Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Posted

Holy crap! I knew of the Lavi (and all the fake J-10 images), I knew of the XL, but I never put them side by side and went "Jeeze... They look similar..." :rofl:

 

Man... I feel a bit dopier for that. :blink:

 

By the way, wasn't it called the AFTI?

 

EC89-0016-20.jpg

 

This is what you're talking about, yeah?

 

 

There was a great version of this in Ace Combat 3... :good:

Posted
Holy crap! I knew of the Lavi (and all the fake J-10 images), I knew of the XL, but I never put them side by side and went "Jeeze... They look similar..." :rofl:

 

Man... I feel a bit dopier for that. :blink:

 

By the way, wasn't it called the AFTI?

 

EC89-0016-20.jpg

 

This is what you're talking about, yeah?

There was a great version of this in Ace Combat 3... :good:

 

 

Yes i guess they where talking about the AFTI because the ASTI is an avionics system upgrade... here.

AFTI

 

F-16-365CCV.jpg

F-16-364AFTI.jpg

 

theres also another type...the forward wing variation F-16 SFW

 

01.jpg

AFTI+SFW

 

f16swf.jpg

 

 

In 1976, DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) awarded funds to General Dynamics, Rockwell and Grumman under the Forward-Swept Wing Program. Forward-swept wings offer low drag and improved low-speed handling characteristics, but they are extremely difficult to manufacture using conventional techniques. The use of advanced composite materials makes the wing rigid enough to withstand the forces introduced by aerodynamic stress, while simultaneously avoiding a weight penalty.

The engineers at General Dynamics studied several designs, including one with canards and an aft-mounted wing. The final design submitted to DARPA used the landing gear and most fuselage components of the traditional F-16, yet it had a slightly lengthened and strengthened fuselage to allow the forward-swept wing to be attached, since the new wing was slightly larger than the traditional wing.

 

The SFW/F-16 was rejected by DARPA in January of 1981 in favor of the Grumman 712 (an F-5/F-20 derivative), later designated the X-29A. The decision was mainly a political one, as many thought that the test-scene at NASA was heavily dominated by General Dynamics' F-16s (AFTI, CCV, F-16XL). Another much-cited reason was that "One could only learn so much from a single airframe", though in retrospect, ongoing experiments with the F-16 seem to prove this wrong. It is interesting to note that the chosen design, the X-29A, consists for about 16% of F-16 components, including the Fly-By-Wire Flight Control System.

 

After the F-5 airframe was chosen for this project, all development into this version halted.

 

 

And by the way...i dindt said the XL and Lavi look similar...i said they were problably refering TO the Lavi.

Posted
Wasn't there also a version of the F-16 with canards and without the vertical fin? Now that would be cool too...

 

 

Yes there was...the F-16X, but it didnt had canards

 

f16x1.jpg

F-16%20USAF%20X_screenshot%20815.jpg

  • 4 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue..