# Coolest Bomber aircraft **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 1, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356 "2009-06-01T14:40:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/81 "2009-06-05T04:03:21Z")
It couldn’t hurt to maintain a third delivery system just in case. There was always a chance that the Russians would develop electronic countermeasures capable of defeating cruise missiles. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/82 "2009-06-05T04:03:52Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Because a Cessna 172 has enough payload capacity to deliver a small crate of ping pong balls, if the crate doesn’t weight too much. It was just a joke on the B-2’s ability to avoid detection. 😉 Which reminds me of a story I heard when a B-2 went to (I think) Oshkosh several years ago. After reporting to Center, Center replied, ‘Roger. Radar contact.’ ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/83 "2009-06-05T04:07:57Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > It was just a joke on the B-2’s ability to avoid detection. 😉 > > Which reminds me of a story I heard when a B-2 went to (I think) Oshkosh several years ago. After reporting to Center, Center replied, ‘Roger. Radar contact.’ Could he have been referring to picking up the transponder properly? I’m not sure if ATCs would use “radar contact” to mean that, but since it’s atypical to actually seek radar contact from what I understand, that might explain it. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/84 "2009-06-05T04:15:34Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Could he have been referring to picking up the transponder properly? I’m not sure if ATCs would use “radar contact” to mean that, but since it’s atypical to actually seek radar contact from what I understand, that might explain it. Yes, that’s what it means but you have a field full of pilots at the airshow with handheld radios listening to the conversation. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/85 "2009-06-05T04:19:47Z")
I do remember hearing the story of testing a model of the F-117 for radar----the mini was mounted upside down on a pole out in the test range. The techs were curseing up a blue streak, unable to pick up any return. The visiting brass were amused. They saw the lonely sparrow land on the inverted model. “GOT IT” exclaimed the tech, who could not see down range… ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/86 "2009-06-05T06:00:22Z")
> [@Pushkin](#): > > [This](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Slam_bomb) being one means of seriously fucking someone’s shit up. Bingo. 😃 The [Bouncing Bomb](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouncing_bomb) is also one of my favourites too… ingenious! ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/87 "2009-06-05T12:31:33Z")
I am sort of wavering between the Gotha and the Swordfish. Has anyone caught the article on the History Channel- “Ten greatest Bombers of All Time”? I have just seen the end part and know the winner- I have the show recorded. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/88 "2009-06-05T13:03:57Z")
Didn’t get into production: XB-70 Did get into production: B-58 Both well ahead of their time. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/89 "2009-06-05T13:39:59Z")
> [@The\_Vorlon](#): > > I do remember hearing the story of testing a model of the F-117 for radar----the mini was mounted upside down on a pole out in the test range. The techs were curseing up a blue streak, unable to pick up any return. The visiting brass were amused. They saw the lonely sparrow land on the inverted model. “GOT IT” exclaimed the tech, who could not see down range… Wouldn’t they be happy about not getting a return? I thought that was the whole point of the F-117. > [@Cicero](#): > > Has anyone caught the article on the History Channel- “Ten greatest Bombers of All Time”? > > I have just seen the end part and know the winner- I have the show recorded. Yeah. I didn’t agree with it. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/90 "2009-06-05T13:47:33Z")
Yes- I rarely agree with their “Greatest of…” The parameters are far to loose. And just an example- in the ten greatest tanks they mentioned the British tank of WW1- there were many variants but I guess that wasn’t convenient for them. Hmmm- thinking ten coolest tanks here- thanks Really Not All That Bright. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/91 "2009-06-05T14:09:21Z")
No problem. I think we need a Coolest Helicopters thread too. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/92 "2009-06-05T15:41:41Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > One naval pilot, Swede Vejtasa, shot down 3 Zeroes in a single battle flying a Dauntless. He was later transferred to fighters. _How_ he is believed to have done so is instructive: the Dauntless was inferior in almost every way to the Zero for air-to-air combat, but had been ruggedly built to withstand the high g-forces inherent in dive bombing. Vejtasa kept his speed up as much as possible and made continuous high-g maneuvers; the Zero pilots couldn’t match him without risking overstressing their airframes. They mostly stayed outside his turns waiting for him to get tired or make a mistake, which didn’t happen. The fight allegedly took about 25 minutes. Imagine riding the most violent amusement park ride you’ve ever been on for 25 minutes, keeping track of 3 enemies in 3 dimensional space who will kill you if you become disoriented. Unbelievable. ---
