A single painting created (by noted illustrator Attila Hejja) in 1981 led to a whole lot of speculation about an “F-19.” Even in the era before the internet allowed BS and rampant unfounded speculation to spread easily around the world, this illustration quickly led to a belief that this was a serious design… probably by Lockheed, and probably to be the F-19. It is indeed a spiffy looking aircraft, but it is much more science fiction than aerospace engineering. It appeared in magazines, books, toys and model kits, modified to greater or lesser degrees.
The painting is usually attributed to Loral, which is rather obvious given that it was prominently used by Loral in the ad below. But it appears that it was created for the Dod and is, in fact, in the public domain.
To download the full-rez version from the Aviation Week archive, click here:
http://archive.aviationweek.com/image/spread/19840123/54/1/zoom
And a reasonable-rez version of the painting is available here:
It wasn’t designed by or for Loral. I know the guy who did it. The “laminarization tunnels” inspired similar features on the F-23. They provide IR suppression. It caused such a stir that many believe it forced the Air Force to acknowledge the existance of the F-117, which was a disappointment in comparison.