Leaked Secret Military Aircrafts

From planes that can travel faster than the speed of sound to AI controlled drones capable of deploying devastating automated weapons, let's check out some top secret military aircraft that’ve been leaked to the public.

Gamers Leak F-16 Secrets

In a few short years, players of the online war MMO War Thunder have found and leaked confidential information on everything from tanks and choppers to aircraft. All because they wanted to win arguments over which is the best.

One such gamer, known as ‘SpaceNavy90’, was in the middle of a heated online debate back in 2022 about the US F16 fighter jet. To make a point about War Thunder’s accuracy, he posted restricted information about the aircraft online.

The F-16 Falcon Fighter is an all purpose American supersonic fighter jet capable of flying more than double the speed of sound. Armed with a 20 mm rotary cannon and able to fire and drop a variety of different weapons, it’s considered one of the most capable military jets in history. And it was introduced to War Thunder in 2022.

Mr. SpaceNavy90 backed up his claim about the fighter by attaching four documents to his forum post. Three were research reports on some missiles the F-16 was used to test and the fourth was an F-16 pilot’s handbook on said missiles.

You might be wondering how did SpaceNavy90 get his hands on all that? American journalist Noah Smith theorized that the gamers responsible for those leaks are probably military personnel themselves, or wily salespeople.

It's unsure what happened to SpaceNavy90 in the end, but one thing’s obvious: publishing restricted information to a forum for the world to see is not going to get you on the US government’s good side.

Viktor Belenko: Soviet Defector Who Hijacked MiG-25

Viktor Belenko was born in Soviet Russia in 1947. Like many men in Communist Russia, Belenko joined the military, and eventually ended up becoming a pilot in the Soviet Air Defense Forces. He was stationed at Chuguyevka, Primorsky Krai, a neglected base in desperate need of repairs.

Viktor went to his superiors to offer solutions, but he was ignored. Being sidelined while trying to stand up for his comrades left Viktor disillusioned with communism and on 6th September 1976, he heard the call of freedom and decided to fly to the nearest Western allied airport Hakodate, in Japan with the aim of defecting to the West.

He flew there in a top secret Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-25 Foxbat, a Russian interceptor and reconnaissance bomber. At the time, the plane was incredibly feared by the US military. Washington thought it was the MiG-23, a different fighter they knew little about other than that it could be mass produced at low cost.

The aircraft was supposedly capable of besting the speed of sound, surveying, and bombing, making it potentially more formidable than the US’s own SR-71. But when Viktor showed up to defect at Hakodate Airport in one, without being noticed, thanks to bad weather and poor Japanese air defenses, he brought along a manual.

After studying it, the US realized the Foxbat was nowhere near as advanced as they’d thought. It couldn’t hit either the speed or altitude of the SR-71 and lacked a sophisticated radar system. In other words, Viktor was embraced with open arms! He's since lived peacefully in the USA, working as an author and consultant to the US government.

GlobalEye Leak

GlobalEye is an airborne radar system used by the United Arab Emirates’ Air Force that alerts the country’s military of incoming nasties. For example, tanks, ships, intercontinental ballistic missiles etc. It’s usually installed in Bombardier’s Global 6000 or 6500 aircrafts.

But in 2021, details of the advanced reconnaissance system were leaked on the dark web by a group of ransomware attackers, that’s people who hold data hostage and demand money for it to either be accessed again or kept from leaking.

The details of the system were initially acquired when the hackers broke into Bombardier’s systems and it’s thought that Bombardier refused to pay the ransom. So, true to their word, the hackers dropped the leaks.

Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk

Meet the United States’ secret super-plane, the Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk. The sci-fi looking plane was so secret and super that its maiden flight in June 1981 was over Area 51, that Area 51. In 1983 it became operational but was kept under strict secrecy for years to protect American national security and interests.

The Nighthawk is an attack plane designed using state of the art stealth tech, meaning it’s exceedingly hard for radar to pick it up. That’s because of its shape, right angles bounce signals back to radar, so the nighthawk has none of them. It’s also covered in radar absorbent material, making it even more effective at evading detection.

