The Boeing X-32 is a concept demonstrator aircraft that was designed for the Joint Strike Fighter contest.
It lost to the Lockheed Martin X-35 demonstrator, which was further developed into the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II.
Boeing’s strategy for competitive advantage was to offer substantially lower manufacturing and life-cycle costs by minimizing variations between the different JSF versions.
The X-32, therefore, was designed around a large one-piece carbon fibre composite delta wing.
The wing had a span of 9.15 meters, with a 55-degree leading edge sweep and could hold up to 20,000 pounds of fuel.
The purpose of the high sweep angle was to allow for a thick wing section to be used while still providing limited transonic aerodynamic drag and to provide a good angle for wing-installed conformal antenna equipment.
The wing would prove a challenge to fabricate
Related Link:
- Boeing X-32A & X-32B Joint Stike Fighter in action
- What A Boeing F-32 Would’ve Looked Like If Lockheed Lost The JSF Competition
