VirtualGlobetrotting: California: Palmdale

VirtualGlobetrotting Live View

Debbie Rowe's House
tlp333 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: tlp333.
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The dermatologist's nurse, who married singer Michael Jackson, lives here. They have 2 children together, son Michael Joseph Jackson Jr (born February 13, 1997) (who publicly goes by the name "Prince") and daughter Paris Katherine Jackson (born April 3, 1998). They were divorced on October 8, 1999. She purchased the 3-bed, 2-bath, 1,748 sq ft home in November of 2004 for $439K, according to public records.

B-2 Bomber
photog (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: photog.
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Palmdale is the home of Air Force Plant 42, site of Lockheed-Martin's
"Skunk Works" (Lockheed Advanced Development Co., on the west side of
Plant 42), Northrop-Grumman's final assembly plant for the B-2 Stealth
bomber, Rockwell, and other aerospace companies.

R. Lee Ermey's House
tlp333 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: tlp333.
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The former U.S. Marine Corps drill instructor, and later Golden Globe-nominated actor, lives here. He often plays the roles of authority figures, such as Gunnery Sergeant Hartmann in "Full Metal Jacket", Mayor Tilman in the Alan Parker film "Mississippi Burning" and Sheriff Hoyt in "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" remake. He purchased the 3-bed, 2-bath, 1,980 sq ft home in December of 1986 for $113,500, according to public records. He also owns a couple of condo units in the area.

F-117 Stealth Fighter
photog (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: photog.
Palmdale is the home of Air Force Plant 42, site of Lockheed-Martin's
"Skunk Works" (Lockheed Advanced Development Co., on the west side of
Plant 42), Northrop-Grumman's final assembly plant for the B-2 Stealth
bomber, Rockwell, and other aerospace companies.

The Shadows Tell The Story
Pdunn (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Pdunn.

Lockheed Skunkworks
nic (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: nic.
Palmdale is the home of Air Force Plant 42, site of Lockheed-Martin's
"Skunk Works" (Lockheed Advanced Development Co., on the west side of
Plant 42), Northrop-Grumman's final assembly plant for the B-2 Stealth
bomber, Rockwell, and other aerospace companies. (photog)

White F-117 Nighthawk
voldude123 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: voldude123.
Is this an F-117 that is just lacking the signature Black RAM paint, or is it a different aircraft like the HAVE BLUE prototype?

U-2 Being Readied For Mission
Pdunn (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Pdunn.

U2 Spy Plane
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
At Skunkworks plant.

Now you see it now you don't. Odd disappearing desert encampment.
Pdunn (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Pdunn.
What appears to be the tail section of an aircraft can be seen at this encampment that all but disappears in views of two of the compass points. The large van to the left of the partially assembled quonset hut seems peculiar as well.

"Pumpkin seed" from radar cross-section test rig.
Never before has it been more true that you can learn a lot about somebody by their garbage, than within the discard piles at Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works. Chances are, the entire history and future of aviation can be found in these piles.

Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.

Gray Butte Radar Cross Section Facility
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
Gray Butte was the first of the three secret radar cross-section test facilities built in the Antelope Valley (Lockheed Martin operates a facility near Helendale, and Northrop Grumman has one at the Tejon Ranch property). It was originally built in the 1970's by McDonnell Douglas, and was taken over by Boeing (which bought McDonnell Douglas), and then closed by 1999, and put up for sale. These RCS ranges are used to test aeroforms (shapes to be incorporated into aerodynamic vehicles) for their radar reflectivity. At one end of the range is an array of radio and radar dishes used to measure the profile of the shape, which is mounted several hundred yards or so down the range on a triangular pedestal. The large box structure, visible from miles away, is a movable gantry, used to install the aeroforms on top of the test pylons, which are visible as white triangular forms on the runway area. In 2000, the property was acquired by the Aeronautical Systems division of San Diego-based General Atomics, which developed the Predator and Gnat UAVs. The company owns the El Mirage airport a few miles north, to test UAVs. Gray Butte now supports UAV R&D

F-117 Stealth Fighter
zoidberg (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: zoidberg.
At the Lockheed Skunkworks plant.

