I suspect it may not be valid to compare empty and takeoff weights, and conclude the airframes are structurally equivalent. As pointed out above there are materials needed for high speed flight, high g-loads, and high flight cycles at those loads. Also at least for the T-7, the lift capability is w...
Jump to postAlso remember the Pareto principle or the 80/20 rule. Generally developing something 80% as good only costs 20% of the price. This applies to other things like phones. This is a key design philosophy of the LM Skunk works that allowed for rapid development. I might believe this is true in many area...
Jump to postThe correct answer is fewer parts allowing for reduced assembly time. "The best part is no part. The best process is no process." - Elon Musk The Saab Gripen program started roughly 20 years before the Korean T-50 trainer. Improved CAD design and machining allows for a reduced parts count...
Jump to postWell the Gripen C is an honest mach 2 airplane and the T-50 can only do 1.5, and the T-7 is an outright dog at mach 1.2, so neither of those aircraft have to use materials that can handle mach 2 heating. That might account for some of the cost. The Gripen C is mach-2 at high altitude only. What par...
Jump to postMy understanding (from various sources) is that the earlier Gripen was around $60M, with the E model expected to be in the range of an F-35 at around $80M. However the Gripen is far more capable than any of the primarily trainer aircraft you cited. The airframe is far stronger and more durable, and...
Jump to postI think you are mixing up Gripen C and Gripen E. Gripen C uses a Volvo version of GE F404; Gripen E uses GE F414. What is your source supporting a Gripen E cost of $100 million? My error. I was refering to the Gripen C, which might cost just $60M. https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/air-warfare/swed...
Jump to postThe Gripen and the KAI T-50 both use the F-404 engine, and weigh within 3% of each other. Both are superonic, and can carry two crew. The T-7a is presumably very similar. A Gripen costs about around $100M, a T-50 costs about around $30M, and a T-7a costs less. Why does a Gripen costs so much? Are th...
Jump to postlxman1 wrote:The Tomcat followed by the F15 gets my vote.
Curious... how long is it likely to take to get a yea or nay from Congress? I ask that assuming that this deal is a little contentious and will not just be rubber stamped. There first must be an evaluation by various departments stating that the sale will not adversely affect US defense. Then if th...
Jump to postThe F-16’s (or rather, many of them) would seem to have a lot of life left, and a lot of countries/companies know how to upgrade them. I’d be surprised if they don’t order something newish in small quantities, but also get someone to do a SLEP/upgrade on the existing F-16 fleet. They ordered 80 upg...
Jump to postMarquette just lost a flight to Detroit, and now has the lowest number of flights in recent memory. Escanaba is losing half it's flights (from 2 downto 1). Even before the cuts flights were mostly full, an always expensive. Now, crazy. Of course I know there is a pilot shortage, but Delta should be ...
Jump to postRight now Turkey has 48 upgraded F-4s and 245 F-16C/D. None of this is what the kids call "modern". Turkey wanted F-35s, was approved for F-35s, and then un-approved because they bought Russian missiles. Turkey has requested 40 new F-16s and 80 F-16 upgrade kits. The white house has unoff...
Jump to postRight now Turkey has 48 upgraded F-4s and 245 F-16C/D. None of this is what the kids call "modern". Turkey wanted F-35s, was approved for F-35s, and then un-approved because they bought Russian missiles. Turkey has requested 40 new F-16s and 80 F-16 upgrade kits. The white house has unoffi...
Jump to postWouldn't buying essentially a Chinese jet like the FC-1/JF-17 further strain its relationship with NATO? Especially after all the fuss China is making around Taiwan? I'm sure they would sell it as buying a Pakistani airframe. It's hard to get mad at Turkey for buying someone else's fighter if you w...
Jump to postWouldn't buying essentially a Chinese jet like the FC-1/JF-17 further strain its relationship with NATO? Especially after all the fuss China is making around Taiwan? I'm sure they would sell it as buying a Pakistani airframe. It's hard to get mad at Turkey for buying someone else's fighter if you w...
Jump to postOr .. Turkey buys JF-17s. Available without requiring an American engine or avionics. Can do about-sort-of the same role as an older F-16, and clearly better in several ways than an ancient F-4.
Jump to postNext ... folding wings! Just a few on a carrier to save the F18s and 'hawks from doing missions that don't need their capabilities. The "Someone go look at that ship and see what it is" stuff.
