Boeing's $67 Million Stealth Experiment: The Bird of Prey Story

Boeing's YF-118G Bird of Prey was a stealth demonstrator built in the late 1990s as a proof of technology. The project, started by McDonnell Douglas's Phantom Works division before its merger with Boeing in 1997, aimed to show that a private company could design and build a stealth aircraft on a minimal budget in a rapid timeline.

The development costs of $67 million were entirely funded by the company itself, rather than through government contracts. This allowed engineers to have total freedom from the confines and constant requirement changes that often stretch defense aerospace projects across many years.

The Bird of Prey's design was an example of this approach, as it utilized a variety of off-the-shelf and borrowed parts, including landing gear from a Beech King Air and an engine from a Pratt & Whitney business jet. The airframe itself featured cutting-edge materials and designs, but the internal components were relatively low-tech.

The aircraft first flew on September 11, 1996, and completed its 38th and final sortie in April 1999. Its purpose was to test manufacturing and shaping concepts rather than testing mission systems, as it carried no radar, no weapons bay, and no combat avionics.