The hottest part of the flame is invisible because it’s color lay outside the visible spectrum. The colors you see are the effects of dispersing the heated byproducts.

Its hard not to like it. The raw power of the early model F-15A but with the maintenance costs scaled to match the F-16 Block 52. Its the first ‘stealth’ opportunity for partner countries, a technology out of reach for most of them. It may not super-cruise but its still going to be a screamer… literally. And it will be so flexible when it comes to mission profiles and load layouts. Its availability if going to reinvent the current military doctrine.

I’m surprised they abandoned the twin boom tail types of transports. They are so rugged and the design can be extrapolated out so easily compared to growing the fuselages on traditional planforms.

A modernized Skyshark would probably get a big mouth air scoop surroundind the powerplant and make it look more like the Skyraider. It would help reduce the IR footprint of the turboprop.

Six blades of carbon fiber would seriously reduce it’s noise footprint, too. You can only push so hard against the air and three blades gets you to the maximum, but more blades helps quiet you down.

It puts to bed the Colonel’s claim that a damaged F-117 never flew again.

QFT. Nobody ever said a bird strike turned the F-117 into a write off. Those things are pretty durable planes, much more robust than one would think considering the amount of resin/carbon in the thing. You can fly without the tailplanes on them, its when they lose the wing’s control surfaces they get in trouble. The plane really pretty much flies itself except for takeoffs and landings; the autopilot is the pilot throughout the mission and man in the seat really operates as the weapons officer. A virtual twin-engine stealth cruise missile.

Why not keep the Hornets and add Gripen?

The second damaged F-117 is not a myth.

Titanium may be abundant in Russia but the military competes with the civilian sector for the supply.