FanBoy2006.01

GGTharoros: "Very nice pics! Too bad you couldn't get any pit shots " Yes, that was unfortunate. The photo's were taken during an arms show that was closed to the public and then with an air show after that. The whole thing was five days long. The guys had press clearance. But they were not allowed to take pictures of the any cockpits. VIPER01; I got alot of Rooivalk pics that I took at an airshow. I posted a couple on this forum, but I deleated them to post the Hind pics!

Here are some more pics. Hope everyone enjoy them.

I got these pictures from friends that where recently at an air-show near Cape Town (Ysterplaat Air Force Base.). Well it is no beauty-contest winner. This is called a SuperHind but I think there is another Hind update that is called the same. Here is little article that were published in Popular Mechanics September 2002 (South African edition.). “SuperHind A Russian Mi-24 attack helicopter upgraded by ATE, using local and improved sub-systems. The upgrade includes a digital avionics computer, a GPS navigation display, night-vision goggle-compatible instruments, night formation lights, a steerable infra-red landing light, a day/night sight turret, helmet sights, a 20mm cannon turret and the 5km-range Ingwe laser beam-riding anti-tank missile. The aircraft also receives an electro-optical rotor tracking and balancing system that greatly reduces vibration. ATE has upgraded a substantial number of aircraft for an export customer and is working on a follow-on order. Future plans include an 'agility enhancement' for the Mi-24 to enable it to use Western attack helicopter tactics. That will involve reducing its weight by some 2000kg by replacing old systems with new lighter equipment and fitting new light weigh ceramic armour.”

GGTharos thanks for the correct info. Yes, if you shoot at someone, that gives them something else to do than to try and hunt you down. But if an AMRAAM goes active it is still my opinion to deal first with that threat than with the launch aircraft. Remember those that don't fight and run away lives to run another day!

A lot has been and are being made about the real life combat performance of missiles and the performance of the same simulated missiles in LOMAC. But it seams that there is little talk about the actual events in witch combat results take place. Now I am no expert at any thing, but in all air-to-air engagements that I have read about, I have never read about the employment of any countermeasures! In all instances that I read about only limited maneuvering (If any!) was employed by the pilots to evade the missiles. I recall that there was an account posted on this forum about a Serbian MiG29 pilot that was shot down by an Aim120 (Everybody probably knows about this.). When the guy got a launch warning (I guess when the Aim120 went active.), he first waited to launch one of his own missiles and only then turned as hard as he could. Also the F15 apparently launched the missile withing 15miles of the MiG29. I am writing this from memory so the details could be wrong! The Serbian pilot showed a lot of bravery in his actions, but it is my opinion that he should have acted more prudently. In LOMAC a lot of experienced sim pilots are of the opinion that one should first try to evade an incoming missile before he try to launch one of his/her own. Now I am sure that because of the limitations of personal computers and because of the control of sensitive military information that there will be discrepancies between real life weapon systems and how they are modeled in LOMAC. To me the real value in LOMAC lies in the fact that one can use real life air-to-air tactics to achieve an outcome in this simulated world.

F19 (286) F117 (386) Chuck Yeager's Air Combat (That was a great sim!) DID EF2000 (I loved this sim. I bought two and gave one away to a friend.). DID F22 ADF (Also great sim.). Janes AH64D Longbow (Something like that. Very good.). Microsoft Combat Flight Sim I (Average) and II (Good.) Janes USAF (OK-ish) Janes WWII Fighters (Big disapointment. Game was great, but couldn't get my joystick to work with it correctly.). Microprose European Air War (Loved it.). IL2 Sturmovik, Forgotten Battles and Pacific Fighters (Needless to say: Best WWII flight sims ever!) LOMAC! (Yeah! My favourate of all time. I like to refer to it as IL2 - Modern Battles!) Just to get this of my chest. I bought MS Century of Flight from a friend a couple of months ago. I paid half the price for it of what it cost in the store. Yet it cost me exactly the same as what I had paid for IL2 Forgotten Battles and LOMAC together (Brand new from the store.)! Man what a dissapointment. Played it only once and then I removed it. If you have to compare flight sims with driving games; combat sims would be like driving sports cars (In a high speed chase by the police and in the middle of a gun fight!) and civilian flight sims would be like diving a bus or a taxi. What the hell!