**Author:** ![akira5822](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/53a042/32.png) [@akira5822](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akira5822)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/93 "2009-06-05T16:56:10Z")
I think this might be a pushing it a little but i think the A-6 is way cool > **[Grumman A-6 Intruder](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-6_Intruder)** > > The Grumman A-6 Intruder is an American twinjet all-weather attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace and operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. > It was designed in response to a 1957 requirement issued by the Bureau of Aeronautics for an all-weather attack aircraft for Navy long-range interdiction missions and with short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability for Marine close air support. It was to replace the piston-engined Douglas A-1... ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/94 "2009-06-05T17:39:37Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > There is, however, the question of what a $2B per unit aircraft could do that a fleet of cruise missiles, IRBMs, ICBMs, and SLBMs couldn’t do. Other than a precision sneak attack–which was never part of the US SIOP–the bomber wing of the triad existed primarily to assure that, from a deterrence perspective, the USAF still had planes to fly rather than just missiles to guard. Generals have expensive egos to stroke. The thinking goes that a bomber fleet is a recallable form of sabre rattling. Once you launch a missile that is pretty much it. However, you can send a strong signal by deploying bombers out to fail safes to express that you are serious without actually having to nuke someone. Also, there is still a good role for bombers in conventional attacks. IIRC there were some Afghan troops who were dug in and would not budge. The US had been hitting their positions for days with missiles and the like…nothing really worked. So, the US flew a few BUFF’s (B-52’s) and carpet bombed the place. Apparently that has a pretty dramatic psychological effect not to mention being pretty devastating to boot. Where the missiles failed the bombers succeeded in dislodging those troops. EDIT: There is also cost to consider. Sure a B2 may cost $2B. Yet a Tomahawk cruise missile costs $550,000 each. It takes 50 Tomahawks to equal the bomb load of one filled B2. At $27,500,000 a go for the equivalent of a single B2 that could add up fast. Dumb bombs are cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/95 "2009-06-05T18:01:46Z")
let me in here boys, I got my own take on the spirit or B-2 as it’s normally called. Now some heathen wogs seem to think that the spirits ultimate mission was decapitation , should the balloon go up and it’s WW3. In reality that was probably not too far off the mark, but mainly it was originally meant to blow huge swaths of space through the soviet and chinese air defense zones, and allow the follow on B-52’s to stand a good chance of getting through. Since it takes about up to sixteen hours or more to generate a strike package, even longer probably if we elect to receive, the spirits role has reverted to a more tactical doctrine. The Paul Dumer and than ho bridges in Vietnam come to mind, where the combined Air Force and Navy strikes spent trillions and a lot of lives lost or taken pow, before they were ultimately taken down. Had the spirit been around for that war, it may well have taken a different turn and might have seen the soviets evacing from their embassy in north vietnam. Declan ---
**Author:** ![Zeriel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/58956e/32.png) [@Zeriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeriel)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/96 "2009-06-05T18:06:08Z")
I’m just throwing in another vote for the Tu-160, which really is the single most perfect strategic bomber to ever grace a runway (stealth ain’t got nothing on sprint speed, if you ask me). ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/97 "2009-06-05T18:18:12Z")
> [@Declan](#): > > Now some heathen wogs seem to think that the spirits ultimate mission was decapitation… “Heathen wogs”? ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/98 "2009-06-05T18:28:51Z")
> [@Zeriel](#): > > I’m just throwing in another vote for the Tu-160, which really is the single most perfect strategic bomber to ever grace a runway (stealth ain’t got nothing on sprint speed, if you ask me). Two different missions, one skulks in the dark like a cutpurse and the other comes screaming in , telling the oposition to bring their A game if they care. Declan ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/99 "2009-06-05T18:31:50Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > “Heathen wogs”? Non aviation budget cutters, you know, bean counters. What, I assumed were among friends here 🙂 Declan ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356/100 "2009-06-05T19:57:40Z")
But if course… even if some might object to that, er, particular phrase. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coolest-bomber-aircraft/498356.md?page=6)