JediMaster

I'd say there's a good chance Saudis will buy F-35s in the next decade some time. As already mentioned the F-22 won't be going there, or anywhere apparently, so those F-15 operators looking for a replacement will have little choice. Saudis are already getting Typhoons anyway, and I think they'll be used for AA primarily. To replace the ground attack F-15S they'll probably get F-35s.

The main thing is I don't know what the possible failure modes of the TVC nozzles are. For the F-22, they're 2-D only so you should be able to counter it with pitch only and even if the 2 are stuck at opposite angles some roll should fix it. The Flanker has 3-D nozzles, though, so they can point any direction. Wouldn't adverse yaw be the most difficult to counter? Granted the Flanker has some big vert stabs, but yaw authority seems to be far more limited in most planes.

Actually, I always thought the Cobra maneuver was "get shot down by GI Joe in their Skystrikers."

I think it safe to say there WILL be a spike in DL traffic, though, yes.

My point was the difference between flying .9 and 1.2 isn't that great when it comes to flight times, especially if you need burner for 1.2 and not .9. Then you're just burning a lot of gas for little improvement. If you go closer to 2+ in burner you're "getting something" for your fuel usage. A lot of these low-level penetrating planes like this and the F-111 go faster than anyone else at sea level where air is dense, but if they climb to altitude they're left in the dust by the Mach 2 interceptors.

LOL, SR-71 on a carrier. They don't make catapults strong enough to throw that plane fast enough to get into the air! The Blackbird had a very long takeoff and landing roll.

You mean "stand forlorn on the tarmac waiting for a dressing down by the CO"?

I just got what I think is the 2-platter version, it's a WD 640GB SATA. Actually, it's my 2nd one. I ordered one from Newegg a month ago...and it arrived DOA. Click-click-clicking, never seen by Windows. Went thru the whole RMA/ship back thing and finally got the new one last week. Plugged it in, flawless (so far) and quiet. As for IDE, yeah I still use them. This 640 replaced a 160GB IDE. I still have another 320GB IDE.

I've heard nothing official about the UK or Italy buying fewer F-35s. Italy isn't really getting that many anyway, but the UK is a major player.

SEAD/DEAD is exactly what UCAVs are being designed for. They'll do other stuff, too, but that's the prime focus. As for the F-16, no I don't think that's a great match. I always thought the F-15E would've been a better choice, but whatever. Right now I'd say the B-2 and F-22 are best suited to the role.

Metal will absorb and dissipate the heat. Runways, however, are paved with hot materials that cool. Subjecting them to heat later can indeed severely damage them. My guess is he'd not be allowed to do vertical ops very much.

Ok, devil's advocate here--what if BOTH nozzles get stuck?

False, I ingest only a small amount with each cup of egg nog and that's IT! The poster below me once spent an hour while drunk on their PC looking for the "any" key.

Yeah, on Stargate SG-1.

My only question is how many civilian fields are equipped for STOVL ops? Methinks they may have to fly conventional only. Especially that hot jet blast aimed right at the runway...

The problem with low-alt flight is that while you're safer from the bigger SAMs and fighters, you're more vulnerable to the IR SAMs and AAA which are far harder to spoof. You also have to worry about CFIT (a problem the Bone has had a very public relationship with over the years) when you're doing 600kts below 500ft! I meant "Mach 2" when I said supersonic because I don't consider "1.2" to be very supersonic.

We've not had one of these in awhile, so I figure we're about due as some modder will likely post here in the next couple of weeks: My HDD has died! I've lost the model/mod/skin/terrain I was working on! Therefore, to all and sundry here at CA, Back up your stuff!!!! Thank you. You may now resume your regularly scheduled forum browsing, already in progress.

The obvious difference is the F-35C has a LOT more wing area than a Hornet, which means lower wing loading. Hopefully a lower approach speed as well.

Judging by the comparison with the GR.1 I'd say it's the RWR/TEWS/whatever the acronym is. Looks like they got a different model in the F.3 seeing as the mission would be more AA while the GR.1 is more AG. Of course, I'm just guessing.

You might try over at the official ED forums at lockon.ru to see if someone there knows how to do that.

I've used several of those over the years. Some are really good, others are minimally effective.

In the same way that many flammable objects are also inflammable I suppose.

I remember when Wings was a program on Discovery and it was great. Wings of the Red Star and Wings of the Luftwaffe were 2 of the best series EVER.

I've never seen that one before. That's probably the biggest difference in contrast for that style I've come across.

The B-1B lost its supersonic capability when the inlets were changed to make the plane more stealthy. The F-117 and B-2 projects were already underway, but the altering of the intake design clearly reflected that they knew what they wanted in the RCS reduction arena. There were some other changes from the A to the B, but they're not nearly as significant. Last time I flew one was in F4 RP4 or something. I remember dropping 80+ mk82s on an airbase north of the DMZ at 500 kts and 500 ft. SWEET.