Galwran

Lockheed delivers ‘Warthog’ upgrade Lockheed Martin has delivered the second major element of the US Air Force’s A-10C Precision Engagement (PE) upgrade. The digital stores management system (DSMS) has been delivered for flight testing as work continues to define an engine upgrade for the attack aircraft, writes Graham Warwick. Replacing an analogue system, the DSMS automates management of the aircraft’s weapons and integrates its targeting pod – Lockheed’s Sniper or Northrop Grumman’s Litening – added to the Fairchild-produced A-10 in the first stage of the upgrade. This first increment of the PE programme will undergo operational suitability assessment in the first quarter of next year, says Lockheed programme director Roger Il Grande. The first increment upgrades the cockpit with two colour multifunction displays and expanded hands-on-throttle-and-stick controls. The second increment, which adds smart weapons – Boeing’s Joint Direct Attack Munition and Lockheed’s Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser – and the SADL situational awareness datalink, will be released by the end of the year for flight testing in the first half of 2007, says Il Grande. The USAF plans to upgrade all 356 of its A-10s over three years, with the first production aircraft to be inducted into the modernisation programme during April. Development of an upgrade for the type’s General Electric TF34 engine, primarily to increase thrust by using technology from the commercial CF34, is expected to begin in fiscal year 2007 and take three years, Il Grande says. The planned upgrades to the A-10 fleet are expected to extend operations of the type until 2028. http://www.flightglobal.com/Articles/2006/03/28/Navigation/190/205692/Lockheed+delivers+%e2%80%98Warthog%e2%80%99+upgrade.html

Well I could show you pics of SU-27SKM with six R-77s, this includes two carried the tandem rack in the centerline. Btw, R-77M, R-73E and R-73M would be nice additions. Check Soviet/Russian aircraft weapons since wwII by Yefim Gordon.

And oh, other AIM-54Cs climbed too, but I didn't keep looking at them for very long; I guess that they would have gotten to the same altitudes as the first one. I'll try to replicate this problem sometime, but I'm busy tomorrow, (and hungover after that :D )

Offline. Very simple mission.

Hi. I noticed that Phoenix missiles have a tendency to fly into space if they miss their target; for instance, in my last mission I was furballing near the CVN-70 and got eventually shot down. I checked the F6 view (to see if my wingman's Kh-41 would hit the carrier) and noticed a couple of AIM-54Cs going ballistic BIG TIME :rolleyes: The fight was 10km from the carrier and max. alt was 2km. How ever, some AIM-54Cs were as far as 150km out and at the altitude of more than 40km! a screenie of the event: http://users.utu.fi/tjejou/lockon/space_phoenix.jpg