Cobra360

I thought that movie was called Wings of the Apache. The fight at the end with the two Apaches up against two Draken fighters and a Defender helo with an unlimited ammo supply for its gun pod and an LAU-61 launcher. What really did it for me the Apache shooting down a Draken with a volly of Hydra rockets.:D

This is about as good as a manual you can get on the Superhornet. It's the NATOPS Flight Manual of the Superhornet form Patricks Avi site. It's around 35 Megs. Thats the guts of the unclassified info on the net anyway.

Not yet. It will be fired for the first time ever later this year by a Gripen, then by the Typhoon and Rafale.

The ''selling point'' of the AGM-158 JASSM is that it's supposed to be a stealth cruise missile, so no fighter with an AESA can detect it and shoot it down. IIRC only 3 or 4 Storm Shadows were fired because it was so new. It was rushed into the warzone and none of the crews had done any training with it. The Storm Shadow is part of the SCALP EG missile family. The French version is called the SCALP EG and will be used on the Rafale and Mirage 2000D.

They don't all yet have the '79. Only the latest Block II deliveries have AESA installed. The early Superhornets still use the '73. There are current issues with the'79 AESA that are still being sorted out. IIRC only Block II and above Superhornets can be fitted with the '79 because of new structeral changes need to accomadated the AESA and it's cooling system.

MDBA has said it will or has redesigned the Meteor to fit inside the F-35B weapons bay. That is 100% confirmed.

Well, I think it's safe to say we will never see a Meteor loaded on an F-22. For reasons I have already stated in an earlier post.

The Meteor will fit in the weapons bay of the F-35B which can only hold 1,000lb bombs where as the F-35A/C can hold 2,000lb bombs. I think it will fit in the F-22s bay as it can also take a 1,000lb bomb.

@ ALDEGA: It can carry 8 AIM-120s external aswell or two tanks and 4 120s. So in non stealth config it can carry 14 AIM-120s and 2 AIM-9s.

I think the Meteor was re-designed to fit inside the F-35B. Seeing as MBDA has a large portion of a British company in it and that the RN is buying the F-35B, which was the smallest weapons bay of the three F-35 variants, it would have made no sense to buying the F-35 and have to use it's primary air to air weapon on external pylons defeating the whole stealth ability.

The crash site of flight 93 was supposedly spread out over a mile of so. Indicating that the plane started to disintergrate rather than hit the ground in a crash which would have left a smaller crash site even if the plane hit the ground at a shallow angle.

I think the 120 and Meteor are the same length because the Typhoon can carry them in the same place on it's fuselage that it can with the 120. I think right now it would be possible to fit a max of four Meteors into the F-22 compared to six 120s. If the fins can't be clipped on the Meteor, I can't see why they can't make them fold in like the Russian Kh-35, the only problems may be with the intakes on the missile. I can't see the US buying the Meteor instead I think they will go with the AIM-120D because they will want to be seen to supporting US jobs.

Well at least there will be a gameplay difference for the 120C. I might buy BS just for this alone.

It is optimised to reach the target quicker with more energy to use when it gets there, giving the target less time to react and escape. Well that what I saw in info about the C4 on a website about a year ago that I can no longer find. The other C sub variants may be different. I know the C4 is an old model as the C6 is the current version with the C7 just around the corner.

The motor on the C is optimised differently to have a higher speed but the side effect is shorter range because the same amount of fuel is being used quicker. I think the fins are interchangable with each other.

If there even is a difference, one thing is clear. There is no point in having the 120B. AFAIK IRL the 120C has slightly less range, larger no escape zone thanks to higher fly-out speed and better ECCM ability and smarter warhead.

Thats not what a lot of people think. Two blue on blues in the space of 15 years by A-10s. But all the same it must be hard trying to ID targets quickly and make a decision to fire on it or not.

The Chinese Su-27s that they build will be called the J-11 while the 30MKKs will be called the J-13. And correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the Ching-kuo fighter I already mentioned and the FCK-1A, the same fighter?

The A-10As of now have Litening II pod which is very useful and far better in terms of range and res than the LANTIRN system.

Just checking out RAF Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall. I can see a few F-15C and Es at Lakenheath and a load of KC-135s at Mildenhall along with B-52s and an E-3C AWACS. Also Edwards AFB is a good place to look at. You can see two SR-71s and three F-22s there along with other types. Took a look at Tyndal AFB hoping to see more F-22s but all I could see were around 50-60 Eagles and 11 F-4 drones. Must be a good bit out of date as there should be at least 16 F-22s at Tyndal by now. Think I've found a new pastime.

And production has already decided to end after around 70 of them are delivered, it was planned to have around 150+. Japan now wants a bigger multi-role fighter. A fighter, I don't think many people know about is the Ching-kuo. Its like the top half of an F-16 spliced with the bottom half of an F/A-18. http://www.fighter-planes.com/info/idf.htm

Virginia class? Is that like Seawolf light kinda like what the F-35 is to the F-22.

Didn't Seawolf got cancelled after a small number of them were built?

All CVN battle groups have at least one sub escort and 4-5 anti-sub destroyers to get through first.

You do mean the F-35C, the 35B is the Marine's version.