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The Northrup Flying Wing was an aircraft that can
only be called ahead of its time. This was a machine that by some
uncanny fluke managed to leap off the pages of Air Wonder Stories
and into the skies. This had to be the aeroplane of the FUTURE.
It had that bold, clean line to it; that classic shape that stood out
like the spindle shape of a V2 rocket.
The
Flying Wing was originally designed as a bomber, though Northrup also
foresaw a transport version for carrying troops and cargo. It
was an ambitious programme, but it never got past the prototype stage.
In test flights, the flying wings proved to have insurmountable
stability problems that wouldn't be solved until the microchips of
today allowed for constant computer control.
Northrup
even produced mockups for a passenger model. With its spacious
seats, piano bar, and fore and aft observation lounges with huge
windows to provide panoramic views, it makes you just want to weep
every time you try to look out the peep holes of a modern airliner.
