YF-23 Black Widow II

E205810

The YF-23 Black Widow II was an experimental stealth fighter prototype developed by Northrop/McDonnell Douglas for the U.S. Air Force’s Advanced Tactical Fighter program, competing against what became the F-22 Raptor.

All labels observed (6)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf experimental aircraft
prototype fighter aircraft
stealth aircraft
twin‑engine jet aircraft
aircraftCategory fifth-generation fighter prototype
airForceDesignation YF-23
airframeMaterial composite materials
armamentProvision internal air-to-air missiles
competedWith YF-22
linked to: F-22 Raptor
configuration tailless-style main wing with canted fins
countryOfOrigin United States
crew 1
designedForCapability beyond-visual-range combat
low radar cross-section
supercruise
designEmphasis stealth over extreme agility
developedFor United States Air Force
developedForProgram Advanced Tactical Fighter program
engineOption General Electric YF120
Pratt & Whitney YF119
engineType turbofan
era late Cold War
feature diamond-shaped wing planform
internal weapons bays
stealth shaping
twin outward-canted vertical stabilizers
firstFlightDate 1990-08-27
hasVariant YF-23 PAV-1
YF-23 PAV-2
intendedMissionProfile deep penetration strike
high-altitude interception
lostTo F-22 Raptor
manufacturer McDonnell Douglas
Northrop
nickname Black Widow II
numberBuilt 2
operatorDuringTesting United States Air Force
powerplantCount 2
preservedAt National Museum of the United States Air Force
Western Museum of Flight
program Advanced Tactical Fighter
programOutcome not selected for production
role air superiority fighter
tactical fighter
status retired prototype
successorInService F-22 Raptor
testPhase flight test and evaluation
usedInCompetition Advanced Tactical Fighter flyoff

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (8)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

F-22 Raptor basedOnCompetitionWith YF-23 Black Widow II
F-22 Raptor wonAgainst Northrop YF-23
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
YF-23 Black Widow II airForceDesignation YF-23
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
YF-23 Black Widow II hasVariant YF-23 PAV-1
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
YF-23 Black Widow II hasVariant YF-23 PAV-2
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
Advanced Tactical Fighter program loser Northrop YF-23
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
Advanced Tactical Fighter program aircraftDevelopedUnderProgram YF-23
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II
Pratt & Whitney F119 usedOnAircraft YF-23 (prototype evaluation, derivative engines)
linked to: YF-23 Black Widow II