Message posted by Vahe Demirjian (Member since 04/28/2022) on December 31, 2023 at 20:20:14 PST:
As documented in various publications, the Lockheed ATA-B was a scaled-up two-seat derivative of the F-117, and specifications for the ATA-B project can be found in the book "Have Blue and the F-117A: Evolution of the Stealth Fighter". Recently, while reading the Kindle version of the book "F-117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter: An Illustrated Developmental History", I happened to notice a photo of a radar cross section test model of the ATA-B proposal (courtesy of Lockheed Martin) under construction. In this image (see attached weblink), the ATA-B RCS test model exhibits the inlet configuration for the General Electric F101 turbofan that was chosen for the ATA-B configuration. Even though the cockpit section and wings are not yet installed judging from the photo, the location of the inlet for the F101 adjacent to the wings and the photo of the ATA-B RCS test model under construction may shed visual light on what the ATA-B proposal would have looked like because it was longer than the F-117 and had a bigger wingspan. Indeed, the ATA-B engine inlets appear to differ from those of the final Lockheed Senior Peg design for the ATB contest and possibly the initial Senior Peg proposal and the losing Lockheed BSAX design in being taller.
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