Blackbird Airpark
kjfitz (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: kjfitz.
The Blackbird Airpark opened in November 1991. It is the world's only display of a Lockheed SR-71A together with its Blackbird predecessor, the A-12, and the once ultra-secret D-21 drone. A U-2D was added to the display in November 2001.

Northrop Grumman X-47B and X-47A Pegasus at Skunk Works
Dania (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Dania.
Two unmanned combat vehicle. The X-47B is from 2011 developed from the X-47A Pegasus from 2003.
Both vehicles can only be seen in 3D mode. the Pegasus in ordinary view.
Google Earth time slider 10/2016

Boeing X-32 Joint Strike Fighter prototype
Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.

Censorsed or Imaging Error?

F-117 Stealth in hiding

General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper (Predator-B)

Northrop Grumman X-47A
Rene73 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Rene73.

Aircraft within Blackbird Airpark

Predator Drone Taking Off From Remote Airstrip

Lockheed Falcon HTV3X Blackswift
The Blackswift was a proposed aircraft capable of hypersonic flight designed by the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Boeing, and ATK.
The USAF states that the "Blackswift flight demonstration vehicle will be powered by a combination turbine engine and ramjet, an all-in-one power plant. The turbine engine accelerates the vehicle to around Mach 3 before the ramjet takes over and boosts the vehicle up to Mach 6."

McDonnell Douglas YC-15
Parabellum (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Parabellum.
The YC-15 was McDonnell-Douglas' entry into the USAF's Advanced Medium STOL Transport (AMST) competition, to replace the C-130 Hercules as the USAF's standard STOL tactical transport. The AMST project introduced a number of innovative features, such as under-surface blowing, which used double-slotted flaps to direct part of the jet exhaust downwards, while the rest of the exhaust passed through and downward over the flaps, introducing the Coandă effect.
The YC-15, as well as Boeing's entry into the competition, the YC-14, met or exceeded the specifications of the contest. However, the project was cancelled before either product could be chosen. The YC-15 would see a new life, however, when it was developed into the highly successful C-17 Globemaster III, which included several YC-15 innovations, such as under-surface blowing.
The first flight was August 26, 1975.

Space Shuttle in desert
This is in a neighborhood just west of Lockheed's Skunkworks

Satellite Photo Test Pattern
jbottero (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: jbottero.

Predator (MQ-9 Reaper) refueling
General Atomic's strip has become much busier since the last update, and the Predators much more advanced. Check out the size differences between these and the earlier generation Predators to their left.

Interesting Nose Section at the Skunkworks
Birthplace to many of aerospace's most advanced aircraft, including the SR-71, U-2, F-117, P-80 and countless other aviation legends, stroll through Lockheed's legendary Skunkworks and you're certain to catch glimpses of of aviation's historic past as well as its promising future.

Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk
The Northrop Grumman (formerly Ryan Aeronautical) RQ-4 Global Hawk (known as Tier II+ during development) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) used by the United States Air Force and Navy and the German Air Force as a surveillance aircraft.
In role and operational design, the Global Hawk is similar to the Lockheed U-2, the venerable 1950s spy plane. It is a theater commander's asset to provide a broad overview and systematic target surveillance. For this purpose, the Global Hawk is able to provide high resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) – that can penetrate cloud-cover and sandstorms – and electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) imagery at long range with long loiter times over target areas. It can survey as much as 40,000 square miles (103,600 square kilometers) of terrain a day.

Two B-2 stealth bombers

Lockheed U-2 spyplane
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency. It provides day and night, high-altitude (70,000 ft, 21,000 m plus), all-weather surveillance. The aircraft is also used for electronic sensor research and development, satellite calibration, and satellite data validation.

