There was a reason, why the twin-engine F-18 was choosen over the single-engine Mirage 2000.

Sure, there where many reasons, then. But the times have changed. I remeber when in every abbreviation the A stud for Advanced. Later it was for Affordable. Even the US Navy will have to do with a new single engine fighter!

Switzerland needs the cheapest European solution – this means undoubtedly the Grippen.

But we have to be aware that also for Grippen there are several possibilities:

· the cheapest (alt least to start with): buy or lease existing A/B from Sweden
· buy or lease new NATO-compatible C/D
· buy (new) NG

Great news…but…:diablo:
If it’s unmanned…who cares?

me, e.g

While I certainly appreciate the engineering and capabilities, but without a pilot a UAV is just a reuseable missile. Not as interesting, fun or “sexy” as a piloted aircraft.
In other words…is it “an aeroplane”?

Yes it is! The difference between a missile and an aeroplane is the aeroplane produces aerodynamic lift by means of having wings…

The brain behind the machine does not necessarily have to be inside the machine!

>another project called Piranha …. does anyone know this project ???

Wasn’t this the indigenous Swiss program?

Regards, Glenn.

Sorry for the late answer (5 years back…)

Indeed there was a project called Piranha in Switzerland. But it never left the drawingboard.

For further information see

http://www.alr-aerospace.ch/Piranha.php

Stealth does not imply radar signature alone. How is a Mach 6+ jet going to hide what will be a massive IR signature?

I do not mean it will be able to hide its IR signature (completely), but that the frictional heating will make a thermal management system – to cool the airframe – mandatory. This would reduce IR emission at least for the airframe.

The exhaust plume is another issue, don’t know if injecting cesium will do the job sufficiently.

Drag rudders suck. They cannot be made stealthy because they are perpetually open for yaw control.

Think I saw something like this on B-2 ?

Also, I’d just like to mention that those of you who are thinking in terms of a development of the Tu-160 or Tu-144 are likely to be way off the mark. If SOC is right (and he often is :)), then there is more chance that a new bomber* will be a development of the T-60S or T-54… SOC, got any artists impressions of these – I know that there was one of the T-60S around a while ago…

* Assuming of course that there will be a new bomber 🙂

may I help out with some pics? On the left: T-60S, on the right T-54
They are from:

http://www.translate.ru/url/tran_url.asp?lang=ru&direction=re&template=General&transliterate=on&autotranslate=on&url=http://paralay.narod.ru/t60.html

Hello,

May he rest in peace.
And may the WSO recover well.

I haven’t seen the crash site and I’m a bit confused.
On the one hand, there is talk of flying low in the valley.
On the other hand, there is talk of snow and difficult rescue conditions. Throughout this winter, I have seen weather reports that said that the skiers had to go really high to find some snow.
Is there more snow in Switserland at this moment than I was aware of? Or did they crash quite high up the mountains?
Is the location about at the level of Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, or even higher than Wengen?

Cheers, Transall.

Hello Transall

In the first pic you see the crash site, and the second one (the section of the map), shows that it is at about 3500 m. above see level in a very steep wall of rocks. Lauterbunnen is at 800, Mürren at 1600m. So the pilot must have tried to climb out of the valley. The WSO was hanging in his parachute up in the rocks, this made the rescue action so difficult.