Nicknamed the ‘Wobblin’ Goblin’ by pilots that flew it because of its difficult handling, the Nighthawk was never actually leaked in the traditional sense. But throughout the 1980s, mysterious sightings and rumors fueled public interest in the strange craft.

Then, in 1988, the US government finally admitted its existence, after which it enjoyed another twenty years of service before being retired in 2008. However, the plane is still spotted around the world, including in California as recently as 2021 and is said to have been deployed in the middle east after its official retirement.

In the USA, it’s still used for training, which might explain the Californian sightings. But why’s it being seen in the middle east? Maybe there’s more to the Nighthawk than we know, even forty years later!

Hongdu GJ-11 Sharp Sword

In November 2013, the world caught its first glimpse of the CCP’s deathly Hongdu Sharp Sword GJ-11 drone, and that one upmanship was put on full display. When photos of the unmanned combat drone first leaked to the internet, observers were quick to note its similarities to the American RQ-170 drone. Because of that, some people reckon the Eastern country has utilized its espionage network to steal Western designs.

Unlike the purely reconnaissance focused RQ-170 though, the GJ-11 can apparently fire precision guided missiles and satellite guided bombs, and is capable of taking off from amphibious assault ships, making it far more attack focused.

It wouldn’t be until 2022 that China would go public about the plane’s existence, but there are still many mysteries surrounding it. What’s it going to be used for, when, and how? The even bigger question is, does it stand up to what’s in the United States’ Armory? Until we know more, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Stealth Chopper Leak

You might’ve heard of the Black Hawk helicopter, it’s become a somewhat iconic symbol of the US military. But you probably didn’t know a version of it exists made specifically for stealth. You can hear a chopper coming from half a state away! At least, an ordinary chopper.

But when US SEALs were sent on a top secret mission to Pakistan back in 2011, they weren’t using ordinary choppers. And that’s not something the public was supposed to know. During the mission, one of the special Black Hawks got damaged and couldn’t leave the country.

So, in order to prevent anybody reverse engineering it, the SEALS were ordered to completely destroy it. Only, they failed and the tail survived. And someone on the ground took photos of it before publishing them online for the whole world to see.

The ground tail rotor gearbox was covered, which isn’t typical of a Black Hawk and was probably to try and muffle the noise. It also had five or six blades instead of four. More blades means each blade can be smaller, and smaller blades make less noise.

On top of that, the tail fin was completely smooth and covered in a pearlescent material, probably made to absorb radar waves. After the raid, Pakistani officials said that the two modified Black Hawks had completely evaded radar, so the designs were clearly successful.

Son of the Blackbird

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is considered one of the greatest planes ever made. Able to whiz around the skies at over three times the speed of sound and travel for remarkable distances before having to land, it’s certainly earnt its place in the military aircraft hall of fame.

However, it has an even more advanced son capable of completely dominating the skies: the Lockheed SR-72. This spy plane can “penetrate denied airspace and strike nearly any location across any continent in less than an hour”!

Because it can reach hypersonic speed and fire hypersonic missiles. That’s over five times the speed of sound! Though apparently only a concept for now, a prototype is rumored to be scheduled to fly as soon as 2025. The words of Lockheed Martin’s executive Vice President seem to contradict the ‘fly in 2025’ narrative however.

According to him, the tech is now mature, which could imply that the SR-72, or something similar, might already be in flight. Has Lockheed Martin accidentally leaked the truth with that statement? Let’s be honest, even if they have, it’s not like we’d ever stand a chance of glimpsing that speedy superweapon.

Airacomet

Not every secret military aircraft looks like it’s come straight out of a sci-fi movie. For example, the P-59 Airacomet looks pretty normal despite the jazzy name. But it was actually the first ever jet powered aircraft made by the US, making it a pretty big deal.

Before jet engines, planes relied on propellors which are way, less powerful. With jet engines, planes were able to fly faster, for longer, and at higher altitudes. And they were invented by Germany back in 1937. Because of that, once World War Two was in full throttle the Allies were super keen to catch up with the technology.