Predator Drones at Remote Airstrip

Shrouded Wing
skyeye (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: skyeye.
After loading the image, refresh your browser and look quickly. If you're lucky, you'll see two of the covered birds.

U-2 Being Assembled in the Desert

U-2 Under Tow at Skunkworks
jbottero (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: jbottero.

Two SR-71 Blackbirds
The Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" is a long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft that was operated by the United States Air Force.
This older imagery in Google Earth from the 1990s.
There are two more parked ENE in the same facility.

Taxiing Lockheed U-2 Spyplane at Skunkworks
Note the people at each wing tip.

Two Lockheed F-22 Raptors at Skunkworks

Unknown jet prototype
It's a General Dynamics F-16 up front but where the engine exhaust should be is a tail cone. Odd.

Predator Drone Returning From Mission

Unidentified Skunkworks experimental aircraft?
Anyone know what this is? The front looks like an F-16 but this is a Northrup plant. The really unusual thing is that there is no engine exhaust outlets in the back of the plane.
There is also either a wing section or a UAV wrapped just to the north.

F-22 Raptor at Palmdale

Northrop Grumman X-47B model
The Northrop Grumman X-47B is an American demonstration Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) which first flew in 2011. The X-47 project began as part of DARPA's J-UCAS program, and is now part of the United States Navy's UCAS-D (Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstration) program, which aims to create a carrier-based unmanned aircraft. Unlike the similar Boeing X-45, the development of the original X-47A Pegasus was company-funded. The X-47A's follow-on naval version is designated X-47B.

Llano Racetrack

Aztec Pyramid Replica
mlc1us (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: mlc1us.
On the roof of La Curacao Department Store

Lockheed U-2
Rene73 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Rene73.

Northrop Grumman RQ-4 "Global Hawk"
Rene73 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Rene73.

B-2 Stealth Bomber on pole
Outside engineering offices at Lockheeds Skunkworks in Palmdale, CA.

Assembly jig for Boeing X-45C

Douglas Skyrocket D-558-3

Great Western Soaring School at Crystal Airport

Secret UAV engine test hangar
nico (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: nico.

Wheels Down at Palmdale

C-130(x2) Approaching Palmdale
There's either a formation of C-130's coming into Palmdale, or this is the same one visible in the map to the south from a different angle.

C-130 on Approach to Palmdale

Aircraft cockpit in the desert
Also beyond it is a section of fuselage being used for a shed.

UAE F-16, Block 60

Predator on the Runway

Grumman F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing aircraft. The F-14 was the United States Navy's primary maritime air superiority fighter, fleet defense interceptor and tactical reconnaissance platform from 1974 to 2006. It later performed precision strike missions once it was integrated with the Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night LANTIRN system. The F-14 was developed after the collapse of the F-111B project, and was the first of the American teen-series fighters which were designed incorporating the experience of air combat against MiGs during the Vietnam War.

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition: The Woslum family
Dania (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Dania.
Season 1, episode 2. Aired 2/15/2004.

YC-15 Prototype
Trooper111 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Trooper111.
The YC-15 was McDonnell Douglas' entrant into the U.S. Air Force's Advanced Medium STOL Transport (AMST) competition, to replace the C-130 Hercules as the USAF's standard STOL tactical transport. In the end neither the YC-15 nor Boeing YC-14 was ordered into production, although the YC-15's basic design would be used to form the successful McDonnell Douglas C-17 of the 1990s.

Top Gun Darkstar
Officer_Gurke07 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: Officer_Gurke07.
Satellite images from April 2023 in Google Earth Pro

F-104 Starfighter at Palmdale

Lockheed Martin Skunkworks
Skunk Works is an official alias for Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Development Programs (ADP), formerly called Lockheed Advanced Development Projects. Skunk Works is responsible for a number of famous aircraft designs, including the U-2, the SR-71, the F-117, and the F-22. Its largest current project is the F-35 Lightning II, which will be used in the air forces of several countries around the world. Production is expected to last for up to four decades.

