On January 31st, an article titled "Boeing's X-32 Fighter is an Ugly Bird" was published on the bimonthly website of National Interest in the United States, written by Harrison Cass. The content is compiled as follows: In order to participate in the competition of the Joint Strike Fighter project, Boeing developed the X-32 as a technology demonstration aircraft. Of course, the contract was ultimately awarded to Lockheed Martin's X-35, which later became the F-35 Lightning II fighter jet. Now the question is: Has the ugly appearance of the X-32 tilted the balance of victory towards the X-35 in the competition for the Joint Strike Fighter program? To some extent, it may have had an impact on the subconscious level. The X-32 is described as a plane that only its mother would love, referring to its clumsy appearance. What makes the X-32 look so unique? Firstly, the air intake. The air intake of X-32 is neither circular, square or rectangular, and has no similarity to traditional air intakes. It looks like a big mouth with a protruding lower lip. This design may be practical, but it doesn't look good. Correspondingly, the X-32 has a very short, bulky, and spacious body. Most fighter jets have sleek and elegant bodies, while the X-32's body is round and rolling. From the air intake to the fuselage, the aircraft as a whole looks like a whale shark - undoubtedly a beautiful creature, but this appearance lacks appeal in the aviation industry. Finally, the X-32 utilized delta wings, which reinforced the aircraft's sense of heaviness, spaciousness, and clumsiness. On the surface, the main reason for the failure of the X-32 in the joint attack fighter bidding is related to its short takeoff/vertical landing performance. The problem with X-32 is that when performing short takeoff/vertical landing at lower altitudes, the hot air discharged from the exhaust pipe will flow back to the main engine, which affects the engine's thrust and causes overheating - a potentially dangerous performance degradation. The failure to win the Joint Strike Fighter contract marks a major setback for Boeing, as the number of aircraft involved in the contract is estimated to be between 3000 and 5000, and the planes produced are exported to allies around the world. In fact, the Joint Strike Fighter contract is the largest fighter production contract involving the largest number of aircraft since the Light Fighter Program (the previous generation fighter program, which produced F-16 and F/A-18 models). Due to the failure of bidding for the Joint Strike Fighter project, Boeing only produced two X-32s. In the end, the winner of the Joint Strike Fighter project took all, pushing the X-32 with its peculiar appearance to the edge of aviation history. (New Society)