Wrong Button!

D-Scythe: “What US patriotists? A lot of us aren't even American. It's just a fact that the U.S.A. have some of the most powerful and technologically advanced weapons in the world. What *is* funny, however, is reading crap from the anti-U.S./West camp. It's hilarious - "facts" mean nothing to these people. Like thinking that a military program with a R&D budget worth millions is comparable/superior to one that is worth billions (R-77 vs. AIM-120 anyone?). Or that IRST is some super anti-stealth tool and that Lockheed Martin "forgot" to stealth the F-22 from these IRSTs when they designed it.” It all boils down to vanity and pride. One should not confuse patriotism with vanity. If you are a patriot you will be proud about your country but you should not be vain (Think that you are better than others.). “Pride comes before the fall.” In my opinion, one of the main reasons why people like Saddam Hussain were defeated was because he had this attitude that he is better than any body else,and will beat them easily. Thus he will not need to bother himself with them. If oposing countries (To the USA.) underestimates their technology and training they will be defeated. Also if the USA will underestimate their enemies they will surely have a day of reconing There is a lot of talk about technological superiority on these forums, But there is little talk about economics. Countries like China and India have had huge economical gains for a couple of years now. This is information that I can not veryfy (Or spell for that matter!). But I have read that a lot more engineers are trained in China and India than in the West at present (Europe and USA). So they have a lot more engineers to throw at a problem. This will make a difference in the future. Here is where I disagree with you D-Scythe. Although an R&D budget worth millions probably (In all likelyhood.) will not compare to one that is worth billions, organisations have the tendancy to spend all the money that are given to them. Here is a good example: The USA spent a lot of money on the ADATS anti-aircraft system, that was a total failure (Could track moving targets but could not hit them. Could hit stationary targets but could not track them.). On the other hand, Russia developed the ZSU23-4 Shilka for much less. My opinion is that IRST is a great tool. But do you actually want to be the guy that will have to look for a F22 with IRST that can detect him at 20km (Optimistic figure; I guess.) when he can fire an AIM120C at you from 70km? D-Scythe I agree with your post, but I do disagree with you on the money issue. It is my opinion that it boils down to the ability of your design team and the resources that they have available to them plus their motvation (So money would make a difference! I just contradicted myself.). Which brings me back to vanity. Are we vain enough to underestimate our enemies in times of war? (D-Scythe I must stress that I do not think that you are vain. I agree with you, but I am using your post to launch my own opinions. That and I had a couple of drinks.). I hope that someone will respond to my post and tellme if I am full of crap or not. Please bare in mind that English is not my mother tongue and that I can not spell to save my life.

I just want to point out that just because it is not likely that two Super Powers will be at war in the foreseeable future, it does not mean that the USAF can deal with even third world countries with their teen series aircraft. (PS I view any country with ICBMs and SSBNs as a superpower! An that leaves out other WMDs [Like cruise missiles with nuclear warheads.] that can destroy cities. A lot of countries are looking to buy 5th generation aircraft like Su-30 MKI, JAS39, etc. These aircraft are extremely capable. In the future one might get into the situation that the USA might have to go up against a Third World Nation armed with this type of technology. It will be very detrimental (Politically) for the USA to loose a couple of Super-Hornets or AESA F15s to take out the opposing air force. The big thing, I think, is advanced avionics and BVR missiles that more and more nations are getting. Thus in air-to-air combat stealth is important. To my mind that means all countries in the world need stealth technology! If you don't think that stealth is a big deal, ask yourself why in the past armies had bright uniforms but now (For a very long time now.) they are wearing camouflage uniforms. Why do we employ radio silence? If the enemy knows where you are and you are not already dead, it probably means that they are still busy killing other people that are more important than you. Non stealth 5th generation aircraft are great but they will have to stay a lot farther away from heavily defended areas than stealth aircraft will have to. By all this loose babble, I am not trying to say that Stealth Aircraft is so great that they are unbeatable but rather that the airspace over the modern battlefield is becoming so dangerous a place to be that standoff and stealth capability are necessities. Just another thing. I have seen a lot of posts in the past where certain people argue that the F22 can be overwhelmed shear numbers of other aircraft. That to me sounds like the tactics of the First World War where people were sent to their deaths against their enemy's prepared positions! If you want to fight against the F22 do not take it on, on it's own terms! Say I am Dr. Evil and I took over Austria and my hence men are well trained to fly their Typhoons (That Austria have received by then.). I would not wait till the USA have build up their invasion force in Germany and Italy. I would attack immediately as their first F22's touch down for operation European Shield at forward airbases. I would send in Mini-Me with special forces henchmen to sabotage aircraft, blow up fuel supplies, whatever. All the time I would plead with liberals the world over to stop this naked American aggression against poor little me. Of course I am just kidding but if I am faced with with what Saddam Insane was facing after he invaded Kuwait, I wouldn't just sit on my A$$ just waiting for the UN force to build up to come and remove my control over Kuwait. Of course doing anything would have been a mad gamble. South Africa didn't take on Cuban MiG23s with our Mirage F1s when it became clear that they had all aspect angle missiles. Our pilots went in at 50 feet at 600 knots (Vlamgat ISBN 0-620-24116-0 page185-186) during dawn and at dusk: “As one Mirage pilot explained, 'It was rather like playing with a lion's testicles!'”. There was a point in here somewhere, but I can't remember what it was! O yes; 5th generation aircraft is so good that you will need a Raptor to counter them.

