Rockwell B1 Lancer

The B-1 Lancer, often called the “Bone,” grew out of a long effort to build a bomber that could combine speed, range and heavy payload. The original B-1A was cancelled, but the B-1B returned in the 1980s as a lower-observable, low-level penetrator with variable-sweep wings and enormous conventional weapons capacity.

Over time, the B-1 shifted away from the nuclear role and became a conventional heavy bomber. Its shape is dramatic — long fuselage, blended wing roots and sweeping wings — but its modern identity is tied to sustained strike missions and the ability to carry large weapon loads over long distances.