Actually, the original concept for the LCS was ‘just’ 500-600 tons. But…the demand for LCS to self deploy & to operate at least one SH-60 (among other things) caused the size to grow considerably.

No, it wasn’t.

You are talking about “Streetfighter”, which was viewed much like a modern motor torpedo boat *. It was intended for “presence” missions, like maritime interdiction and sanctions enforcement missions (enforcing shipping embargoes, anti-smuggling, etc). And yes, it was supposed to be transported to its area of operations, and yes, it had been sometimes referred to as “littoral combat ship”… just like a 9,000 ton Prince William class CVE and a 45,000 ton Midway class CVB were both called “aircraft carriers” during WW2.

There are similarities, to be sure, but the current LCS is a very different design, one intended to perform a number of roles Streetfighter was never planned for, like mine-sweeping/clearance and ASW.

* Fairmile D MTB (common RN MTB of WW2) – 102 tons
“U/V” class DD (common RN destroyer of WW2) – 2,058 tons

Streetfighter – ~550 tons
Flight IIA Burke-class destroyer – 9,200 tons

ratios:
MTB : Streetfighter = 1:5.4
“U/V” : Burke = 1:4.5

comparable class growth rate

Live firing tests are scheduled to start this summer at NAS China Lake. This will involve the first F-35 aircraft, called AA-1, and subject the jet to different caliber weapons to evaluate its toughness and survivability. The jet will not be flyworthy after this.

Oh, really? :rolleyes:

[url]http://www.dodbuzz.com/2010/05/14/ga…-18-multiyear/%5Burl]

Another step to give the Navy a viable option if the F-35C cannot correct its overweight / underpowered problems.

What are you talking about? please provide a link describing how the F-35 is underpowered or over weight or I will consider this trolling.
Swat fixed the F-35 weight issues.

Don’t you know that every model of the F-35 is so overweight & underpowered that it can barely stagger off the ground?

And so un-maneuverable that it can be out-flown by a B747?

At least to the religiously anti-F-35 crowd… who have faith* it will fail.

There is little to no evidence for ~90% of the claims of Bill Sweetman^ & his acolytes, but they have faith!

* faith: the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen**.

** not in any test data or factual documents, at least.

^ Bill Sweetman has been pulled from F-35-related issues because the staff of AvWeek realized that not only was he not objective/impartial, he has gone so far as to distort facts, events, & timelines to support his blind hatred for the F-35… and even fabricated “evidence” in his crusade to slay the demonic device called “Lightning II”.

(sarcasm & religious metaphor intentional)

The news articles on the proposal specifically stated that SAAB had made the proposal to India.

While India IS developing Tejas, they want to keep options open in case there is a failure of that program that causes its cancellation.

IF Brazil chooses Gripen, then Sea Gripen can be an option down the road for them as well.

My post #12 on the first page of this very thread:

http://www.stratpost.com/saab-offers-naval-gripen-to-india
Saab offers naval Gripen to India
Monday, December 28, 2009
By Saurabh Joshi

Saab AB, the Swedish defense major, has received a Request For Information (RFI) from the Indian Navy for the supply of carrier-borne fighter aircraft. The company, which received the RFI earlier this month, is pitching a little-known naval variant of its Gripen NG fighter, called the Sea Gripen. Saab is already bidding for the 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) tender of the Indian Air Force (IAF), for which it has offered an advanced version of the Gripen NG, called the Gripen IN.

In Europe in the early 1970s, the USAFE was worried more about Warsaw Pact bombers than WP fighters… therefore the AIM-4D could still be viable for intercepting non-fighters.

And no, BSG-75… we are not as uneducated as you seem to think.
:rolleyes:

Hollyweird is rather unique in that regard… they are almost as bad as Brits “knowledge” of America & Americans.

Visions of Hannah Reitsch fluttering around in an arena:o

FW-61.

Designed by Henrich Focke, who went on to found the Focke-Achgelis company in 1937 (after being removed from Focke-Wulf in 1936 by the Nazi regime).

No… the hydrogen is produced on land (at least for current subs)… it is just that ethanol requires far more (and more expensive) production/preparation facilities… including either significant amounts of farmland to produce the plant sugars needed to ferment into the ethanol, or a large supply of petroleum to be refined, as ethanol intended for industrial use is also produced from by-products of petroleum refining. equipment, etc.

Hydrogen can be produced in a relatively small plant that uses a river as its materials source.

Economics is a major difference… as well as the resource base. Farmland set aside for ethanol production is not available for food production, and we all know about the economic/political problems with petroleum (oil).

Well, actor Michael Dorn (formerly owned & flew an F-86 Sabre & a Rockwell Sabreliner) is currently looking at buying & restoring to flight an F-8… he wants to fly it in “Heritage Flight” shows.