The McDonnell Douglas X-36 Tailless Fighter Agility Research Aircraft was built in the late ‘90s in collaboration with NASA with the objective to reduce weight and drag while increasing range, maneuverability, and, most importantly, survivability. To achieve all these goals, they decided to get rid of the traditional empennage found on most aircraft, a feat that many contractors and government organizations had tried for decades. This short (10:24) video is courtesy of Dark Skies.

To achieve all these goals, they decided to get rid of the traditional empennage found on most aircraft, a feat that many contractors and government organizations had tried for decades. But that wasn’t its only impressive asset. Watch and see what else they did.

No need to “watch on YouTube,” since it is right here, embedded in your FASF webpage.

THE BOEING X-36, A SUPER MANEUVERABLE STEALTH FIGHTER || 2021

Now, you might ask, why have we changed the manufacturer’s name from McDonnell Douglas to Boeing?  It’s simple; if perchance you don’t know the answer: What happened?  McDonnell Douglas (MD) was bought out by Boeing in 1997, so all those MD programs and projects now became known as Boeing.  The following brief (3:51 min) video is narrated by computer AI, so see if you can tolerate the mechanical voice, and learn some more about this unusual and radical tailless-designed fighter. The following clip is from Warthog Defense.

Here, below, is another X-36 Video clip on the strange-looking research fighter, courtesy of AviationDesigns-MG.  It is 4:35 long.

The X-36 Was a Crazily Maneuverable Stealth Fighter. Why Wasn’t it Built?

And, next, below and produced by “Weapons of the World,” let’s see the answer to the above question: Why didn’t the radical new design get produced?  This video is only 1:55 long.