So I was reading up on the Iranian Saeqeh, looking through forums and Uskowi’s blog a bit. Its surprising how little one knows about it. Here is some info that I have no clue how to make sense of:
1. Is it 15% bigger or not
2. What does that twin tail do? Is it a way to balance a new radar in the nose? Low speed handling?…??
3. Is it BVR capable or not?
4. What kind of a radar does it house?
5. If those air intakes are larger, does it mean the Iranians have reverse engineered AND improved on the original engine?
6. How many does Iran have? In 2009, the first 5 seemed to have been delivered. If we assume 10 units per year, that makes about 40-50 units by now. That is assuming its new builds and not rebuilds of old F-5Es…
I find it interesting that the J-85 engines are among the simplest and most robust turbojet engines in the world. That seems like a place for Iran to start from.
Would love to have a good discussion here about what can be expected in terms of its various performance parameters.
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August 23, 2013 at 9:59 am