I hope the weight loss was enough. Few airplanes have had so much hype to live up to and so many compromises to keep those performance promises from coming true.
But the FB-111 turned out to be an excellent penetration bomber once the kinks were worked out of it.
All new aircraft have growing pains.They just make the plane better.IMHO.
Saw the Discovery channel “competition” TV show about the Boeing version and this one (Lockheed/Northrup/General Dynamics) F-35: As soon as I saw that puke-ugly lower scoop on the Boeing with his “chin and cheeks” fuselage, I knew this version (very similar to the F-22 in looks and “feel” would win.
Let me see if I've got their heritage right: Republic became Northrup, General Dynamics bought LTV (Ling-Tempco-Vought - who grew up from the Vought Naval fighters), who had bought Convair (builder of out Fort Worth of the B-36 and eventual builder of the F-16), Lockheed-Martin bought out Martin-Marietta, who were created from Martin and (?) Marietta), and then later bought Douglas - Continental out of St Louis (Douglas created the DC line of planes, but who was "continental - the airline?) - except Lockheed-Martin is making the F-22 using Skunk works technology from LA to build the F-22 in Marietta GA using an old Bell Bomber plant that used to make C5's, C-141'a and (still makes) C-130's, Boeing kept their original name, but were trying to get into fighters after being a large-plane builder since the 1920's ....
An aircraft is not complete when you put everything on it so it will do what you want it to do. It is complete when you take everything off of it that you can and it will still do what you want it to do.
Drag increases with the square of the velocity and gravity is a BITCH.