Overview

The F-117 Nighthawk was born in darkness-conceived in secrecy, built in remote deserts, and flown by pilots who could not reveal what they did or where they served. Yet when this strange, angular aircraft first slipped across Iraqi airspace in January 1991, the world discovered a machine that would redefine modern warfare. This definitive, fact-driven narrative chronicles the full life of the world's first operational stealth aircraft-from the mathematical theories that made it possible to the Have Blue prototypes, the classified years at Groom Lake, and the shadowy operations of the 4450th Tactical Group. It explores the Nighthawk's dramatic combat debut in Panama and unmatched precision during Desert Storm, its evolution through conflicts in the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq, and its stunning resilience-even after the loss of Vega 31. Drawing from decades of declassified history, engineering breakthroughs, and operational accounts, the book also reveals how the Nighthawk influenced the development of the B-2, F-22, and F-35, shaped global airpower doctrine, and continued flying secretive post-retirement missions long after its public farewell. It is a story of innovation under pressure, of scientists and engineers who bent physics into a new aerodynamic language, and of aviators who trusted an aircraft unlike anything that had come before. F-117 Nighthawk: Stealth Before It Was Cool is both a sweeping historical account and a technical exploration of the aircraft that changed everything. It captures the birth of stealth, the rise of precision warfare, and the enduring legacy of a jet that operated in shadows-but reshaped the world in daylight.

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9781970852042

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