This Indian engineer played key role in designing US' stealth B-2 Spirit bomber, later sold its secrets to America's rival, not Russia, Iran, North Korea, it was..., he is now...

The United States recently sent its B-2 Spirit stealth bomber to target one of Iran’s most protected nuclear sites. This move marks a rare and serious escalation. But while all eyes were on West Asia, China has quietly taken a major step in developing a similar advanced aircraft. According to reports, satellite images from May 14, 2025, show a large stealth drone parked at a secret airbase near Malan in Xinjiang, China. The aircraft resembles a flying-wing design and is believed to be a high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) drone. Experts believe it could be connected to China’s next-generation stealth projects like the H-20 bomber and J-36 fighter jet.

Interestingly, the drone’s wingspan—about 52 meters—is almost the same as the US B-2 bomber, raising questions about whether China developed this on its own or with stolen designs.

The suspicion dates back to a major espionage case involving Noshir Gowadia, an Indian-born engineer who once worked on the B-2 project at Northrop (now Northrop Grumman). Gowadia played a key role in designing the B-2’s stealth propulsion system and had top-level security clearance.

After leaving Northrop in 1986, he started his own consulting firm. But in 2005, he was arrested for passing US military secrets—including stealth technology—to China. The FBI found classified documents in a shipment sent to him and later uncovered evidence that Gowadia had traveled to China multiple times between 2003 and 2004, according to the Economic Times.

Reports say he was paid $110,000 over three years for his help. In 2010, Gowadia was convicted on 14 counts under US espionage laws and sentenced to 32 years in prison. He is currently serving his sentence in a high-security US prison.

His son, Ashton Gowadia, has always claimed his father was wrongly accused and said that the trial was unfair. Still, intelligence experts believe the stolen secrets gave China a significant head start.

Now, with China’s stealth drone spotted in testing, some experts worry that Beijing may soon have a stealth bomber as capable as America’s B-2—a development that could shift the global balance of air power.