"The beast" spotted; F-47 takes off? PHOTO

The aircraft, filmed at night, could be a technology demonstrator or an early predecessor of Boeing&rsquo;s F-47, the new U.S. sixth-generation fighter aircraft.The aircraft was recorded from a great distance using an infrared camera, making it impossible to reliably confirm its identity.However, several unusual features are visible, including an elongated nose, large forward control surfaces known as canards, and swept-back, rearward-positioned wings.The &ldquo;new&rdquo; Area 51 test article flying video has been posted. NGAD, F-47, F/A-XX, or something else? I&rsquo;m surprised the landing light is on and how bright it is. Full video below by Project Fear pic.twitter.com/5oXGvl4z8h&mdash; Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) June 5, 2026Such an appearance differs significantly from previous expectations that the F-47 would be a large, triangular aircraft with a completely tailless design, The War Zone reports.The design has reminded some experts of Boeing&rsquo;s secret experimental aircraft &ldquo;Bird of Prey&rdquo;, which was also tested in the same area during the 1990s and was only revealed to the public in 2002.There are also similarities with Boeing&rsquo;s experimental X-36, a small unmanned tailless aircraft developed to study highly maneuverable combat aircraft.Great artwork 👏 but maybe also interesting, @高山CG (Gaoshan) has posted his own interpretation of the F-47! https://t.co/rT6klKuMMx pic.twitter.com/CMvvV6psnz&mdash; @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) July 10, 2026Experts believe the aircraft&rsquo;s shape could be optimized for sustained supersonic cruise without the use of afterburners, one of the key capabilities of the F-22 Raptor, which the F-47 is expected to replace.The U.S. Air Force has previously stated that the new fighter should be capable of flying at speeds above Mach 2 and have a combat radius exceeding 1,000 nautical miles, or more than 1,850 kilometers.It is known that the U.S. Air Force is also developing armed unmanned &ldquo;loyal wingman&rdquo; aircraft that could operate alongside the F-47 and carry additional missiles, reducing the amount of weaponry the fighter itself would need to carry.The first F-47 is currently in production, and the U.S. Air Force has announced that its first flight is planned for 2028.

"The beast" spotted; F-47 takes off? PHOTO

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