JA 37 Viggen wrote on Jun 2^nd, 2007 at 7:09pm:


They're still american aircraft built in America 'though...but serving with the IRIAF.

The MiG-25(mach 2.8) is actually slower than the SR-71 (Mach 3.2+)

If your going for all out speed at mach 9.8 its the x-43 which is unmanned, the fastest manned aircraft is the x-15 at mach 6.72

Id say concorde, just hope another flies in the future!

James

Not been mentioned yet, but for me the English Electric Frightening Lightening. A real crow stopper at any air display. The first time I saw it, I was about 6. I nearly soiled myself

Matt

Ivan wrote on Jun 3^rd, 2007 at 3:54am:


I don't think the Mig-25 had anything to do with it.  Ever since Viktor Belenko defected, the west learned the Mig-25 was more hype than substance.


Which reminds me, about 10 years ago, CNN used to have message bases.  I was in a discussion and a poster showed up and joined.  The nature of his comments led me to suspect it was 'the man'.  I asked him a few questions, armed with having recently read Mig Pilot, and his answers, though were a bit indirect and intentionally not very clear, led me to suspect it was 'the man' I was conversing with.  I was awestruck!

dcunning30 wrote on Jun 4^th, 2007 at 3:37pm:


I wouldn't say that.

It may have been worthless for intercepting bombers but perfectly suited for the recon role - as demonstrated (I think) 1973 over Israel when IAF Phantoms and Daggers deperately tried to intercept egyptian Foxbats (piloted by russian pilots) on their way to Egypt.

dcunning30 wrote on Jun 5^th, 2007 at 1:57pm:

They forgot to put intake ramps in the engines... MiG-31 has them and isnt that much slower.

Main reasons why the MiG-25 didnt function well

Those guys in Syria in the 1970s still had the 'peacetime' gauge backings in place when they went to war.

Its an interceptor, not a frontline fighter. It may be more freeze resistant but the rest is just as fragile as the usual US / european stuff.

Its export quality... Mideast export quality. Only thing they share with the domestic ones is the basic airframe. the rest is ranging in quality from mediocre to pure crap.

The reason why the USAF bought those MiG-29s from Moldova (domestic version with bomb racks) is that the germans wanted theirs (also domestic spec) back, and anything else available was not the quality they wanted.

Ivan wrote on Jun 3^rd, 2007 at 3:54am:


Ivan, the Aurora does not exist... well... at least not in the way you think. Chances are that at least 50% of anyone who has attended a major airshow in the United States in the past 2 years has seen the Aurora. The Aurora is, in fact, the B-2A Spirit stealth bomber. From Ben R. Rich's book Skunk Works,
     "The funding for the [Stealth Bomber] competition came out of the Air Force budget. A young colonel working in the Air Force 'black program' office at the Pentagon, named Buz Carpenter, arbitrarily assigned the funding the code name Aurora. Somehow this name leaked out during congressional appropriations hearings, the media picked up the Aurora item in the budget, and the rumor surfaced that it was a top secret project assigned to the Skunk Works -- to build America's first hypersonic airplane. That story persists to this day even though Aurora was the code name for the B-2 competition funding. Although I expect few in the media to believe me, there is no code name for the hypersonic plane, because it simply does not exist. "

Ben Rich is the former CEO of Lockheed-Martin's Skunk Works. (309-310)


In regards to the plane that I will miss... It would have to be the graceful F-14 Tomcat. I dreamt of flying this beautiful aircraft since I was 5, and now not only am I relegated to back-seater because of my vision, I will never have the chance to see this piece of engineering in the air.

PsychoDiablo wrote on Jun 4^th, 2007 at 10:55pm:



Satellites are great, but contrary to popular belief, they are not a quick as the ones in "24". The they take time to position and also still have problems seeing through clouds. An aircraft moves where the pilot wants it to go instantly and a panning TV camera will never replace the speed and clarity of the human eye.

Matt