Meet the X-47B: America's $1.5 Billion Stealth Drone 

I worked in the early phases of this program. At the time it was called UCAS, not UCLASS - but we did lab tests of the command and control systems along with autonomous operation of the on-board systems. That was years ago and glad to see that it was finally tested, but sad to see it relegated to the plant 47 graveyard...

What a beautiful design. Looks like a mini B2. US military is number 1. 👍

We are getting into Ace Combat territory now!

I wanna see the Stingray win a large contract. That drone has more caps than any other and doesn't cost as much.

Interesting Video, Thank You Sam & The Crew of U.S. Military News. 👍 🇺🇸

I've watched this 5 times already and it gets better each time! 🔥

Looks alot like the triangle craft people have been seeing in the sky for the last decade or so

Really cool to see it operate and do stuff on its own. Really curies to know how it (im asuming it was doing it on its own) see and act acordingly, forward, stop etc.

Living in Palmdale/lancaster with Lockeed martin & skunkworks Northrup Grumman . Ive gotten to see & do some amazing stuff growing up which includes having to gotten to see these aircraft & getting to go inside aircraft such as the space shuttle , SR-71 , F-16 & F-18 among others . Getting to see B2 spirt & B1Lancer ,F22 , F35 among severql others fly low over head . Some great memories during the space shuttle program as after every flight in space the shuttles would break the sound barrier creating a sonic boom as it flew over our homes & Landed at Edwards . And sometimes getting a glimpse at New unreleased aircraft being tested flying at night over head or being out in the desert hunting & seeing something new that couldnt be explained . To say growing up in the area was amazing is a understaement. Getting to meet Outstanding Americans from flight crew , pilots to Astronauts. I was afforded opportunities as a kid that many dream of . And i Love my Country with every fiber of my being! GODBLESS THE U.S.A! And Thank you to the Men & women including there families who have served our country, in which many that didnt make it home including servel of my buddies i grew up with all my life. And weather your just doing your job , you serve your country, protecting the man or women to the left & right of you. The men & women of this country there are litterly no Better in the world then the Servicemen of our country!

this drone is something high-class

Now this is indeed, Military News. This baby has the potential to drop, launch or Zap from near orbit. It looks like it will be very useful for all the military branches…especially the Space Force.

Awesome combination of drone and manned fighters in areal combat.

In other words, it a $1.5B air tanker.

Extending fleet range does seem more of a priority than the cool factor. It is pretty cool, though.

There's a number of stealth type characteristic drones that the US is considering though; the Valkyrie, the Ghost bat are two that I know of.

This is really advanced technology! AMAZING

Very impressive and I have no doubt they got a ton of important data from the trials. I can't wait to see what the next unmanned fighter drone will look like. The ones that will act as a wingman to manned fighters in the Navy's future F/A-XX program. This is going to be a crazy decade of insane next Gen upgrades for the US military. Some of the programs are getting done fast, and innovation is being pushed by the private sector collaboration. China showed it's cards too early and have now certainly forced the US military to wake up.

Years ago I envisioned a U.S. military air dominance comprised of the following aircraft for all 4 branches of our combat arms (USAF, USA, USN and USMC). U.S. Air Force: Northrop, B-2 Spirit Northrop, F-23 Black Widow II Lockheed, F-35A Raptor (should’ve been named that) U.S. Army: Bell, V-44 (insert name) quad tilt rotor heavy lift Bell, V-22 Osprey (or V-280 equivalent) Sikorsky, RAH-66 Comanche U.S. Navy: Northrop, X-47 UCAV Lockheed, F-22 Lightning II (that’s what it should’ve been named) Lockheed, F-35C Raptor (that’s what it should’ve been named) U.S. Marines: Bell, V-22 Osprey Lockheed, F-35B Raptor (that’s what it should’ve been named) Sikorsky, RAH-66 Comanche The U.S. military should not be flying Vietnam war era aircraft at this point in time. And the Boeing, F-18 E/F Super Hornet (originally a Northrop creation) should’ve never been a thing. The U.S. Navy should be flying F-22s and F-35s. While the F-23 Black Widow II should’ve gone to the U.S. Air Force. Just imagine. 🚁✈️🇺🇸

Unmanned gas station - priceless. This is just proof of concept and software development. Carriers of the future are going to be drone platforms.

