I have seen a picture of an early F-15 (either an A or a C), with 12x 500lb Mk82s on the wing hardpoints. It would be interesting to see if there are any pics of an F-15E with this configuration in addition to the 12 it can carry on the CFTs – 24 in total! Weightwise, this should be no problem, but stress loading may be another story. Given that the GBU-38 500lb JDAM can apparently be carried in the same space as a normal Mk82 (or so I am told), this would potentially give a loadout of 24 x 500lb JDAMs!!! :diablo:

There are pros and cons to this project:

Pros – it is derived from the E-190 (apparently), so may be able to leverage off that project, saving money, making it cheaper. There is a big Herc replacement market, lots of the customers cannot afford C-130Js, so if Embraer can offer them a jet Herc replacement at a good price, then they will be happy.

Cons – it is debatable as to whether Embraer will actually be able to sell many, since a lot of C-130 operators cannot afford to buy replacements, hence the large Herc refurb business. It is also debatable whether the aircraft will be rugged enough. Also, the lower payload may be a turn-off, since a number of C-130 operators are worried their C-130s cannot carry decently armoured vehicles as it is, so a lower payload means even less capability!

It really will be interesting to see how much Embraer end up charging for them – they may make a good tanker aircraft for some countries who cannot afford large tankers. If the price is low enough, it might be a good rival to the Israeli-proposed Gulfstream tanker! :diablo:

I think he was actually referring to the idea of Australia contemplating airstrikes within the region against known terrorist sites in places like Malaysia. Since the Malaysians have not always been terribly cooperative in countering Islamic extremists operating within their territory, it is entirely possible that Australia may feel the need to strike at them. Admittedly, this is probably more a job for a JASSM carrying P-3 or Tomahawk armed Collins (hopefully), than a conventional bombing raid by F-111s.

Australia has increasingly been seen as being a responsible member of the community, and as such does sometimes face the possibility of needing to do something unpopular. An airstrike on Malaysia is obviously not what anyone really wants, but the possibility that it may become necessary does exist.

I’ve actually seen the NASA RB-57 up close, and it’s actually a very smart aircraft, and looks very purposeful! It was an interesting comparison to the NASA T-38s…

I was around there early this last week, and there was a good amount of activity, though not sure about other days. Ever since 56 Sqn (the OCU) moved up there, there has always seemed to be a good amount of activity though…

J Boyle was correct, I was meaning the Mitsubishi/Beech, not the T-45 – I have a feeling it became a Beech product then gained a USAF order, but it probably still counts…

The Pioneer and Hunter UAVs are of course other examples. Interestingly, the PC-9 (as posted by Flex) was effectively procured twice – the US Army had some genuine PC-9s for range control etc, and then the JPATS contest was won by Raytheon, offering the PC-9!

A slight stretch of the fuselage, and a little tidying of the nose, and you would have a very nice transport helo, but as it is, it’s a very nice looking assault helo.

If memory serves, AFM carried a story recently that was saying that the -J fleet is being very heavily tasked, especially with the -K models being modified at the moment. I would love to see them increasing the C-17 fleet by another three, beyond the planned fleet of five. As for C-130s, I hope they order a follow on batch of 25 C-130Js, as quickly as possible. In terms of special ops support, the C-27J seems to be getting popular, and would have benefits of commonality with C-130J systems.