Initially, the Navy sought to acquire around 620 of the A-12s, while the United States Marine Corps wanted an additional 238 aircraft and the Air Force even considered purchasing another 400 to replace its aging F-111 Aardvarks.If the total of 1,258 aircraft had been built, the Avenger II would have the United States military’s most plentiful aircraft after the Army’s fleet of UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.Intended to serve aboard carriers, the flying wing wasn’t large in size—just slightly over 37 feet long with a wingspan that was only about 70 feet. When the contract was cancelled by the program thirty years ago, it was the largest contract termination in DoD history—but by one estimation, the A-12 had become so expensive that it could have consumed up to 70 percent of the Navy’s aircraft budget within just three years.