Northrop B-2 "Spirit" (1:8 scale model)

Lockheed Martin X-55 Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA)
The Lockheed Martin X-55 is a prototype within the framework of the "advanced composite cargo aircraft" program (ACCA) of the US air force.

EF-80A, S/N 44-85123 at Palmdale
voldude123 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: voldude123.
EF-80A (S/N 44-85123) is a very historic aircraft in which Col. William H. Council set a new cross-country record of four hours, 13 minutes and 26 seconds back in Jan 1946. It is being stored at Plant 42 until it can be moved to the AFFTC Museum at Edwards AFB.

Military Plane Leaving AF Plant 42
SpiderX22 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: SpiderX22.
Can anyone ID the plane type? It's a 4-engine propeller plane, probably military considering the Airport.

Classic Fighters in the Sand
An F-104 "Starfighter" a.k.a "Widowmaker" and F-80 Shooting Star sit outside Lockheed's Skunkworks in Palmdale, CA

Los Angeles ARTCC
skyeye (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: skyeye.
Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZLA) controls airspace over southern and central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah, and western Arizona.
Also:

North American GAM-77/AGM-28 "Hound Dog"

F-4 Phantom at Palmdale

BQM-74 Chukar
The BQM-74 Chukar is a series of aerial target drones produced by Northrop. The Chukar has gone through three major revisions, including the initial MQM-74A Chukar I, the MQM-74C Chukar II, and the BQM-74C Chukar III. They are recoverable, remote controlled, subsonic aerial target, capable of speeds up to Mach 0.86 and altitudes from 30 to 40,000 ft (10 to 12,000 m).

F-86 Sabre at Palmdale

Scaled Composites 143 "Triumph"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaled_Composites_Triumph

Lockheed F-117A "Nighthawk" (79-0783)

LA-04L Nike Missile site
Currently used as correctional Facilities by Los Angeles County. The launch site magazines have been destroyed, but nearly all the other buildings remain.

Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit (scale model)
The Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit (also known as the Stealth Bomber) is an American heavy bomber with "low observable" stealth technology designed to penetrate dense anti-aircraft defenses and deploy both conventional and nuclear weapons.

Early Northrop jet?
Anyone know what this is?

Scaled Composites 143 "Triumph"

Lockheed Martin X-55 Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA)

Taking Off From Palmdale

General Dynamics F-16A "Fighting Falcon" (Ex NASA)
F-16A Block 15M

Boeing B-52 "Stratofortress"
57-0038

Pilots and R/C Plane

Lockheed U-2, aka: "Dragon Lady"
tallturtle82 (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: tallturtle82.
This U-2 is located at the Armstrong Flight Research Center, an aeronautical research center operated by NASA.

Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) since 1955.

Jet Near Palmdale
jbottero (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: jbottero.

Stunt driving school
milwhcky (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: milwhcky.
Rick Seaman's Motion Picture Driving Clinic at the Los Angeles County Raceway.

Roller blade hockey in Palmdale

Space Shuttle Escape System Test Vehicle

747 Taxiing For Take-Off
Test or development aircraft of some type.

Lockheed SR-71A, 61-7973 and Lockheed A-12, 60-6924

Boeing 747-8
The Boeing 747-8 is a wide-body jet airliner developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Officially announced in 2005, the 747-8 is the fourth-generation Boeing 747 version, with lengthened fuselage, redesigned wings, and improved efficiency. The 747-8 is the largest 747 version, the largest commercial aircraft built in the United States, and the longest passenger aircraft in the world.

Palmdale Water District's Wind Turbine
mlc1us (VirtualGlobetrotting)
By: mlc1us.
Provides power to the Palmdale water treatment plant

Curtiss C-46D Commando (44-78019)

NASA Dryden DC-8 airborne laboratory

Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA)
Boeing 747SP (serial number 21441, line number 306)