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This Unidentified Plane Flew Over California. The Air Force Won't Admit It Exists.
It looks a lot like a stealthy bomber, but that's not what it is.
Local
A photograph appears to show a plane flying over Edwards Air Force base that's unlike any aircraft publicly acknowledged by the U.S. Air Force.
The aircraft appears similar to the RQ-180, a high-altitude spy drone.
The RQ-180’s existence has never been confirmed by the U.S. Air Force.
A photo of what could very well be the Air Force’s shadowy RQ-180 spy drone recently appeared—and disappeared—from Instagram.
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The image (above) depicts a flying wing-shaped aircraft leaving a contrail in its wake. An observer reportedly took the photo while the aircraft was over the Military Operating Area at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
According to Aviation Week & Space Technology, the aircraft “was flying in a racetrack pattern at an estimated altitude of 20,000 [feet].”
The photo, along with a magnified version of the image, appeared on Instagram. The post was later taken down, but archived and reposted on Twitter, as seen above. “Until I dot the 'I's and cross the 'T's!!”, Rob Kolinsky (@sundownerstudios) wrote, “then the picture will return!”
The mystery aircraft, as Kolinsky points out, does indeed look like the new B-21 Raider bomber. The B-21 Raider is a new strategic bomber under development by Northrop Grumman.
The B-21 will eventually replace the B-1B Lancer and B-2 Spirit stealth bombers (but not the B-52) in Air Force service. The first aircraft is reportedly under construction and won’t fly until 2022.