The Brits were ahead of the US in jet development, so sent over one of their own engines to work from in 1941. The final result was The Airacomet.

Because the US didn’t want any unfriendly powers to know about its advancement in the field, the whole project was kept a secret. So much so that it was designated the working name “XP-59”, the same name as a cancelled propellor based fighter to trick anyone that might accidentally hear about it. They even a attached a propellor to it when grounded!

Despite all those measures though, it found itself in compromising positions fairly regularly. Like the time when rains flooded Muroc Airfield in California, where the second prototype was being tested. As a result, it had to be towed 35 miles to a different airfield on a public road, no doubt giving prying eyes a good glimpse.

Ultimately though, the Airocomet never saw combat. It was underpowered in comparison with the British jets and production was too slow for it to have had an effect on the war anyway. But it did give America valuable experience for their next attempt.

Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B

The public’s first sighting of the Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik-B Russian stealth drone came when leaked photos of the craft being towed along an airfield were posted on social media in January 2019. Yet today we still know very little about it, making it the subject of many wild rumors.

One of the more outlandish of those is that it can reach outer space, provided it’s fitted with suitable engines. Why it would need to is unclear, perhaps to break the Outer Space Treaty and invade the moon? Who knows.

We do know it’s expected to be able to reach a whopping 621 miles an hour and be armed with missiles that can travel at least 186 miles, that’s the distance between New York City and Providence! What’s more, the targeting system on that thing is apparently so advanced it can detect targets from nearly 250 miles away.

Northrop Grumman X-47B

There’s an aircraft so elusive that only two of them exist in the whole world. Developed for the US Navy as a successor to the impressive X-47A Pegasus, the X-47B is a tailless combat drone with folding wings that boast a whopping span of just over 62ft when opened. But it isn’t just the fearsome appearance of that craft that commands respect.

It’s developed with a GPS-based navigation system that gives it the ability to land autonomously and precisely on a moving Navy aircraft carrier. And it can also be pre-programmed to set out and complete a mission alone, with little to no human intervention, just 2 tons of automated weaponry.

From its first flight in 2011, it’s routinely exceeded expectations, it performed so well during its testing period that it was packaged off early for sea testing. Able to reach an altitude of 40,000 ft and accommodate several kinds of surveillance sensors, it’s a tour de force of aircraft engineering.

Surprisingly, it never actually moved out of testing. Instead, it was decommissioned and the two crafts were ultimately shipped back to land where they’re expected to be exhibited in two aviation museums. Apparently there were concerns that they’d prove too costly in the field and weren’t stealthy enough to warrant that cost.

However, a successor, the X-47C is currently in development, and that drone is toted to be even more impressive. It seems a shame to shackle such an extraordinary piece of equipment to something as ordinary as a museum, but maybe the 47C has tech we can’t even begin to comprehend.

Chengdu J-20 Mighty Dragon

It's not a secret that China has probably been stealing US drone designs. And they have been accused of stealing more than one thing from the West. For comparison, the Chengdu Mighty Dragon is in the image below.

And here’s the American F-22 Raptor in the image below. Look familiar? That’s because the Mighty Dragon was likely designed with stolen information on the F-22!

The US government is convinced that successful Chinese espionage efforts have resulted in the country getting a hold of top secret fighter plane designs. The result? China is now one of the only three nations, alongside Russia and the US, to have an advanced fifth generation fighter in its arsenal.

That means fighters on the cutting edge of modern stealth tech, with agile frames, advanced electronic features, and capable of sustained supersonic flight. Basically, the Mighty Dragon shouldn’t be underestimated. After a group of American F-35s flew beside some of the Chinese aircraft over the East China Sea back in 2022, US pilots were impressed with the rival planes.

What’s more, over 200 of them may be combat ready. But while the Dragon is undoubtedly impressive, many experts say it still doesn’t stand up to the F-35’s stealth capabilities.

Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider

The Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider is a futuristic lord of the skies that was named to honor Lt. Col. James Doolittle, who in World War Two led a squad of 16 B-25 Mitchell medium bombers in a mission against the Imperial Japanese. The men, known as the Doolittle Raiders, were so successful that they changed the course of the war in the Pacific.

