The F 117A Nighthawk fighter, the first stealth aircraft, is being quietly retired from service. This mighty achievement of American technology thrilled me the first time I learned of it. Not just its capabilities, but its frightening bird—of—prey appearance spoke volumes about our determination and our limitless capacity to harnass superior mental firepower to the task of making war. There were techical reasons to color it black, but aesthetics alone would have dictated the same result. When one these birds was shot down over Serbia and the wreckage sent to the Russians, I groaned. I never that the war with Serbia was fought in the American national interest, and regretted that some of our top secrets might now be in the hands of the Russians. Paul Cabot of the Toronto Aerospace Musem is quoted as saying, "There have been developments in radar so maybe the F—117A had started showing up. That's something we won't be told." We don't know if effective radar...(Read Full Post)