APKWS on harrier

[Auntystatic]

caught this in a news article thought you people might be interested

 

 

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[Captain Orso]

Video ID appears to be bad.

[Ramsay]

caught this in a news article thought you people might be interested

 

 

 

While APKWS is a "cool" weapon, it's not really appropriate to the year and software version modelled.

 

I'd much prefer Razbam focused on getting the more basic missing features of H4.0 in i.e. adding/editing/copying waypoints, mark points, target points, MGRS data entry, CAS 9-line, etc.

Edited December 27, 2019 by Ramsay
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[ChickenSim]

In fairness, there's plenty about this Harrier that isn't appropriate to the year and software version modeled. It's always been a Frankenharrier cobbled together with whatever anachronistic documentation they've been able to procure, so having APKWS or GBU-54s alongside their contemporary ten-racked GBU-38s is only really limited by their willingness to create their own weapons and their associated flight and damage models.

[DmitriKozlowsky]

Laser guided Zuni. Great idea and a no brainer.

[Fri13]

The laser guided rockets doesn't require hardware or software modifications for the fighter or pod. Only thing that is done by weapons crews is swap the warhead/add guidance section and then set the laser code to rockets.

 

Normal loading and operation. You just use the laser designator on target before launch and rockets guide to it.

 

It is simplest "post" weapons upgrade you can do.

[DmitriKozlowsky]

Sounds like real life to me. If you have clearance, go to any VMFA squadron operating Harrier or legacy Hornet C/D. You'll no two are identical. Each one has slightly differing operational limitations. Mostly due to deferred maintenance, or parts from AMARC. Being a crew chief or sq. or wing maintenance officer is like being a doctor. Every patient is unique, if even a little bit.

Situation was worse in RAF/RNFAAA Joint Harrier Force. A nose from old GR1, splice onto newer GR4. 20% of airframes were prohibited from carrier operations due to airframe age.

Software from Boeing , adjusted by BAE did not always apply smoothly.

 

B-1B, B-52G/H, and B-2A flight crews and maintenance chiefs, swear that each and every airframe has a soul, and each one is unique. They sound slightly different, vibrations are different. Some are good troopers and are generated mission ready every time. Some are drama queens, aka hangar queens, who don't want to fly. Just sit in hangar and be serviced.

[Fri13]

 

B-1B, B-52G/H, and B-2A flight crews and maintenance chiefs, swear that each and every airframe has a soul, and each one is unique. They sound slightly different, vibrations are different. Some are good troopers and are generated mission ready every time. Some are drama queens, aka hangar queens, who don't want to fly. Just sit in hangar and be serviced.

 

Aircrafts are like a modern cars, all gets different problems and are completely different to service than their previous generation or when they were young.

[Dehuman]

 

Can put them on the Bronco too

[Fri13]

It goes on anything where any standard 2.75" rocket does go... So any existing pod, on any platform.

 

All that you do is screw warhead off from rocket, screw guidance section to rocket where warhead was, and then screw warhead back to guidance section in the rocket.

 

Now you have a guided rocket, and to use it as guided, all you need to do is set the laser code on each rocket when arming them, load normally to pods, and then have a laser designator on target at launch parameters (LOAL capability).

 

If ED implements this rocket and the Russian equivalent (Kor family) then every single aircraft can use them, and any laser designator can guide them.

 

Be it a harrier + Kiowa or harrier alone with tpod, or Su-25A launching and KA-50 guiding, or Su-25A alone.

 

It would be mission designer job to allow such weaponry...

[Mr_sukebe]

Interesting that the visual includes the F16 and Av8b but not the F15E or F18

[schroedi]

I have never seen a F-15E with rocket pods.

[Ramsay]

Interesting that the visual includes the F16 and Av8b but not the F15E or F18

 

The "2019 Marine Aviation Plan" includes the following line

 

"Key additions to the aviation weapons inventory in the last twelve months include: ... integration of the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) II on F/A-18C/D;"