I'm slightly blasé about Spitfires because it's not unusual to have one fly into my local airport, especially during the summer when more airshows are taking place. Quite a distinctive sound.
Aircraft
- Thread starter Forostar
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Deleted member 7164
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I'm biased about Spitfire because I used to rekt enemies with it in game called IL-2 Sturmovik 
And it was used by our air force in WW2.
A beast.
And it was used by our air force in WW2.
A beast.
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USAF is seriously looking into purchasing/converting F-15 2040C variant. It will be a direct competitor to Su-35S, still a paper plane but technologies are ready, and if they enter service they'll have a better avionics package than Su-35S (few years more 'modern' technology).
This is interesting because Americans do not see this as a direct-to-combat competition as it was back in the Cold War. 100-150 Su-35S is still peanuts comparing to numbers USAF fields. F-35 isn't competitive in markets outside usual American clientele, while Russians (Sukhoi) have been scoring $ in neutral markets. Countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Morroco, etc... are not tied to a particular block and are keeping mixed origin military. Russia wasn't competitive right until the end of last decade because they didn't field the same types they were advertising as uber. Only when VVS/VKS (RuAF) started fielding their own advanced types, and especially after using them in warfare over foreign soil, orders started rolling in.
These days, Russia sells to anyone that wants to buy, with certain exceptions here and there. Americans have a priority list, which doesn't just denote how fast somebody gets an article (place in queue of production lines), it also means the customization/strip-down depth and price cost. Russians have something called export article, and types will be denoted by either E (eksport) or K (komercijalni), like MiG-31E or Su-27SKM. Export article is same for everyone. That's not how U.S. rolls, they will sell great F-15s to Japan for a comparatively fair price, but they will sell bullshit, stripped down, price inflated F-15s to Saudi. Which is good for humanity but U.S. is not about altruism, it's about state interests and they don't want tech to leak from KSA.
In any case, if you aren't part of U.S. circle, you aren't getting any sort of F-35, while the market outside the circle is fairly large. U.S. has found itself in the situation where they market paper planes like F-15SE (Silent Eagle) against real planes like modern Flankers or Rafales/EF2000, at loss. This potential introduction of so called 4++ generation F-15 variant, based on proven technologies and building on the framework of one of the best fighter jets ever concieved, could do much both at home and abroad. Even if you disregard my opinion about F-35's capacities (and I'm no aerospace engineer), it's convoluted development process, moving of deadlines, increasing cost, decreasing numbers, problems with each trial iteration, etc., should be enough to figure out that USAF wants an interim solution.
The exactly what Russians did while waiting for PAK FA initial operational capacity.
P.S. it's funny how F-22 was caught idle in the military history. There simply isn't anyone realistically interesting to use F-22 against. Still the best fighter jet fielded ever, basically idling under high maintenance costs. USAF wanted 700 F-22 as a crucial air superiority measure against projected 1500+ Soviet Flanker and Foxhound variants (with about a third being 'modern' upgrade package in late 80s timeframe). Well Soviets sure AMRAAM-teased the poor Raptor, just said nope and took a walk
This is interesting because Americans do not see this as a direct-to-combat competition as it was back in the Cold War. 100-150 Su-35S is still peanuts comparing to numbers USAF fields. F-35 isn't competitive in markets outside usual American clientele, while Russians (Sukhoi) have been scoring $ in neutral markets. Countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Morroco, etc... are not tied to a particular block and are keeping mixed origin military. Russia wasn't competitive right until the end of last decade because they didn't field the same types they were advertising as uber. Only when VVS/VKS (RuAF) started fielding their own advanced types, and especially after using them in warfare over foreign soil, orders started rolling in.
These days, Russia sells to anyone that wants to buy, with certain exceptions here and there. Americans have a priority list, which doesn't just denote how fast somebody gets an article (place in queue of production lines), it also means the customization/strip-down depth and price cost. Russians have something called export article, and types will be denoted by either E (eksport) or K (komercijalni), like MiG-31E or Su-27SKM. Export article is same for everyone. That's not how U.S. rolls, they will sell great F-15s to Japan for a comparatively fair price, but they will sell bullshit, stripped down, price inflated F-15s to Saudi. Which is good for humanity but U.S. is not about altruism, it's about state interests and they don't want tech to leak from KSA.
In any case, if you aren't part of U.S. circle, you aren't getting any sort of F-35, while the market outside the circle is fairly large. U.S. has found itself in the situation where they market paper planes like F-15SE (Silent Eagle) against real planes like modern Flankers or Rafales/EF2000, at loss. This potential introduction of so called 4++ generation F-15 variant, based on proven technologies and building on the framework of one of the best fighter jets ever concieved, could do much both at home and abroad. Even if you disregard my opinion about F-35's capacities (and I'm no aerospace engineer), it's convoluted development process, moving of deadlines, increasing cost, decreasing numbers, problems with each trial iteration, etc., should be enough to figure out that USAF wants an interim solution.
The exactly what Russians did while waiting for PAK FA initial operational capacity.
P.S. it's funny how F-22 was caught idle in the military history. There simply isn't anyone realistically interesting to use F-22 against. Still the best fighter jet fielded ever, basically idling under high maintenance costs. USAF wanted 700 F-22 as a crucial air superiority measure against projected 1500+ Soviet Flanker and Foxhound variants (with about a third being 'modern' upgrade package in late 80s timeframe). Well Soviets sure AMRAAM-teased the poor Raptor, just said nope and took a walk
Are head to head air battles even considered a thing in the modern military landscape? The majority of wars are either between poorer countries (or factions within countries), or involving the overwhelming firepower of major military alliances against a specific regime or organisation (eg Iraq, IS). Countries only buy the top of the range stuff for prestige. Then there are those countries that are hell bent on producing their own arms, just to show they can.
