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XB-70 Valkyrie Traditional Geocache

This cache has been archived.

Tom.dog: Archiving due to private property issues.

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Hidden : 8/5/2011
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

Military aircraft series.

You will have to park and take a short walk to this cache, but nothing hard.

North American XB-70 Valkyrie

The North American Aviation XB-70 Valkyrie was the prototype version of the proposed B-70 nuclear-armed deep-penetration bomber for the United States Air Force's (USAF) Strategic Air Command. Designed by North American Aviation in the late 1950s, the Valkyrie was a large six-engined aircraft able to fly Mach 3+ at an altitude of 70,000 feet (21,000 m), which would have allowed it to avoid interceptors, the only effective anti-bomber weapon at the time.

The introduction of effective high-altitude surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), the program's high development costs, and changes in the technological environment with the introduction of intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)s led to the cancellation of the B-70 program in 1961. Although the proposed fleet of operational B-70 bombers was canceled, two prototype aircraft were built as the XB-70A and used in supersonic test flights from 1964 to 1969. One prototype crashed following a midair collision in 1966; the other is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Ohio.

General characteristics

Crew: 2
Length: 189 ft 0 in (57.6 m)
Wingspan: 105 ft 0 in (32 m)
Height: 30 ft 0 in (9.1 m)
Wing area: 6,297 ft² (585 m²)
Airfoil: Hexagonal; 0.30 Hex modified root, 0.70 Hex modified tip
Empty weight: 128,000 lb (58,100 kg)
Loaded weight: 534,700 lb (242,500 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 550,000 lb (250,000 kg)
Powerplant: 6 × General Electric YJ93-GE-3 afterburning turbojet
Dry thrust: 19,900 lbf[65] (84 kN) each
Thrust with afterburner: 28,800 lbf[66] (128 kN) each
Internal fuel capacity: 300,000 lb (136,100 kg) or 46,745 US gallons (177,000 L)
Performance

Maximum speed: Mach 3.1 (2,056 mph, 3,309 km/h)
Cruise speed: Mach 3.0 (2,000 mph, 3,200 km/h)
Range: 3,725 nmi (4,288 mi, 6,900 km) on combat mission
Service ceiling: 77,350 ft (23,600 m)
Wing loading: 84.93 lb/ft² (414.7 kg/m²)
lift-to-drag: about 6 at Mach 2[99]
Thrust/weight: 0.314

Have fun!

Congrats to kwbforest on being the FTF!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Rnfg fvqr bs ovttre cvar.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)