Is the Navy accepting mediocrity?

[Fly Navy]

Not as obvious as you think. Many people think it's an F-15.

 

[Fly Navy]

I don't get it. Isn't the Navy worried about a scenario where enemy F/A-whatevers could come and try to **** up our ships?

Yes, and there are tactics for that. But that's not air supremecy. We also have AEGIS ships, etc etc etc.

 

[xmid]

I sometimes wonder if Billthrill is laughing as he starts a thread like this...

 

[TurnandBurn55]

I don't get it. Isn't the Navy worried about a scenario where enemy F/A-whatevers could come and try to **** up our ships?

This could easily get into the weeds on tactics, but suffice to say that "air supremacy" (or the latest buzz-word "air dominance") generally refers to your ability to hunt down and kill the enemy over his own territory.

Defending the carrier is a different animal... namely because it's out over water and surrounded by a bunch of Aegis-type ships.

 

[CaptainRon]

Defending the carrier is a different animal... namely because it's out over water and surrounded by a bunch of Aegis-type ships.

Wasn't this the idea of the Tomcat? Are tactics changing now that it's retired?

 

[Lawman]

That was the sound of the knife going in even deeper.

I could have been really mean and dropped this one first.

 

[nittany03]

Something else to think of . . . "1 v 1" you could make the argument that Fighter X could beat Fighter Y, but it's the pilot that counts. If you make it to Jet Advanced, you'll find this out when fighting a Fleet IP who is in a carbon copy of your T-45 yet still schooling your butt in your first defensive hop.

Also, the military is a TEAM SPORT. The modern battlefield includes such things as AWACS, GCI, and jamming, not to mention rules of engagement which may or may not favor a particular platform.

 

[FutureMarine311]

*eerie silence*


...soooooo...

...how bout dem' SU-47s?

 

[Brett327]

I sometimes wonder if Billthrill is laughing as he starts a thread like this...

I was kind of hoping he was asking about the Navy accepting mediocrity WRT his own selection for BDCP.

Brett

 

[Brett327]

Wasn't this the idea of the Tomcat? Are tactics changing now that it's retired?

Welcome to the post-Cold War era.

Brett

 

[invertedflyer]

Also, from what I've gathered from several sketchy online readings, it sounds like the F-15 probably beats the F-18 overall as a fighter.

With regard to the F-15 vs. F/A-18 debate... I second what nittany said... alot of it depends on the pilot. Many probably say that its superior because of its BVR capability and the fact that the F/A-18s APG-65 radar was inferior to the F-15s APG-70. HOWEVER, Most legacy F/A-18s now have APG-73s ... so thats no longer the issue as far as I know.

However, in general the hornet is a more nimble fighter that can turn inside an eagle... The F-15 has the power advantage, and if the pilot uses that properly he'll be able to avoid being trapped in a slow fight with the hornet. Being slow vs. a hornet is a bad place to be... the F/A-18 has extremely good low-speed handling.... Even the F-16 pilots that I've talked to avoid taking it slow with a hornet..

IMHO its the pilot thats the main determining factor though... each aircraft has its strengths and weaknesses. The Mig-15 could out-perform the F-86 in many ways, and had a more beefy powerplant... but our pilots were better trained and maintained a kill ratio of better than 10:1 for the duration of the war.... all boils down to training.

 

[flysupertomcat]

I could have been really mean and dropped this one first.

Burn

 

[Brett327]

This is a ridiculous debate we don't need to repeat. Move to stop the insanity.

Brett

 

[airgreg]

With regard to the F-15 vs. F/A-18 debate... I second what nittany said... alot of it depends on the pilot. Many probably say that its superior because of its BVR capability and the fact that the F/A-18s APG-65 radar was inferior to the F-15s APG-70. HOWEVER, Most legacy F/A-18s now have APG-73s ... so thats no longer the issue as far as I know.

However, in general the hornet is a more nimble fighter that can turn inside an eagle... The F-15 has the power advantage, and if the pilot uses that properly he'll be able to avoid being trapped in a slow fight with the hornet. Being slow vs. a hornet is a bad place to be... the F/A-18 has extremely good low-speed handling.... Even the F-16 pilots that I've talked to avoid taking it slow with a hornet..

IMHO its the pilot thats the main determining factor though... each aircraft has its strengths and weaknesses. The Mig-15 could out-perform the F-86 in many ways, and had a more beefy powerplant... but our pilots were better trained and maintained a kill ratio of better than 10:1 for the duration of the war.... all boils down to training.

And then I asked myself: "Self, why are pilots with vastly superior knowledge and experience refraining from posting specifics on this topic?" I'm being brutal, but there is something to be said for actually knowing what an APG-65/73 is actually capable of. I've used the damn things, and I'm still not sure exactly...

 

[C-Mike]

Damn, this was a good thread

CaptainRon, just sit back and let your BDCP checks roll in, and whenever a thought/question enters your head, GOOGLE IT! Spend some detailed time reading over the search results, and then go camp out at Barnes and Noble and check out all aviation books. If not for anything else, go for the good pictures....I'm sure you'll enjoy

Doing either of the above will aid in preventing the sh!t storm that tends ensue after some of your posts.

That is unless it's all part of your plan...

I sometimes wonder if Billthrill is laughing as he starts a thread like this...

Perhaps you're more clever than we all give you credit for.