F-35 Production

Totals

I was just a little blown away by the totals really in just one year LM can produce more 5th generation fighters just about then their are advance model Flankers added together.
 
Will it carry as much weight in ordnance as a A-6 Intruder? Will it maneuver as good as a Tomcat with the wings out? Will it make it home on one engine? For that fact will it start its mission with one engine?

If it can't do at least one of the above, then its useless.
 
At least one

Will maneuver as good as a Tomcat with the wings out
Click to expand...
I assume it will but don't know for sure since little has been release most modern fighter can out maneuver a Tomcat. But since you worded that way with wings out I can assume Tomcat's do well in this area with their wings out. I saw a F-14 at an air show many years ago and was very impressed with how it turn for such a big fighter. Like A-6 s a lot to but sadly they would be seen from a good distance away and wouldn't be as effective in most modern combat. I always thought since they had good range and payload and since there's no real air threat in either war zone that that they might have been used as long range bombs trucks. More useful then Viper or Hornets as far range & payload but I guess getting them up and running again would be difficult in 2008. It would be cool seeing them get some action in again but I guess maintenance and support issues nix it.
 
rock45 said:
I assume it will but don't know for sure since little has been release most modern fighter can out maneuver a Tomcat. But since you worded that way with wings out I can assume Tomcat's do well in this area with their wings out. I saw a F-14 at an air show many years ago and was very impressed with how it turn for such a big fighter. Like A-6 s a lot to but sadly they would be seen from a good distance away and wouldn't be as effective in most modern combat. I always thought since they had good range and payload and since there's no real air threat in either war zone that that they might have been used as long range bombs trucks. More useful then Viper or Hornets as far range & payload but I guess getting them up and running again would be difficult in 2008. It would be cool seeing them get some action in again but I guess maintenance and support issues nix it.
Click to expand...

You might be able to see a Intruder coming from a long way away, but in its defense, can you show me another aircraft that will carry twice its own weight, and fly a mission fully loaded with only one engine out of two AND come back with holes and parts missing? I don't give a dam about stealth when I'm in a hole pined down by a tank and I hear that ungodly howling of A-6 engines coming from behind me.
As far as no real threat, that's today, what about next Monday?
The Tomcat is STILL the worlds best modern combat fighter. I will believe that until the day I see a Hornet do something other that become a lawn dart when an engine fails. The Hornet has one VERY dangerous flaw in its design, the engines are too close together, ANY aircraft with engines that close is asking for a disaster, Notice the Tomcat had 4 feet between engines? There was a reason for that, its called catastrophic turbine failure, I saw a Hornet on the Eisenhower lose a turbine to CTF and it took the other engine with it, thankfully the pilot egressed safely and was picked up by the sar helo, I have never see a aircraft with engines as far apart as a Tomcat lose both engines from one engine failure.
Call me a relic if you want to:) but I'll take a Tomcat over the strike fighter any day, until I see a F35 outrun one, and do a flat 90 while its going that fast.
I've seen Hornets and raptors up close, I'm not impressed
 
wolfen said:
Stealth is about useless when the enemy is looking at you through a pair of binoculars
Click to expand...

That problem is countered by stand off weapons. It's usually how it's done nowadays. You could paint your aircraft bright red with flashing lights and it wouldn't make a difference.
 
maybe, but I still hold true to the fact that an enemy physically looking at you can drop you out of the sky as easily as you can blow him up weapon or not. Shoot a few ice cubes down a jet engine and it will send the compressor blades out the back side of the turbine
 
The point is, you'll never see the aircraft, and if it's heading towards you at supersonic speeds, you won't hear it either.
 
you mean TODAY it won't be seen or heard. All it takes is one smart or lucky person to see it coming, unless its so high its can't be seen using sight, then it won't matter much anyway.

ALWAYS remember this, it was told to me by an old Master Chief named Skip, he said "If you can see the enemy, the enemy can see you" I used that theory for 20 years, and I'm happy to say that today I'm here because of that theory to make this post. Which tells me if you can see your enemy your enemy can see you.
 
Yes but it's better than being seen the instant you take off, being seen on radar the whole way and have enemy interceptors vectored towards your course well in advance waiting to drop you out of the sky where their air to air missiles can acquire your aircraft easily.
It's like this, back in World War II, you needed a whole formation of B-17s to take out a single factory. In Gulf War I, all it took was one F-117 to knock out a target of a similar nature. A guy from World War II might ask how a single plane would evade all the enemy's air defenses all by itself without interlocking machine gun fire and fighter escorts.
If you can see him, he can see you, philosophies seem to apply more to us ground pounders than to pilots and the like.
 
Well for 1 in WW2 I agree it took more than 1 formation it took a dozen or so, and yes in Desert Storm 1 F117 took out a target with 1 bomb, but in WW2 we might as well have been throwing the bombs out the window, they use a tactic called carpet bombing because at 25k the bomb sights were not quite as accurate as we are led to believe they were, in Desert storm we use this thing called a smart bomb, it was either laser guided of GPS guided, as most bombs now days are, the reason we can destroy a target with 1 bomb is called technology, in WW2 it was called a good drop. The Us is using a technology now that can home in on the enemy aircraft passive radar and radio signals, also the engine signature. I don't know or understand the whole radar thing, and last I heard I can NOT talk about how the engine signature comes into play, but I can tell you that every engine on every aircraft hums, and every hum is different, you can be as invisible as you want, but the engine is still there, find the hum, find the plane
 
i can guarantee you the russians and the chinese are developing low frequency radar that will render all this stealth technology that we based our airforce around completely useless. Also the chinese have anti-satellite missiles that will also render our GPS-guided bombs useless.
 
Bacara said:
i can guarantee you the russians and the chinese are developing low frequency radar that will render all this stealth technology that we based our airforce around completely useless. Also the chinese have anti-satellite missiles that will also render our GPS-guided bombs useless.
Click to expand...

Yup:)........
 
A-6

Hi wolfen
I don't think your a relic I think your somebody who feels very strongly about two great aircraft that served out country very well. I have a lot of respect for both types but I don't think you could call a F-14 a modern combat aircraft anymore. The US Navy/Government decided not to go down the upgrade route thus an end to a classic interceptor/fighter. I still think A-6s could be used as in house bomb trucks if stationed in A-Stan itself. Great range, great time in the air, systems should be modern enough to use some smart weapons, they could refuel each other, fully day/night capable.

Would being I think 10 plus years out of the Navy active squadrons be too long to use them? I assume their less costly to run then F-15E?
icon14.gif
 
Here are a few interesting photos from the F-35 assembly line in Fort Worth, TX. Many countries from the 9-member consortium are providing funds, engineering services and certain parts. This is truly one heck of a combat aircraft!

AIR_F-35_Manufacture_Aft_lg.jpg


plane-f-35-fab-desk-1024.jpg


sdd_f35manfb_007.jpg


f35b.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top