It’s a damn shame, considering the potential of the aircraft, all for an aircraft that is less capable than what was created. I feel bad for the engineering teams that spent more than a decade on this and achieved so much, with so much investment in the program just to park it. This was going to be yet again another huge success for Northrop Grumman like the b2 and the a10.

I was there for its first carrier landing on the Bush. It was upsetting when the engineers told us it was just for testing.

Just to think our cell phones have more computing power than all of earth until the 1970s

A thing of beauty.

Super U.S. Army

Is the x47b still in production. I saw one once off the coast of Galveston, Texas several years ago, but haven't heard anything since.

Great drones

Nice video. 👍🏽 1st of many I'm sure.

Sweet 🛫🇺🇸

Saw a prototype of it at Lakefront Airport in New Orleans in 2011 on the set of Green Lantern.

The staggering cost of $1.5 billion underscores the value that the US military places on advanced drone technology.

Is there any known way to prevent a Sikandar hypersonic from not calculating the exact location of a Carrier by using the wake it leaves behind for miles?

Who's here in 2024 and it's being used in service now ?

Well done,, today is going to be the better than tomorrow im only like the 4rth fastest

Is there any weapon developed in the USA which is effective, quick to make, easy to maintain and cheap? It's as if such weapons are an anathema to the MIC.

I love it

Need drone like this... Cheaper... Good quality...buy Anka-3

JFC! 1.5 *BILLION?* Somebody is making a lot of money.

Super 💯

I cannot tell if this is a CGI, CGI of a real plane, or just real plane in the begining????

We need to develop drone technology to the point so humans never have to fight in wars directly ever again.

Excellent ❤

These tests are very very important as it will help for future drone developments. The eventual drones that would be used a loyal wingmen for the naval NGAD and ofc NGAD itself when in unmanned mode would need to be capable of landing and launching from aircraft carriers. So these tests are crucial for future developments and give the US an advantage over China. The Chinese should come to their own conclusions from tests that the US has already done.

The US is generations ahead of others.

At 4:48, the narrator mentions an Omega Air KC-707 Tanker. Is this a civilian airliner? Does it derive from the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker USAF Airborne Refueler (which predates, and is smaller than, the Boeing 707 passenger airliner)? Or is it a modified Boeing 707? 5:57 am EDT

Just think the military is always 20-50 years more advanced than what the public is shown

Northrop Grumman vs. Boeing - that's all you need to know why the Navy shifted their drone program despite the success of the X-47B demonstrator. It's also unfortunate since Boeing is well known to develop projects that are overly ambitious, usually are delayed by months or years, and have significant cost overruns that the government is expected to simply pay the difference. It would be very beneficial to the U.S. Military if they continued to develop new systems without the interference of Boeing as a primary contractor.

I can't begin to imagine what goodies The US has up its sleeve.

Which one is better X-47B or MQ-9 Reaper?

How long until all military aircraft are drones?

Interesting choice of music at about halfway point

20 years in the making. If not more

I like this powerful drone

Great!

👍we need it.

If they're showing us this, what do they have hidden?

$1.5 billion drone? And they don't think it is crazy....Imagine that...

Well i can see those wingtips dropping off after it gets final approach on its target !!! Or they might be extra fuel too. To be like drop tanks. It can fly without them !! If they flew the 117 nitehawk they can balance and control a tree at mach 1.

Wonderful stuff, and if we are permitted to know about these...imagine what we are not permitted to know. For example, the British-developed Vertical Take off and landing was a reality 15 years before it was acknowledged. How do I know that? I can't say, but I can assure you it is a fact....a very old fact now. However what I can say, is that it was responsible for reports of flying saucers being seen at night over some extremely remote parts of the country, in the very late 1950's and early 1960's.

