4 ms·

What’s “the west” and how were they trying and weren’t able to match tu-160?

• sudosysgen 5y ago
  The West being the US and Western Europe and the attempts were mainly the B-1A and the XB-70 both of which failed.
  • dralley 5y ago
    Cancellation isn't failure. By that point it was clear that non-stealth high altitude bombers were going to be completely useless within the next few years due to advances in missile technology.
    • sudosysgen 5y ago
      Actually, no it wasn't. What was clear was that low altitude bombers were going to become useless due to look-down shoot-down radars. High altitude and high speed bombers were and are the best non-stealth alternative.
      • dralley 5y ago
        >High altitude and high speed bombers were and are the best non-stealth alternative. Which are carried by interceptor aircraft - meanwhile the long-term shift was clearly towards anti-aircraft missiles., and stealth was only a few years away. At this point the F/A-117 was already pretty far along in development.