Today, the American built B-21 Raider is a classified strategic bomber designed to be easily upgraded if needed. It’s been under development since 2015, after a developmental contract was awarded to aerospace and defense tech company Northrop Grumman.

Despite most of the project being highly classified though, some details have been released to those in the know. The sleek looking craft will be able to deliver both conventional and thermonuclear weapons, as well as provide reconnaissance. Craziest of all though, it’s touted to be the first ever 6th generation fighter.

That means it could incorporate Artificial Intelligence, which would streamline information, improve targeting, and provide pilots with real time info on the warzone. And it could also have lasers. Or ‘directed energy weapons’, as the boring folks in weapons development like to call them.

Boeing Bird of Prey

There’s one bird of prey that could’ve been far more dangerous than eagles or vultures: the Boeing Bird of Prey. The development of that craft back in the 1990s was a black project. That means it was highly classified, top secret, and not publicly acknowledged at all.

It’s believed to have been developed to run tests on state of the art stealth tech, such as active camouflage that adapts to its surroundings and even prevents its own shadows.

However, its life as a black project was very short lived. Despite being relatively low cost, the Bird of Prey only survived three years in testing and was retired before the turn of the century due to poor flying capabilities. What’s the use in all that flashy high tech stealth if it can’t actually fly?

By 2002, the craft was made public and now sits on display at the US Air Force Museum, entirely declassified. And, now you can go and see what was once one of America’s most well protected secrets up close and personal. Unfortunately for Boeing, that’s only because it was a complete failure.

Northrop Grumman RQ-180 White Bat

The White Bat or Northrop Gumman RQ-180 is so secret, we don’t know if “White Bat” is an accurate description at all. The American stealth drone is so classified that, aside from the basic fact of its development, no images or statements have ever been officially released.

But there is some speculation that it’s been seen flying over the Philippines and Area 51. To add to the mystery, in November of 2021, the US Air Force released a video in which it made a cryptic reference to a next-gen ‘white bat’, seemingly confirming it’s still very much in development.

Heritage Today - ISR and Innovation by PACE Profession of Arms Center of Excellence

If reports are to be believed, the White Bat has been stalking the skies since 2010, under constant examination and evaluation from the Air Force, but it still remains as elusive as ever.

Aurora SR-91

If you thought the RQ-180 was as secret as it gets, think again. We’ve got something so secret, so under wraps that the US government denies its existence entirely. In fact, it’s been decried as nothing more than an urban legend by military experts. We are talking about the Aurora.

The legend of that enigmatic aircraft began in March of 1990, when aircraft magazine Aviation Week & Space Technology broke the news that $455 million had been allocated towards “Black Aircraft Production” in the 1985 US budget, which also featured the word “Aurora”.

After that, so called sightings of the weird craft quickly started springing up from both American and British citizens. And most of those sightings shared one characteristic, the so called Aurora was a unique triangular shape, the likes of which had never been seen before.

Before we get carried away though, we’ve done some of our own digging, the 1985 budget doesn’t mention either black aircraft production or the word aurora. It seems Aviation Week made up the shocking claims to garner hype. You might be wondering, but what about the sightings?

A lot of those alleged sightings could be explained by the fact that triangular aircraft like the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber are now known to have been tested around the same time. So, it’s likely that people were just seeing test flights or prototypes of those crafts.

Regardless, the legend persists even today, with sightings as recent as one in 2022 (check the image below)! Even if the photo is completely unedited though, it looks pretty similar to the B-2 bomber being escorted by a couple of fighters. It’s not an uncommon formation.

The strangest part of all that is that a patent for something a whole lot like the legendary craft actually exists. Held by one John St. Clair, it was filed in 2004 and goes into pages of detail describing what the craft is made from and how it could fly. Yet, aside from this strange document, we know very little about St. Clair himself. Is he even a real person or just smoke and mirrors? It's a mystery wrapped in an enigma.

I hope you were amazed at these leaked secret military aircrafts. Thanks for reading!