Jump to postAnd of course, the single bladed prop. It’s asymmetric, with half the blades of a normal prop. And it flies safely.
https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all ... -sensation
I think I know the answer to this, and it has to do with cost, complexity and weight. However, a contrarotating propeller setup on a single-engine GA aircraft would it much easier to fly. Anyone who's driven dual-prop and single prop boats knows what I'm talking about. As a bonus, it would save CFI...
Jump to postOut of curiosity, how much does the proximity of the two propellers in the coaxial configuration affect performance? I imagine there would be a fair amount of turbulent air around both props. Or maybe just the aft prop. Or maybe not? It's actually a few-percent more effecient at turning power into ...
Jump to postLast time I looked at Wikipedia, Poland was NATO member (like germany) and EU member, so both countries are allies and close neighbours. It is true that Germany bashing is a hobby from Polands far right garden gnome government, but doesn't change the fact that both countries are very close. It woul...
Jump to postPoland to buy 48 FA-50 light fighter jets, 180 K2 tanks, 670 K9 self-propelled artillery pieces The biggest export deal ever from South Korea. The FA-50 seems to be selling well. The FA-50 delivery schedule is fast and strange: All deliveries are planned to be completed “in 2023, with 12 aircraft in...
Jump to post"This missile will hit him if the radar stays on, and even if he turns it off the radar will go to the predicted location and search with it's (admittedly small) built in radar." This is a problem. What is the predicted location? How does your missile predict the location? (Anti-radiation...
Jump to post"This missile will hit him if the radar stays on, and even if he turns it off the radar will go to the predicted location and search with it's (admittedly small) built in radar." This is a problem. What is the predicted location? How does your missile predict the location? (Anti-radiation...
Jump to postCould anti-radiation missiles be a SIGNIFICANT if PARTIAL answer to stealth? If the enemy stealth plane cannot turn on his radar, and my radar doesn't even detect him, we're at a rather even place. Lets suppose I'm flying around with the new anti-radation missiles that are about to equip the F-18Es ...
Jump to postBut my question is ... why did they continue to build F-16normals when they could have built F-16XLs? I think this is/was the crux of your initial question and the simple answer is: Someone would have needed to pay, upfront, for all the developmental work needed to actually get it to be volume prod...
Jump to postIt is becoming clear the A400M is extensively used these days in the European theatre as a tanker. For the various border patrols, supporting a variety of missions. While having every A400M basically suitable for this tanker role costed extra, it's paying off today. I'm so willing to be educated. B...
Jump to postI wonder whether Embraer can pitch their plane in this with Netherlands/Portugal/Czech/other European countries contents and local production/assembly and have a chance to win it ?.... No. Any tiny European nation that wants to buy 4 copies of an airplane cannot reasonably afford to set up a final ...
Jump to postBut yes, there have been pure delta carrier based aircraft. I'm not sure what one subsonic (with afterburner) aircraft from 70 years ago has to do with the F-16XL being carrier capable. The original claim was that a pure delta wing cannot be carrier based. This was an example of a pure delta wing b...
Jump to postNo chance. First reason. The F-16XL fuselage extension was at the back. The rear overhang was too big causing tail strikes and they had to remove the F-16's ventral fin. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ4VGoiacYp8FCp-pB45J9fnRDMdjgnTs807w&usqp=CAU Second reason. Delta wing...
Jump to postFor the XL it could have then been adapted in lieu of the super bug (really an all new aircraft) probably for a lot less had…the XL made it into USAF service is my theory. No chance. First reason. The F-16XL fuselage extension was at the back. The rear overhang was too big causing tail strikes and ...
Jump to postMost strike fighter aircraft spend 99% of the time subsonic. Even the supercruising F-22 would spend 90+% of the time subsonic as the range is still much greater. So the best fuel efficient subsonic wing is a straight one like the commercial airlines. So the wider span and lower swept F-16 normal i...
Jump to postF-16XL as is had superior maneuverability at altitude to the F-16 and F-15. It never needed canards or thrust vectoring, just more thrust. Also, the current F-16 blocks 50 and above weighs only 500 lbs less than the XL. Talk about a pig. Where did you learn the F-16XL has better maneuverability? Ca...
