My thought excactly. Even with retracteble fins its not that wide or deep W-bays for two of those, i could perhaps go with one inside each W-bay.

I had a double negative in there.

What I am saying is that in fact they CAN fit them in there.

Fins folded, directly side-by-side.

Hardly a massive missile for that plane.

Notice that both the R-37 and Kh-58UShKE are 4.2M long. 😉 Designers knew the parameters long ago.

There is no way they cannot fit 2 of those missiles into those bays on the T-50.

The Kh-58Ux variants are hardly behind the Kh-31P series.

Until the Kh-31PD was released, the Kh-58Ux was far far superior with 250KM range.

Bays look any bigger? 😉

Don’t forget boys, each bay can fit 2 Kh-58Ushx and Kh-38s.

So just how absurd would it be to have 2x ~38,000lbs thrust engines powering you? 😎

Somebody missed the old adage that you can’t win a war on airpower alone…

Oh there’s no guarantee having air superiority will win you a war. However, you cannot deny it is very important…

You’re free to believe whatever you want, however you’d be in the minority opinion, on this matter.

A- regarding the F-18E- “some of the ones that have a decent AESA radar.” You have a gift for understating things.

B- a more accurate statement about the F-35 vs legacy aircraft, is that the only advantage legacy aircraft have, are in top speed, and in certain parts of the flight envelope. Aside from that, they’re completely outclassed in avionics/sensor fusion, RCS/survivability, weapon flexibility…..

C- something the size of the Flanker needs all of that stuff, due to the RCS penalties it suffers from.

The only reason anyone takes the Super Hornet half seriously is its radar that it is receiving. I’m glad we agree.

As far as your comments on the F-35 vs legacy; it may outclass SOME aircraft in certain parts of the flight envelope, but that would be against the planes that aren’t known for their maneuverability. Weapon flexibility though? Are you out of your mind? The F-35, retaining stealth, along with the F-22, have absolutely dismal A2G load-outs. And until the F-35 gets 6 AAMs minimal, its A2A loadout is horrible too.

And yes, the Flanker against top-end legacy fighters needs the extra power on its sensors. But at the same time it gets its unbeatable endurance.

Radar, ECM, ESM, EOTS/EODAS, MADL, etc….and the fusing of on/offboard information, into a coherent picture, for superior situational awareness. The competitors have yet to match the Super Hornet’s MMI, much less approach the level, that F-35 will be operating at.

So you’ve listed a bunch of equipment that is *supposed* to be better. With no evidence whatsoever, which is not news..

The F-18E is hardly a special aircraft; other than some of the ones that have a decent AESA radar.

The F-35’s only advantage is stealth. This just about ends its “advantage” over late 4th generation aircraft.

Putting something the size of a Flanker into the equation only makes it more possible to load on more powerful equipment onto its variants. (Radar, ECM, ESM).

ffs, you guys just got trolled by a hotdog, a piece of processed meat 😡

A small, soft one at that! 🙁