Sunder Nix and Northrop B-2 Spirit: Difference between pages

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[[image:usaf.b2.spirit.750pix.jpg|thumb|300px|The United States Air Force is the only agency in the world that operates the B-2 Spirit.]]

'''Sunder Nix''' was a [[1984]] [[Olympics|Olympic]] Gold medalist in the Men's 4x400 meter relay for the [[United States]].

The '''B-2 Spirit''', sometimes known as the '''B-2 Bomber''', is an [[United States|American]] multi-role [[stealth aircraft|stealth]] [[bomber]] capable of delivering both conventional and [[nuclear weapons]]. A dramatic leap forward in technology, the bomber represented a major milestone in the [[United States|U.S.]] bomber modernization program. The B-2 is the most expensive plane built to date, costing approximately $2.2 billion [[USD]] per plane. [http://www.fas.org/man/gao/gao94217.htm] Some writers have suggested that the huge program cost may actually include costs for other [[black project]]s that remain classified. The high per-unit cost may also be partially explained by the small number of planes produced coupled with a large research overhead in the B-2 program (see below).

{{Footer Olympic Champions 4x400 m Men}}

Originally designed to deliver [[nuclear weapons]] during the [[Cold War]] [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1991/HLM.htm], support for the B-2 dwindled as military spending declined in [[real dollars]] during the [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] Administration. The original procurement of 135 aircraft was later reduced to 75 in the late 1980s. Finally, President [[George H. W. Bush]] reduced the final buy quantity to the 21 already bought in his now famous "New World Order" State of the Union speech in January, 1991. In May of [[1995 in aviation|1995]], in a study commissioned by Congress, the Institute For Defense Analysis concluded that after the demise of the [[Soviet Union]], there was no need for more B-2s. As a result of public outcry over its cost, opposition from the Pentagon's [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]] and increasing opposition in the U.S. Congress, only 21 B-2s have been produced instead of a total of 135 planes as had been proposed. Given that much of the cost of the B-2 was in research and development, the cost per unit would have been much lower if all 135 had been produced. The B-2 can bring massive firepower to bear anywhere on the globe. Its stealth technology is intended to help it penetrate previously impenetrable defenses.

{{athlete-stub}}

[[Category:American track and field athletes|Nix, Sunder]]

==Trivia==

*Weighing in at 2,300,000 [[Troy weight|troy ounces]] (71,668 kg), each B-2 cost over $950.00 per troy ounce ($30/g) which is two or three times more than its weight in [[gold]].

==References==

*[http://www.cnn.com/US/9903/24/us.kosovo.military/index.html CNN - B-2 stealth bombers make combat debut - March 24, 1999]

*[http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/usa/bomber/b-2.htm FAS - B-2 Spirit - United States Nuclear Forces ]

*[http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=82 Air Force Link - Fact Sheet : B-2 Spirit]

== Related content ==

{{Commons|B-2 Spirit}}

{{aircontent|

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* [[B-1 Lancer|B-1]] - '''B-2'''

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* [[Northrop YB-49]]

|similar aircraft=

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* [[F-117 Nighthawk]]

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* [[List of bomber aircraft]]

* [[List of flying wing aircraft]]

* [[List of military aircraft of the United States]]

|see also=

|external links=

* [http://www.whiteman.af.mil Home of America´s Bomber - The B-2 Spirit of Whiteman Air Force Base]

* [http://www.is.northropgrumman.com/products/usaf_products/b2/b2.html B-2 Spirit - Northrop Grumman]

}}

[[Category:Flying wing aircraft]]

[[Category:Stealth aircraft]]

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