This is the US next air generation of fighter/surveillance aircraft.  Get used to the idea that Pilot's are not going to be in the leading edge of the first hours of battle where the statistics of being shot down are the greatest.  The X-47B is the answer to our arm of strength going forward to unfriendly skies.  Celebrate the fact that our leaders are making the correct choice in our unmanned mission of keeping peace with the newest OEM model that is limited in production, and offered to those agencies associated with the first flight this last 4th of February, 2011. I've reduced the price for those interested in acquiring this important achievement in our armed forces.

America’s fleet of 11 big-deck aircraft carriers just got a lot closer to becoming a lot more dangerous. On Friday afternoon, 4 February, 2011 Northrop Grumman's X-47B, a prototype for the Navy’s first carrier-capable killer drone, flew for the first time from Edwards Air Force Base in California.

“Taking off under hazy skies, the X-47B climbed to an altitude of 5,000 feet, flew several racetrack-type patterns, and landed safely at 2:38 PM PST. “The flight provided test data to verify and validate system software for guidance and navigation, and the aerodynamic control of the tailless design.”

“Designing a tailless, fighter-sized unmanned aircraft from a clean sheet is no small feat,” Northrop veep Janis Pamiljans added. While omitting a plane’s tail makes it way more stealthy, it also makes it harder to control.

If Northrop and the Navy can prove the X-47 works over the planned, three-year demonstration program, combat-ready X-47s could begin flying off carrier decks before the end of the decade.

The benefits are clear. With far greater range than the Navy’s existing F/A-18 strike fighters, the X-47 would allow Navy carrier groups to sail farther from shore when launching air strikes, helping protect the priceless vessels from the increasingly dangerous anti-ship missiles being fielded by nations such as China. The X-47 would also be able to sneak through the defensive umbrella of today’s "Triple-Digit" anti-aircraft missiles.