FastCargo

Oh no, you didn't just say the lovely Norse god Valkyrie was ugly did you? I know you didn't! Yea, actually, she's pretty ungainly on the ground or slow. At Mach 3+ though...she lives up to her heritage. It's too bad we never produced her...she would have made a great first stage for an orbital version of the X-15... FastCargo

Congrats Dave, Get better soon! FastCargo

Not for me thanks. When I flew it, we did it old school style...radar offset and lay down a 'stick'. 84 Mark 82s or 30 CBUs will definitely get your attention...:). FastCargo

USAFMTL, Good luck with your recovery bud. Surgery is never fun...and recovery can be a trial. Best wishes bud... FastCargo

Oh my goodness!! About time my favorite bomber got some screen time... I've been having to use the F-111 instead...but you need 3 1/2 of them to equal one full bay drop in a Bone... FastCargo

Yea, I remember old F-105 and F-4 pilots telling me of the switch layouts back in the day...talk about byzantine! Commerical aircraft were just as bad...there were major improvements just from the 727 to the DC-10. And the A300 was a jump above that. The Russians have come a long way, but western designers have come farther. Things improved once human factors began to be engineered into aircraft. I often joke the A380 will have a single button. You press it..."Preflight start"..."Preflight, complete". :). FastCargo

I wasn't talking about seats. Seats are not as big a deal as everyone thinks...especially when you talk to viper guys (outside of the PR stuff). Seats that far back are uncomfortable to fly and fight in with your head back. What I was talking about was control/display layout/symbology. Ergonomics is the study of man and machine and its effects on humans (taken from the definition adopted by the International Ergonomics Association in 2007). Some of the russian layouts, even in their modern aircraft, are operator hostile and will contribute to a loss of SA. FastCargo

If you like that, you like this: "25 hours at FedEx" It's a hoot! FastCargo

It's funny how software has become just as important as hardware in aviation. The 777 has glitches that have only recently been ironed out. Embarer is dealing with a host of issues with their new aircraft (ask JetBlue about it). The C-17 had teething software issues at first. Even our aircraft (T-38C) had a few problems initially, now it's great how our capabilities keep jumping up with just software upgrades....no changes to the hardware. FastCargo

As someone mentioned before, the Su-27 and it's varients are beautiful and powerful aircraft...as an effective fighter, it's still an unknown for various reasons mentioned already. There are also a few other factors working against operators of said aircraft. 1) Training. Most operators can not simply afford to give the pilots the training hours and scenarios needed to stay proficient in their aircraft up to the standard of First World western eqivalents. As a part time reservist, I get 12 hours a month in a trainer aircraft. That's more than some countries give their pilots in 6 months. And I'm just a part timer. This makes the next problem worse... 2) Ergonomics. Even in modern Russian aircraft with glass, their general ergonomics are right out of the 1970s. As a human factors major, I tend to end up looking at everything from a human interface angle. When things are going great, you can get by with twitchy layouts. Not so when the sierra hits the fan. That's why 'sensor fusion' is such a big deal...the idea of being able to consolidate the various inputs an aircraft gets and sort it in one easy to interpret method for the pilot. I can't emphasize how important this is...and how it's only going to get more critical as more sensors are integrated into the battlespace. If your pilot's head explodes because he can't integrate all the info he's getting, it's all over... FastCargo

You betcha! Assuming I get a decent layover in IND. I like IND downtown...lots of cool stuff around there. FastCargo

Jedi, Well said about the FUN part. If something you're doing for recreation isn't fun, maybe it's time to reeval your definition of recreation. That's why I gave up on sims for a while...was getting to the point of being harder than work. FastCargo

I work for FedEx as an A300/310 pilot based in Memphis. FastCargo

Hey, we work hard to get your packages to you! :) FastCargo

I don't know...Bones have nothing on C-5s in terms of MX needs. You know what they say if you see 4 C-5s on the ramp with 3 of them on jacks...it means they ran out of jacks! Also, I only ever lost one sortie due to MX. We seemed to find the more you flew it, the better the MX rate. FastCargo