Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk
ʻO ka F-117A kahi hōʻailona o ke kūlana ʻenehana ʻAmelika i ka wā o ke Kaua anuanu.
Ua kūkulu ʻia ka F-117A Nighthawk e Lockheed ma muli o ka pono o ka Air Force o ʻAmelika Hui Pū ʻIa (USAF) i kahi kahua e hiki ai ke komo i loko o nā ʻōnaehana pale lewa ʻenemi. Ua hana ʻia kahi mokulele kūʻokoʻa, ʻo ia hoʻi, mahalo i kona ʻano ʻokoʻa a me ka maikaʻi o ka hakakā ʻana, i komo i ka mōʻaukala o ka mokulele pūʻali koa mau loa. Ua ʻike ʻia ʻo F-117A ka mokulele haʻahaʻa haʻahaʻa loa (VLO), i kapa ʻia ʻo "stealth".
ʻO ka ʻike o ke kaua ʻo Yom Kippur (ke kaua ma waena o ka ʻIseraʻela a me ka hui Arab ma 1973) i hōʻike ʻia e hoʻomaka ana nā mokulele e nalowale i kāna hoʻokūkū "mau loa" me nā ʻōnaehana pale ea. ʻO nā ʻōnaehana hoʻopili uila a me ke ʻano o ka pale ʻana i nā kikowaena radar ma ka "pepa ʻana" electromagnetic dipoles i ko lākou mau palena a ʻaʻole lawa ka uhi lele. Ua hoʻomaka ka Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) e noʻonoʻo i ka hiki ke "bypass o ka ʻōnaehana." ʻO ka manaʻo hou e pili ana i ka hoʻomohala ʻana i ka ʻenehana e hōʻemi i ka ʻāpana radar cross section (RCS) o kahi mokulele i kahi pae e pale ai i ka ʻike pono ʻia e nā kikowaena radar.
Hale #82 o ka mea kanu Lockheed ma Burbank, Kaleponi. Ua uhi ʻia ka mokulele me ka uhi ʻana i ka microwave a pena ʻia i ka hina hina.
I ka makahiki 1974, ua hoʻokumu ʻo DARPA i kahi papahana i kapa ʻole ʻia ʻo Project Harvey. ʻAʻole i pōʻino kona inoa - ua kuhikuhi ʻia i ke kiʻi ʻoniʻoni "Harvey" i ka makahiki 1950, ʻo ke ʻano nui o ia mea he rabbit ʻike ʻole ʻia ma kahi o ʻelua mau mika ke kiʻekiʻe. Wahi a kekahi mau hōʻike, ʻaʻohe inoa kūhelu o ka papahana ma mua o ka hoʻomaka ʻana o ke kahua "Have Blue". ʻO kekahi o nā papahana Pentagon i kēlā manawa i kapa ʻia ʻo Harvey, akā ʻo ia ka tactical. Ua pili paha ka laha ʻana o ka inoa "Project Harvey" me nā hana hoʻopunipuni e pili ana i nā hana o ia manawa. Ma ke ʻano he ʻāpana o ka papahana DARPA, ua noi ʻo ia i nā ʻenehana ʻenehana e kōkua i ka hōʻemi ʻana i ka RCS o kahi mokulele hoʻouka kaua. Ua kono ʻia nā hui e komo i ka papahana: Northrop, McDonnell Douglas, General Dynamics, Fairchild a me Grumman. Pono ka poʻe i komo i ka papahana e hoʻoholo inā loaʻa iā lākou nā kumuwaiwai a me nā mea hana e kūkulu ai i kahi mokulele RCS ultra-low.
ʻAʻole ʻo Lockheed ma ka papa inoa DARPA no ka mea ʻaʻole i hana ka hui i kahi mokulele fighter i 10 mau makahiki a ua hoʻoholo ʻia ʻaʻole loaʻa ka ʻike. Ua haʻalele ʻo Fairchild lāua ʻo Grumman i ka hōʻike. Hāʻawi ʻia ʻo General Dynamics e kūkulu i nā countermeasures uila hou, akā naʻe, hāʻule i ka manaʻo o DARPA. ʻO McDonnell Douglas a me Northrop wale nō i hōʻike i nā manaʻo e pili ana i ka hoʻohaʻahaʻa ʻana i ka ʻaoʻao noʻonoʻo radar kūpono a hōʻike i ka hiki ke hoʻomohala a me ka prototyping. I ka hopena o 1974, ua loaʻa nā hui ʻelua i PLN 100 i kēlā me kēia. Nā ʻaelike USD e hoʻomau i ka hana. I kēia manawa, ua komo ka Air Force i ka papahana. Ua komo pū ka mea hana radar, ʻo Hughes Aircraft Company, i ka loiloi ʻana i ka pono o nā hoʻonā pilikino.
Ma ka waena waena o 1975, ua hōʻike ʻo McDonnell Douglas i nā helu e hōʻike ana i ka haʻahaʻa o ka ʻāpana radar o ka mokulele i mea "ʻike ʻole ʻia" i nā radar o ia manawa. Ua lawe ʻia kēia mau helu e DARPA a me USAF i kumu no ka loiloi ʻana i nā papahana e hiki mai ana.
Hele mai ʻo Lockheed i ka pāʻani
I kēlā manawa, ua ʻike ke alakaʻi o Lockheed i nā hana a DARPA. ʻO Ben Rich, ʻo ia ke poʻo o ka māhele hoʻolālā kiʻekiʻe i kapa ʻia ʻo "Skunk Works" mai Ianuali 1975, e komo i ka papahana. Ua kākoʻo ʻia ʻo ia e ke poʻo o Skunks Works mua ʻo Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson, nāna i hoʻomau i ka lawelawe ʻana ma ke ʻano he ʻenekinia kūkākūkā nui o ka māhele. Ua noi ʻo Johnson i ka ʻae kūikawā mai ka Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) e hōʻike i nā hopena noiʻi e pili ana i nā ana o ka ʻāpana radar cross section o Lockheed A-12 a me SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft a me D-21 reconnaissance drones. Hāʻawi ʻia kēia mau mea e DARPA i mea hōʻoia o ka ʻike o ka hui me RCS. Ua ʻae ʻo DARPA e hoʻokomo iā Lockheed i ka papahana, akā i kēia manawa ʻaʻole hiki ke komo hou i kahi ʻaelike kālā me ia. Ua komo ka hui i ka papahana ma ka hoʻokomo ʻana i kāna kālā ponoʻī. He ʻano keakea kēia no Lockheed, no ka mea, ʻaʻole i hoʻopaʻa ʻia e kahi ʻaelike, ʻaʻole ʻo ia i haʻalele i nā kuleana i kekahi o kāna mau ʻenehana loea.
ʻO nā mea ʻenekinia Lockheed ke ʻimi nei i ka manaʻo maʻamau o ka hōʻemi ʻana i ka wahi noʻonoʻo pono o ka radar no kekahi manawa. Ua hoʻoholo ʻo Engineer Denis Overholser a me ka makemakika ʻo Bill Schroeder e hiki ke hoʻokō ʻia ka noʻonoʻo maikaʻi ʻana o nā nalu radar ma o ka hoʻohana ʻana i nā papa liʻiliʻi liʻiliʻi ma nā kihi like ʻole. E kuhikuhi lākou i nā microwave i ʻike ʻia i hiki ʻole iā lākou ke hoʻi i ke kumu, ʻo ia hoʻi, i ka radar. Ua hana ʻo Schroeder i ka hoʻohālikelike makemakika no ka helu ʻana i ke degere o ka noʻonoʻo ʻana o nā kukuna mai kahi ʻili palahalaha triangular. Ma muli o kēia mau ʻike, ua hoʻomohala ka luna noiʻi o Lockheed, ʻo Dick Scherrer, i ke ʻano kumu o ka mokulele, me kahi ʻēheu nui a me kahi fuselage multi-plane.