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Deleted member 7164
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Sorry for late reply. Yes, they're definitely a requirement for those seeking multi-role, and it goes without saying for air superiority. Black on white, there have been document leaks. For example a scribd or similar search for terms such as airforce, tender, evaluation might yield some satisfactory results.
SixesAlltheway
Ancient Mariner
WHAT DO WE WANT?!?!? LOW FLYING AIRPLANE NOISES!!! WHEN DO WE WANT 'EM?!?!?! NEEEEEYYYYOOOOOOOOWWW!
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
If any of you ever gets to Cracow and you like to watch planes I can highly recommend the Polish Aviation Museum. Free admission on Tuesdays.
Located at the site of the no-longer functional Kraków-Rakowice-Czyżyny Airport. This airfield, established by Austria-Hungary in 1912, is one of the oldest in the world. The museum opened in 1964, after the airfield closed in 1963. Has been scored as eighth world's best aviation museum by CNN television.
Collection: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Aviation_Museum#Fixed-wing_motorized_aircraft
Here "some" pics I took one month ago. Beware: lots of Soviet material. Even a section called Mig Alley. @Zare Enjoy:
Continued in next posts.
Located at the site of the no-longer functional Kraków-Rakowice-Czyżyny Airport. This airfield, established by Austria-Hungary in 1912, is one of the oldest in the world. The museum opened in 1964, after the airfield closed in 1963. Has been scored as eighth world's best aviation museum by CNN television.
Collection: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Aviation_Museum#Fixed-wing_motorized_aircraft
Here "some" pics I took one month ago. Beware: lots of Soviet material. Even a section called Mig Alley. @Zare Enjoy:
Continued in next posts.
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Fab museum. Love the older jet fighters. I wasn't expecting so many American built ones like the F-104, F-105 and Corsair/Crusader
Schiphol Airport 100 years:
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Deleted member 7164
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Dr. Eddies Wingman
Brighter than thousand_suns
MiG-21? Just out to get some fresh air?
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Deleted member 7164
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Shot from a demo flight. I thought it looks interesting in modern NATOish camo. Unfortunately these vintage birds are still the mainstay of our Air Force.
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Deleted member 7164
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It's clear why they call them mud movers, the whole category. They were quite effective, but nobody mentions the situation and fate of the average rear gunner. It's also known today that you could enlist as a (political) prisoner, making yourself free of the gulag sentence after a dozen sorties or so. So the mortality rate in Il-2 was absurdly high compared to modern planes, it's rare today to have a mission accomplished moment in a fixed-wing aircraft and still have dead comrades on board.
That B-21 escort bit is somewhat counter intuitive. I'm hesitant to say it's BS and again a U.S. taxpayer theft, but let's wait.
Because what they've said in the press releases, is that F-22 cannot ensure limited air superiority over Chinese airspace. Something is not right here.
That B-21 escort bit is somewhat counter intuitive. I'm hesitant to say it's BS and again a U.S. taxpayer theft, but let's wait.
Because what they've said in the press releases, is that F-22 cannot ensure limited air superiority over Chinese airspace. Something is not right here.
The USSR had modern tanks before pretty much every other country in WW2 - but the Sturmovik was a response, not really an original. Stukas with 37mm cannons were the first airborne tank killers. For reasons like Zare indicated, a plane like that couldn't be deployed by the Western allies. And besides, the Typhoon and Thunderbolt did just fine lighting up Panzers on the Western Front with rockets.
Do you mean sustain fire as in keep shooting, or sustain fire as in take a licking and keep on ticking? Because we don't have great numbers, but the Sturmovik wasn't great at bringing itself home.
They were cheap and quick to manufacture and had a heavy firepower. The Soviets could get dozens and hundreds of them in the air. But in 1943 one Sturmovik was lost per 26 sorties - the same loss ratio as unescorted British heavy bombers in the same period of time, who were over enemy territory a lot longer. Perhaps a better comparison is the P-47 Thunderbolt, which had a loss ratio of one per 210 sorters.
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I wrote a fair reply and downtime eat it. It was outlining examples and stuff how notoriously bad Soviet QA/logistics probably affected a great deal of losses of Il-2. And they were always bad at armour and riveting.
And about how this USAF new gen stealth doesn't make any sense until you realize what kind of scrutiny the very mentioning of 'drones' has on public opinion. Just one thing I had in mind about pointless stealth squadron is fighter in-air refuelling, which will be needed if you launch from home soil, which is the very point of stealth attack because it isn't stealth if enemy knows your stealth is in their back yard (U.S. pacific allies in relation to China), so you need a to invent a low radar signature tanker and refuelling system. Good luck with that.
And about how this USAF new gen stealth doesn't make any sense until you realize what kind of scrutiny the very mentioning of 'drones' has on public opinion. Just one thing I had in mind about pointless stealth squadron is fighter in-air refuelling, which will be needed if you launch from home soil, which is the very point of stealth attack because it isn't stealth if enemy knows your stealth is in their back yard (U.S. pacific allies in relation to China), so you need a to invent a low radar signature tanker and refuelling system. Good luck with that.