After some more deliberation I’d have to say the MiG-23 is higher up my list than the Foxhound, too. Even the redesigned Su-15 is better looking in my opinion. The Yak-28 was cool in my opinion. Not a fan of the Russian guitar heroes of MiG and Sukhoi, nor do I find the earlier fighters from the same manufacturer to be appealing in any way. So at best Foxhound is maybe middle of the road.

Who said the prospective stepping stone basing would be in northern Saudi? That’s new.

Aegis is like 35% readiness across the fleet and SPY-1 is less than 60%.

It’s difficult to follow your reasoning. If English is not your primary language then I recommend looking up APA formatting. It would help us follow your ideas.

Yes sorry about that, I realised after posting:o
However a Skyraider toting cannon and napalm suddenly seems attractive whan facing an angry Silver back!

Realistically your best bet today is a converted two seat trainer with drop tanks and a lighter load (of smart weapons) than what you’d expect for classic CAS. You would prefer high speed in a pinch, upwards of 500 mph. And you’d prefer gun power with decent standoff range and spread. The A-37, A-7, and A-10 don’t fill all those roles by themselves, but COIN doesn’t mean a solo flight team and you could mix said types. Plenty of A-7 frames in storage, some of them still with relevant technology. The A-10 frames are starting to fall off in numbers. And I don’t think we have any of the A-37’s left anywhere.

Pucara was too vulnerable to manpads, just as ov-10 was itself vulnerable.

Why are all the economies that invested in China now in serious decline? I don’t see trade with China sustained unless their currency takes a serious hike in value. The current trade relationship is unsustainable to be polite.

http://www.flightglobal.com/air-shows/farnborough/flying/

OT, but taking a look at the videos at your link, who wouldn’t mind landing their personal craft on Mary Kirby aka Runway Girl… 😉