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F-35B/C Lightning II (Joint Strike Fighter)
- Thread starter jai5w4
- Start date
Some ridiculous pics here:
http://gizmodo.com/5541045/two-f+35s-thundering-together-for-the-first-time
She is gorgeous.
http://gizmodo.com/5541045/two-f+35s-thundering-together-for-the-first-time
She is gorgeous.
^^^If you like the chunky gals....
One thing's for certain: all that "All-Aspect Situational Awareness" gear better work - cause the dude driving this a/c won't be able to see jack behind him. Apparently part of the reason for the F-35 not having an F-16 type raised canopy was the placement of the fans/blowers immediately behind the cockpit for the "B" VSTOL version going to the Marines, RAF & a few others.
Didn't someone tell you? The days of dogfighting are long since over, just like they were before Vietnam, why could you possibly need to see behind you? To be quite honest since the first time I saw the JSF demo, I've been wondering the same. I recall hearing something about projector helmets which would allow the pilot to see through the floor, not sure if that would allow them to see behind as well. Although IIRC it was on the infra-red spectrum and intended more for a ground attack role.
Seriously Fog. I don't know what is back there that's so important they couldn't put a freaking window there instead, or maybe raise the cockpit six inches but I'm sure they had a reason. Computers fail, glass generally doesn't. I'm a big fan of the KISS principle in basic A/C design and then adding the bells and whistles. In my experience, sometimes the engineers get so caught up in putting "cool stuff" in airplanes that they forget someone has to interact with it. I once watched a three hour design presentation by two PHD students that went through every system on their A/C (a UAV mind you, so they already suck in my book). According to them it would do everything but cook dinner. After looking at the 100+ design pics and diagrams my only question to them was where was the landing gear. The look on their faces was priceless. IMHO I see a cockpit modification in the F-35's (all variants) future. Time will tell.
Didn't the Harrier get a cockpit redesign for that exact reason? It seems like I heard that somewhere like at the museum or the History channel.
Doesn't look that bad at all for rearward visibility. Where the canopy joins the fuselage at the rear it certainly doesn't as conformal (is that the right word?) to the fuselage as the Mirage 2000, A-4, F-5, F-106 or a whole host of other aircraft. And some of those are no slouches in the WVR region, according to some. I just don't see where the pilot's vis at his 6 would be inhibited as much you think. I guess we would have to wait for a F-35 pilot's 'view'. Maybe HJ could ask some of the test pilots?
Vis was definitely a factor in the A to B canopy redesign but more for hover vis. The vis in the B is awesome, it's like sitting in a fish bowl but just like everything else in A/C design nothing is free. The B took an aerodynamic penalty for having a big canopy as I'm sure the F-35 would.
I think some of you are making too much of any potential 'viz' problems the F-35 may/may not have in the rear quadrant ...
For example: I never had any problems lookin' ''over my shoulder'' when flying this bird w/ a 'big hump' behind the cockpit ....
Images by A4sForever
You DO REALIZE, of course, that one of the cornerstones of flyin', fightin', and survivin' in the ACM/'Dogfight' arena is keeping your opponent(s) IN FRONT OF YOUR WING-LINE ???
Of course, when you're saddled w/ more than one opponent -- you are looking fore AND aft (actually -- your head is on a swivel) as you might have to 'play' one or two of your opponents off the other(s) to determine when to break off the one you're tracking/shooting and which 'new nose' to honor as you bend it back around and engage a 'new' nose in your one V many engagement/furball ...
Hope that makes sense ... I guess you had to be there ...
For example: I never had any problems lookin' ''over my shoulder'' when flying this bird w/ a 'big hump' behind the cockpit ....
Images by A4sForever
You DO REALIZE, of course, that one of the cornerstones of flyin', fightin', and survivin' in the ACM/'Dogfight' arena is keeping your opponent(s) IN FRONT OF YOUR WING-LINE ???
Of course, when you're saddled w/ more than one opponent -- you are looking fore AND aft (actually -- your head is on a swivel) as you might have to 'play' one or two of your opponents off the other(s) to determine when to break off the one you're tracking/shooting and which 'new nose' to honor as you bend it back around and engage a 'new' nose in your one V many engagement/furball ...
Hope that makes sense ... I guess you had to be there ...
I just wanted to post under A4s in the off chance that some of his salt would chip off and fall onto me.
I think some of you are making too much of any potential 'viz' problems the F-35 may/may not have in the rear quadrant ...
For example: I never had any problems lookin' ''over my shoulder'' when flying this bird w/ a 'big hump' behind the cockpit ....
Images by A4sForever
You DO REALIZE, of course, that one of the cornerstones of flyin', fightin', and survivin' in the ACM/'Dogfight' arena is keeping your opponent(s) IN FRONT OF YOUR WING-LINE ???
Of course, when you're saddled w/ more than one opponent -- you are looking fore AND aft (actually -- your head is on a swivel) as you might have to 'play' one or two of your opponents off the other(s) to determine when to break off the one you're tracking/shooting and which 'new nose' to honor as you bend it back around and engage a 'new' nose in your one V many engagement/furball ...
Hope that makes sense ... I guess you had to be there ...
Shit, A-4s: that's because the A-4 turns inside just about anything else it might fly against. In the F-4, they should have put a rotating ejection seat for the RIO to sit on because 90% of the time (if his stick was dumb enough to turn horizontally against an A-4), the RIO is unstrapped, turned completely around and calling "6 o'clock at a half mile, turn, roll . . . do something fast!"
:icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol: .... I love it.
Did they have a 500' bubble for ACM practice back then? Looks like the A-4 is closer than that to my inexperienced eye.