The World - News from Aug. 15, 1988

The Soviet Union’s Blackjack bomber is an expanded version of the U.S. B-1B, according to the only U.S. Air Force officer to have had a close look at the Soviet jet. Maj. Gen. Gordon E. Fornell told the Dayton, Ohio, Daily News that the Blackjack is a close copy of the B-1B, from its pivoting wings to the cruise missile launcher on its belly. Fornell and Defense Secretary Frank C. Carlucci inspected the plane Aug. 2 during a tour of Soviet military bases. Fornell told the newspaper there is evidence that the Soviets copied at least the basic aerodynamic design of the B-1B but said it was impossible to tell whether its designers simply used public information on the B-1B or profited from espionage.