Why the F-35? I thought that was getting traction now.

Is it because it is designed by comittee? (like the duck: it can swim, but not so well, it can walk, but not so well, it can fly, but not so well, However, it can do all of it).

Is the sticky thing the “joint” => too many different requirements?

I was waiting for the F-111. It surely proved itself in the Libya raid, but could it have been done with F14/15/16’s? Like the israeli raid on Iraq with F15/16’s?

Although a technical advanced platform, how useful was it in Vietnam after all?

yours,

Misunderstanding? Probably the still too low awareness how big a role the nuclear mission played in the design of the century series and how secondary their conventional capabilities actually were.

That is a good point.

When did the focus on nuclear strike (only) start to change in your opinion? with the design of the F14/F15? or later?

Did we see something similar in Russian designs?

Yours,

The USAGE of the F-104 by USAF is surely something.

i wonder if the full story about that will ever come out.

The X-32: Could it have lost because of its looks? I know we are rational thinking people, but the X-32 does look a bit “odd”.

The most ‘misunderstood” a/c

Hey, come to think of: We have a thread: the a/c that never took to the skies”.

What if we have a thread: The most misunderstood a/c in your opinion.

I think I wold nominate my F-105

reg,

Ahhh, ok. so F-105 is a historic flight. well, ok, yes, no.

A good question for Don: The camo paint: The “typical” Vietnam paint would be the SE scheme. That I know.

However, I have now (thanks to ARC forum) been educated that the belly might have been painted grey to begin with, but that it became clear that even a grey colour would look dark against the sky.

Later models were then painted camo on the underside as well as (apparantly) the eye notices colour changes (grey to camo to grey again) rather than the actual colours. It would then make sense to have the belly in camo paint as well, due to turns, banking, etc etc.

The question is: The late models you served: Was the belly also camo painted and when about did it become the norm?

Yours,

Ivan