G.J.S Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 Could just be a DIY cover to stop injuries to ground crew? Stop you whacking your head on what will be quite a painful bit of airframe to meet if your gaze is elsewhere - - - The only real mystery in life is just why kamikaze pilots wore helmets? - - -
Banzaiib Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 (edited) it's a photo of a Super Hornet in the VF-11, FYI, taken October 31, 2016. Much Higher Resolution version: Edited January 15, 2019 by Banzaiib
AG-51_Razor Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 Do the nozzles come out far enough to come close to the elevator? If so, maybe it's some kind of bumper or chaffing material to protect the elevator. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
Mainstay Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 This is what it normally should look like. In your picture its just worn composite material.
Banzaiib Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 Do the nozzles come out far enough to come close to the elevator? If so, maybe it's some kind of bumper or chaffing material to protect the elevator. No, the stabilators do not rub against the exhaust nozzle petals.
Strikeeagle345 Posted January 15, 2019 Posted January 15, 2019 Looks like a dikfer What's a dikf........ Hey wait a minute.:joystick: Strike USLANTCOM.com i7-9700K OC 5GHz| MSI MPG Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON | 32GB DDR4 3200 | GTX 3090 | Samsung SSD | HP Reverb G2 | VIRPIL Alpha | VIRPIL Blackhawk | HOTAS Warthog
VZ_342 Posted January 16, 2019 Posted January 16, 2019 Could be some form of heat shield, even though the horizontal stab doesn’t touch the AB nozzle, it looks close enough to absorb enough heat and weaken/distort the aluminiumunum inside. Your guess is as good as mine though...
26-J39 Posted January 16, 2019 Posted January 16, 2019 My memory is sketchy on this but i recall my father (F/A-18 manufacturing) saying something about this so i dug a little. Article below explains corrosion is like a chemical process similar to a battery. In this case the salt water (Navy aircraft) acts as an electrolyte and the different materials used in the construction act as the anode and cathode. http://www.boeingsuppliers.com/environmental/TechNotes/TechNotes2000-02.pdf I think this is some sort of grounding point where the corrosion accumulates, minimizing corrosion elsewhere. Hope someone with a better understanding can help as this is just my suspicion.
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