Just a couple points here, in terms of radars/other sensor technologies. The AESA for the Rafale doesn’t even outclass the F-16 Block 60, much less the others you mentioned(or the APG-81 for that matter). As far as the other systems, I’d say the experience from the F-22, and F-18E/F/G, provides plenty of operational experience, not to mention the CATBIRD platforms, flying the F-35’s systems in exercises.

Correct about the F-22 MAWS i’ve forgot about that , but i’ve looked and looked for proof of a similar systems on the SH , and i cant find anything reliable . Aparently there was talks to install a MAWS on it , but it didn’t happened so far.:confused:

You know i was thinking, regarding the radar of the F-35 and US AESA radars, in general the pro F35 /pro american crowd argued at nauseaum that their radars are better and will always be better because among other things, their operational experience , APG-63V2 , APG-79 and APG-77 being fielded before any european or Russian AESA, therefore their lead is so great and will continue to be so great because they had them before anyone else blah blah blah , you get the point (although conveniently forgetting that the russians have 30 plus years experience in fighter ESA design, or that Rafale was fielded with an ESA radar about the same time as US).

Now obviously the DASS and SPECTRA are chalking close to a decade in operational service by now correct ? While EODAS and associated systems…well, who knows when it’s going to actually become operational .So would you say the the europeans have an advantage in this kind of system because of their operational experience , because they have long tested and deployed the said systems, because they have a better understanding of how such systems works on a tactical fighter airframe etc etc, while the EODAS which is suposed to do pretty much the same thing , with maybe couple of more “gizmos” added in, is not even close to being declared usable and ready given the integration problems they still have ( per the latest F-35 problems and issues report ) ? 😉

Oh i have a little story. You’ll see in the media some abominable news, namely US Marines urinating (!) on alleged taliban dead bodies in Afghanistan. I found a topic about it on the good ol’ MP.net . But it was closed and the video removed. So i went and looked on the net and found the vid ( to my shock ) . I opened another topic and posted the link, together with an admitely angry banter. Got warned and topic deleted! So i patiently waited until it made the news, then i took several links from telegraph.uk, msnbc etc ,and made the third topic. Now i got banned and topic deleted again, even if the thing is all over the news. Aparently it doesn’t exist in their version of reality.

So yeah , good old America. Yeah, it made me want to swear.

Thanks for reading my rant.:)

MiG-29UPG with H-35E. Nice one . It might be for India but it’s still in Russia so …:D

http://www.airliners.net/photo/India—Air/Mikoyan-Gurevich-MiG-29UPG-%289-20%29/2045218/L/&sid=674db9ffb3b6b833f261169e153f0245

Ooooh, good one FoxbatRU, many thanks! Looking forward to pics of it flying, hopefully then we’ll have a better idea of the shape and what sensors/antennas are on that fairing on the left intake.

Keep up the good work sir. 😉

PS: Knowing how security sensitive the Syrians are , don’t think they are entirely happy about their newest combat aircraft being shown to the world just like that, fresh from the factory, without even being painted! 😀

LOL! I about fell out of my chair when the 800nm (yes, nm not km!) detection of a rocket which is among the heaviest SLVs available today was construed as meaning EODAS would also track more relevant targets out to that range.

By this yardstick 1960s IR missile seekers had a range of 150 million km – they routinely locked onto the sun, don’tcha know!

Wonders of corporate propaganda. I must admit i fell for that initially. I’ve read somewhere that the “usable” ranges for the EODAS is about 10nm around the aircraft, and for EOTS about 60nm give or take. Obviously depending alot of atmospheric condition i would say. Would those be realistic figures? :confused:

Here is nice one – old Iraqi AF -.

Is that an EQ-6? Thanks.:)

a theory, do all carrier based double-seaters intended to train pilots for carrier landings need IFR? Does russian Su-25UTG have a IFR probe for instance? Those zig-zags on nose cone are hardly visible from that distance I think or it could be they are not present.

Well this debate will be settled once an for all when the Russian navy will (hopefully!) get their KS/KUBS(?) in couple of years time.;)