The flying boom will also see use with the Aussie’s Wedgetails.

…I also forgot about the C-17 order. I’m not sure about the Aussie C-130s….

I don’t know if the US has let them buy the -409 upgrade kit (12,000 lb.s.t.).

I have only heard of the J52-409 in connection with a cancelled upgrade to the EA-6B Prowler?

Did the USN/USMC ever retrofit the -409?

It would be interesting to compare the attrition rates of the B-1B and the B-52H?

Just bit curious, Brazil has choosen either for political or economic reasons to fly Skyhawks from its carrier. Is that a good idea?

Why not?

The A-4J was the U.S. Navy’s advanced carrier trainer until recently. For a small navy, with a single carrier and limited experience with combat jet aviation, the A-4 is an ideal type.
[QUOTE=worthyoneWhat can the Skyhawk offer in todays world?[/QUOTE]

Brazil’s A-4’s are very nearly as capable as Brazil’s landbased AMXs. In many respects, the A-4 has superior flight performance to the AMX.

Wouldn’t they have been better off getting Harriers or A-7’s?

It is just about impossible to find used Harrier IIs with remaining flight hours, and the production line is closed.

Assuming that there are suitable A-7Es left in storage, the operating costs are significantly higher than the Skyhawk’s. The A-7E is also substantially heavier, raising questions about operations from the ex-Foch.

Scooter,

First of all the Armada de Mexico has been using Russian built aircraft and helicopters for a great many years now, and apparently they are satisfied customers. So them buying a Russina figterplane is no great jump into the uknown…

I see two options.

a) the FAM is too wrapped up in its internal (funding) conflicts to be able to even propose the purchase of modern fighters, and for some reason dont have the political clout to block the AdM from buying the top notch fighters itself…

b) Maybe the FAM is a much more US aligned force with its genaral opting to buy anything the US is willing to sell them. But at the same time the uS administration has no reason to sell them anything more advanced then the current F-5s. Maybe they’re too afraid (in terms of post sale support) to buy anything that’s not american made…

c) maybe they didn’t opose the AdM Flanker deal thinking that this decision would prompt the USAF in a knee jerk reaction to sell them a larger number of surplos F-16s at a bargain basement price… Maybe some 30-40 airframes…

d)Maybe as suggested above the Mexican Government finds it too unconfortable due to the recent treatment given to Venezuela to trust the current Bush Admin tendencies for impromptu politically driven embargos to trust buy fighters from the US….

Many possible reasons…

…including bribery.

These days, the Russians are the best suppliers in terms of available bribes. It is impossible for Mexican officials and officers to extort bribes from American or Western European suppliers.

Two Australian companies – ADI and Tenix – will team with the designers to compete for the contract to supply the ships. ADI will team with the French designer Armaris, and Tenix with the Spanish designer Navantia.

Why are South Korean and Chinese shipyards excluded from the bidding?

http://en.rian.ru/world/20060427/46978508.html

“Seized MiG-29 to remain in Hong Kong custody indefinitely”

15:28 | 27/ 04/ 2006

The article indicates that this sort of thing has happened before – with 5 Russian fighters bound for a Chinese company.

Could there be an effort to reverse engineer the MiG-29?

China already has a domestic turbofan in the same class as the AL-31. Is it possible that a RD33/RD93 sized turbofan is possible as well.

Again, I have to repeat, not everyone is obsessed with throwing guided bombs around. What you have written might well apply for large airforces of global playing countries. But there is a large number of small countries who have totally different requirements. For example, I cannot imagine a situation in which Slovak Air Force would need laser guided bombs.

Smaller European air forces have just as great a need for precision guided weapons. Why? The only realist defense scenarios left involve coalition actions of an air-to-ground nature.

If a country like Slovakia, or even Sweden, lacks the will and the resources to participate in coalition activities outside of Europe, perhaps that country has absolutely no justification for maintaining an air force.