The X-47B is a formidable weapon, capable of performing missions with unmatched precision and stealth.

Thing landed and then stopped on a dime, -00:28 minute mark. Cool 😎.

Us Navy Most Powerful Navy In The World 🌎 ❤❤❤🇧🇩🇧🇩🇧🇩🇺🇸🇺🇸

I want to have one of these ☺

I really liked the style and the way I trained. Army q J l

What does it do watch the guy with the flags or flashlight to help it come in to land

I have a feeling they will use this against us.

Seems to me that a drone fighter jet should resemble a round UFO saucer more than a 20th century jet plane. For example, what is the windshield for? Why not use Harrier jet type technology to have the engine spin and point in a new direction in a heart beat giving the jet much more flexibility and maneuverability. A 2nd engine could point forward, giving the jet quicker response. Invent a new outside the box way of snaring the jet as it lands.... Either by a raising bed mattress or a giant net that would keep the jet in suspension. Eliminate the tires and landing gear altogether. Maybe allow for a set of tiny wheels, but rely on engine thrust to make a soft landing. Wings must be able to extend or retract as needed on dive runs. We also need to improve battery driven engines, that can provide max thrust while being extremely quiet. The drone needs to reach 4,000 miles per hr.. G-force is no longer a factor. Heat signal is no longer a problem. Heat seeking missiles would be extinct. The batteries would support a cooling system that would help the drone remain invisible to ground radar systems. Finally, we need to modernize our bombs. I'm thinking 4 lasers aimed forward, all aimed at the same target, multiplying the effect of the 4 lasers on the target. In effect, heat bombs, made of laser beams.. a "pilot" lites up the target from the other side of the world, perhaps the desert of Las Vegas.

1.5 Billion dollar drone 😮

I hope that nobody else copy it already!

Es el mismo que irán les bajo y le hizo ingeniería inversa ?

So cute!

Hope it has a self destruct button so it don’t get stolen

That is the USAF of the future! NOW!!! 🤔

Sky's the limit line . Morphing technology!

Talk about the Navy being short-sighted. Maybe Northrup Grumman didn't offer their Admirals enough in the way of jobs after retirement? That is what Admirals do after retirement, right? They go to work for the companies that they managed contracts for.

This reminds me of the film Stealth......

Badass

Very good idea a drone tanker

It’s the Lodestar from Black Ops 2 🤩

Wow.🎉❤

Excelent 🇺🇲🗽

And today you have mini drones of 300 euros doing the same

Only marked the end of that particular prototype they expanded upon it and learned from it. All in order to build something better we have many projects in place.

WOW!! 😱

nice !

Impressive. Wonder what happened to the X-45.

are the drones from ace combat 7 based this ?

Wow ❤❤❤

والله علم ادم الكل

Wow nice 🇺🇸

The amount of money is staggering! And doesn’t it seem odd that they decided to scrap something so quickly over a debate? And opted for a lesser specimen? How much material cost would you estimate this cost? Not even a million dollars? And I am not referring to chips that cost 6 million dollars

Wow.

Grumman... Developed some of the most innovative aircraft, keeps getting snubbed...

This was a really interesting program that I believe was mostly pushed aside because of politics.

GOD BLEES YOU USA❤👍

Add the gbu's and missiles!!!💯👍

I was on that program and for the production bid the navy wanted to make open to the other contractors our proprietary code that would take away our competitive andantage. So we no bid the program.

I wouldn't be suprised if the reason Northrop suddenly dropped out of the competition was because they got a black contract to continue development for a secret stealthy attack drone and leave the tanking to Boeing.

Real beast attack drone, India is developing Ghatak UCAV but it's cost will much less than US ,besides USA technology is still one of the world's best one but USA weapons are really expensive man, Indian space research organisation had launched successful Mars (Mangalayan) mission at the cost of 74 million USD whereas this us stealth drone costs around 1.5 billion USD

How much does one unit cost?

Add it to the list of great aircraft that will never reach their true potential, like the Commanche and Black Widow II. 😔