 197,970 480 128 20 16 S A C A+ D+ C+
6 975 547,560[a] 514 130 22 18 S A+ C A+ D+ B
7 1020 263,250 548 132 24 20 46 S+ A+ C S D+ B+
8 1065 400,140 583 134 26 22 50 S+ S C+ S D+ A
9 1110 600,210 617 136 27 23 52 S+ S+ C+ S+ C S
10 1155 989,820 652 138 28 24 54 S+ S+ C+ S+ C S+
11 1202 1,979,640 686 142 29 25 56 S+ S+ B S+ C S+
12 1249 2,063,880 720 146 30 26 58 S+ S+ B S+ C S+
13 1296 3,032,640 755 150 31 27 60 S+ S+ B+ S+ C S+
14 1343 4,254,120 789 154 32 28 62 S++ S+ B+ S+ C S+
15 1390 5,180,760 824 158 34 30 66 S++ S+ B+ S+ C S++
16 1456 7,539,480 856 160 35 31 68 S++ S+ A S+ C+ S++
17 1515 8,634,600 888 162 36 32 70 S++ S++ A S+ C+ S++
18 1574 9,708,660 920 164 37 33 72 S++ S++ A+ S++ C+ S++
19 1633 12,404,340 952 166 38 34 74 S++ S++ A+ S++ B S++
20 1692 15,626,520 984 168 40 36 76 S++ S++ A+ S++ B S++
Part Slots
At Lv.1, this aircraft carried 24 BODY, 26 ARMS, and 25 MISC part slots. See Tuning § Slot Expansion for further information.
Nicknames
Upgrading this aircraft to these levels unlocked the respective nicknames for use at any time.
  • Lv.3: Spider
  • Lv.10: Grey Ghost
  • Lv.15: Good Loser
  • Lv.20: Rough Diamond

Skin Galleries

Description

Grey Ghost livery

Gallery

YF-23 Event Skin 01 - Icon

Description

Digital camouflage pattern

Availability

Gallery

YF-23 Event Skin 02 - Icon

Description

Original "Black Widow II" livery

Availability

Gallery

YF-23 “AC” Skin -01

Description

White, red, and purple livery from Air Combat

Availability

Gallery

YF-23 “AC” Skin -02

Description

Black, blue, and purple livery; variation of “AC” Skin #01

Availability

Gallery

NODATA

Description

Wizard Squadron livery

Availability

Gallery

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy[]

"This stealth fighter has a unique design, which combines high supersonic speed with low radar observability."
Hangar

How to Unlock

Complete mission 21: Kingpin on Hard or higher difficulty on a second playthrough. Costs 119,000 credits.

Statistics

YF-23A stats

Weapons

Colors

  • Color 1: Grey camouflage
  • Color 2: 2-tone brown camouflage
  • Color 3: Spiderweb design (Color 5 from Ace Combat: Joint Assault)
  • Color 4: Lighter brown version of Color 2
  • Color 5: Black/white version of Color 3
  • Color 6: Lime green/light brown camouflage

Named Pilots

  • Max&Goose - Found in El Dorado. Spawns with the enemy reinforcements.
  • Z.O.E. Colonel

Gallery

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon[]

"This demonstrator aircraft possesses both superior stealth performance and high speed flight performance. Selected as a finalist for the ATF (Advanced Tactical Fighter) competition, this aircraft's unique diamond-shaped wings and angled V-tail fins provide a low radar cross-section and also function to achieve minimal air resistance. The aircraft is commonly known as the "Black Widow II."

Produced under a license from Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation.
YF-23 Black Widow II is a trademark of Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation."
Hangar

How to Unlock

On the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, the YF-23 was only available as paid downloadable content. It costed USD$5.99 or JPY¥720.
On the PC Enhanced Edition, the YF-23 is included for free.
The aircraft can only be used in Free Mission and online modes.

Statistics

  • Speed: Superior
  • Mobility: Superior
  • Stability: Superior
  • Fire Power: Superior
  • Defense: Superior

Weapons

Colors

  • Color 1: USAF "gray ghost" prototype gray
  • Color 2: USAF digital camouflage
  • Color 3: USAF black prototype livery with high-visibility roundels

Gallery

Ace Combat: Joint Assault[]

"This stealth fighter has a unique design, which combines high supersonic speed with low radar observability."
Hangar

How to Unlock

Complete mission 12B: Nightwatch (12B) on the second playthrough or clear mission 19: Desert Gust on the second playthrough.