Uh I mean Mirage 2000.

I don't think that it is shuch a big deal that a F5 won a Mirage F1 in training. I read years ago (I was still in school and can't remember the source.) that RAF Jaguars "killed" two F15's in training over Europe; I think. What aparently happened was that a pair of F15's saw a pair of Jaguars passing below them. While the wingman provided cover, the lead F15 roled in behind the Jaguars only to be "shot down" by a pair of Jaguars that were trailing the first pair. Then the second F15 roled in behind the second pair of Jaguars to take them out. But unfortunately there were a third pair of Jaguars trailing behind the second pair of Jaguars! PS the pairs of Jaguars was widely spaced so the F15's didn't see the trailing pairs.

I were in the SANDF in 1994 (2nd Field Engineer Regiment.). Not an elite unit like US Marine core, but I can tell you that bridge-building realy sucks.

Hitman, were you in the Marine Core?

Wow I didn't saw that comming!

I am a South African and I am very proud of the Rooivalk project. (Hell, I guess I am trying to "selll" it!). Hitman_214th aren't you proud of the Apache? As for someone besides South Africa buying it. I am not very positive that it will happen.

South Africa's Rooivalke (Rooivalk's) will only become fully operational in October 2006.

The little dome on top of the nose is the Pilot Night Vision System or PVNS. When "uncovered" it is slaved on the pilot's head movement. It also displays the infra-red image directly on a display on the pilot's helmet. Afrikaans is naby aan Flaams. Maar ek verstaan julle taal nie heeltemal nie.

The little dome on top of the nose is the Pilot Night Vision System or PVNS. When "uncovered" it is slaved on the pilot's head movement. It also displays the infra-red image directly on a display on the pilot's helmet. Afrikaans is naby aan Flaams. Maar ek verstaan julle taal nie heeltemal nie.

Here are the last pics. P.S. If you guys don't already know, Rooivalk means Red Falcon. I don't know where I got the last pic (Maybe even on this forum.). But it looks great so I desided to include it. Remember, when you are in Africa always look before you get out of the aircraft!

Rooivalk have six underwing hardpoints (Three under each winglet.) that can take two Matra Mistral air-to-air missiles on each outboard station. The Rooivalk can also carry Euromissle HOT3 anti-tank missiles and the local Mokopa anti-tank missile (Four under the two inboard stations on each winglet. So the rooivalk can carry 16 ATGM's at once just like the Apache). It is also armed with the GI2 dual feed 20mm cannon as well as 70mm rocket launchers.

The following pictures are taken from two different air shows that were held a couple of weeks ago. I hope that you will enjoy them. South Africa's soul Rooivalk squadron is Sixteen Squadron that is based at Bloemspruit Airforce Base, just outside Bloemfontein (I also live in this small city.). Just for interest sake. It has been reported in local news papers that both Turkey and Libya has shown interest in procuring the Rooivalk Attack Helicopter.