Jump to postAnd a F-16XL goes further on the same fuel. No it doesn't. ... The F-16XL improved lift to drag ratio doesn't make up for the extra weight increase so it doesn't go as far on the same fuel. The F-16XL goes further because it has 83% more internal fuel. Maybe you're right. Wikipedia says 11% reducti...
Jump to postThere are several non-US, non-European companies starting to produce military aircraft to compete with 'the old order' of US and Europe, some of which are: Brazil: Embraer KC-390 airlifter South Korea: KAI T-50 trainer, KAI F-50 fighter, KAI KF-21 fighter (in development) India: HAL Tejas LIFT (in ...
Jump to postFirst problem was agility. There is a reason the Rafale, Eurofighter and Gripen have canards at the front. A cranked arrow wing isn't much better than a Delta wing without canards and they have very poor sustained turn rate. I would have also thought manuaverability would suffer, especially somethi...
Jump to postIt really wouldn’t have been a great dog fighter as mentioned, though as avionics/AESA advanced and the -229 version of the F100 as well became more available the issues of net power might not have been as big a deal. The loitering ability/payload would ultimately have proven useful in an intercept...
Jump to postThe F-16XL was supposidly the ever best F-16 airframe ever made. It was faster than the F-16, and on internal fuel could carry the same payload twice as far, or double the payload 44% further. It had a smoother ride down low. It ended up competing for and losing a contract against the F-15E. But why...
Jump to postThat's right, the ADV was designed to protect the UK/Eastern Atlantic airspace, in an all weather, heavy ECM environment, the ideal airframe? Maybe not but being related to the 220 plus IDS version in RAF service, they could be brought in decent numbers. It was not designed to be a dogfighter and o...
Jump to postTurkey May Consider Eurofighter Typhoon if F-16 Deal Fails https://www.thedefensepost.com/2022/06/23/turkey-considering-eurofighter-typhoon/ PS It would make sense as an interim 4.5G fighter until TF-X is inducted in numbers post 2040. I think that Rafale is out, due to Greece operating it. Why wou...
Jump to postThanks for proving my point. Had everyone bought the same fighter, then you could easily point to that one being the best. But most fighters you mentioned had some export succes. Only the F-14D and Tornado ADV had no exports. However, the F-14A was exported to Iran and the Tornado IDS was bought by...
Jump to postUm, the F-15I didn't exist in 1997. If you're looking for the best all around dogfighter from that stable at that time, I'd have to go to AMRAAM-equipped F-15Cs. Not a pound for air-to-ground. And no backseat driver weighing you down. Sure, but I'm *NOT* looking for the best all around dogfighter. ...
Jump to postr6russian wrote:su 27, like theres any other comparison
In terms of pure agility the F-15I is definitely in first place and was delivered to Israel in 1996. It has a higher thrust to weight ratio than the F-22 and is probably one of the highest thrust to weight ratio of any aircraft in history. The F-15I has the F100-PW-229 with 29,160lb of thrust. This...
Jump to post1- Backseaters continue to play an integral part of any fighter aircraft. While that knowledge may be downplayed for economical reasons, those considerations fall flat at 0323 in the morning, out of the stack and attempting to put a warhead on people. The F-14D and F-15E run neck and neck. In 97, t...
Jump to postBest all round fighter? F-15E hands down. Excellent agility, best range, best sensors, best weapons and two seats. In hindsite a back seater proved very useful in the 1990's. They provides great situational awareness and helped operate the sensors. The APG-70 and LANTIRN pod are both are hard to be...
Jump to postThere are so many variables that there is no simple definitive answer to that. Especially if economics play a part. So I’ll just say the best fighter is Chuck Norris. That's fine. But real air forces did have to make this decision, even though they could not know the future such as who they would b...
Jump to postWhat was the best all around fighter available 25 years ago today?
Economics matter somewhat.
F-14D
F-15C
F-16C block 42
F-18C
Tornado ADV varient
Mirage 2000-5C
Mig-29 (first generation)
But that said, I wonder how the USAF will react if Boeing's attention is diverted to export customers while the primary user is still waiting for fixes. Sales Staff and Engineering Staff . . . As long as these potential customers are not requesting customization. The article stated that Boeing will...
Jump to postDoes their carrier have any particularly notable features? I already know about the EMALS. And I understand this is the first one built in China (which is a big deal).
Jump to post