Statistics

Yf23jastats

Weapons

Colors

  • C1: Gray Ghost body.
  • C2: Gray digital camouflage.
  • C3: Black Widow II body.
  • C4: Solid white with blue wing trim. Vaguely resembles the Rockwell-MBB X-31 demonstrator.
  • C5: Black and red body with spiderwebs on wings.
  • C6: Wizard Squadron livery.

Named Units

  • Bloodstone - Found in Dragon Lair. Spawns in the southeastern corner of the map in the beginning of the mission and flies to the north. Will leave the map if not engaged by player.

Gallery

Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception[]

YF-23 (Aurelia)
"This supersonic stealth fighter is know for its unique design, which achieves minimal air resistance and radar operability."
Hangar

How to Unlock

Complete mission 12C: Wild Card. Costs 46,600 credits.

Statistics

ACEX Statistics YF-23A

Weapons

Named Pilots

  • Spider - Found in Armada. Spawns to the south after both carrier-borne F-35s are shot down.

Skins

  • Aurelia: Gray Ghost body.
  • Leasath: Gray digital camouflage.
  • Special 1: Black Widow II body.
  • Special 2: Solid white with blue wing trim. Vaguely resembles the Rockwell-MBB X-31 demonstrator.

Gallery

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War[]

"Nicknamed the "Black Widow II," this supersonic stealth fighter is known for its unique design, which achieves minimal air resistance and radar observability."
Hangar

How to Unlock

Complete mission 16: The Demon of the Round Table on Knight Ace Style, and defeat the Wizard Team. It costs 133,000 credits to purchase.

Statistics

Speed: 83
Mobility: 83
Stability: 80
Defense: 66
Air-to-Air: 94
Air-to-Ground: 58

Weapons

Colors

  • Standard: Gray ghost livery
  • Mercenary: White body
  • Soldier: Original Black Widow II livery
  • Knight: Black and white camouflage
  • Special: Wizard Team livery

Named Pilots

Gallery

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War[]

"Nicknamed the "Black Widow II," this supersonic stealth fighter is known for its unique design, which achieves minimal air resistance and radar reflectivity."
Hangar

How to Unlock

The YF-23A is unlocked after completing campaign mission 16B, "Desert Lightning". Each unit costs 22,500.

Statistics

Speed: 83
Mobility: 83
Stability: 80
Defense: 66
Air-to-Air: 94
Air-to-Ground: 58

Weapons

Colors

  • OS: Gray ghost livery
  • RZ: Original Black Widow II livery
  • BL: White body

Gallery

Ace Combat 2[]

How to Unlock

Complete mission 14A: El Dorado or 14B: Dark Star. Costs 210,000 credits. Available on both normal and extra mode.

Statistics

Power: 90
Defense: 60
Mobility: 60
Stability: 90
Climbing Ability: 80
Air-to-Air: 80
Air-to-Ground: 80
Duration of flight: 16 minutes
Absorbability: Normal

Weapons

Named Pilots

Gallery

Air Combat[]

The aircraft is displayed as YF-23.

How to Unlock

EASY
Complete mission 5: Destroy Pipe-Lines
Complete mission 6: Destroy Production Site
NORMAL
Complete mission 9: Destroy Military Port Facilities
HARD
Complete mission 11: Repel Enemy from Captured Port

Price

$9,000,000 - original price
$8,100,000 - after first discount
$7,200,000 - after second discount
$5,400,000 - after third discount

Statistics

  • Defense: 4
  • Power: 5
  • Mobility: 3
  • Offense: 1
  • Stability: 1

Named Pilots

Gallery

Trivia[]

  • In Ace Combat: Assault Horizon, all three of the YF-23's liveries feature an "EG" tailcode, likely standing for Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

Footnotes[]

  1. Players could use one Nonstandard Upgrade Request Form instead of credits for the Lv.6 upgrade.

References[]

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