Archive-Name: mil-aviation-faq/part1 Posting-Frequency: Monthly Last-Modified: 21-Aug-1994 rec.aviation.military Frequently Asked Questions Ross Smith avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ------------------------------ Subject: 1.1. Introduction Every newsgroup on Usenet finds that certain questions crop up time after time. Regular readers of a group get tired of seeing the same old questions (and posting the same old answers) time and time again, while new readers wonder why they're getting so many impolite replies, and so few useful ones, to perfectly reasonable queries. The result is frustration all round. This list of Frequently Asked Questions attempts to provide answers to some of the most popular questions about military aircraft and aviation. It will be posted to "rec.aviation.military" every month. If you're fairly new to this group (or even if you're not) and have a question related to military aviation, you should check here first, to avoid wasting bandwidth on a topic that may have already been discussed many times. Of course, this is not intended to discourage interesting discussions; if you have something new to say about any of the topics covered here (or any other topic, for that matter), by all means share it with us. Further contributions are welcome; send any comments, corrections, new questions, or new answers to me at the address above (note that the address for FAQ-related mail is different from my normal address). If you send me mail about the FAQ, please reduce any quoted material to the absolute minimum (ideally, just give the number of the question and answer you're talking about). Nearly all FAQs and similar regular postings on Usenet are archived at "rtfm.mit.edu"; you should be able to find the most recent version of this FAQ there. If you don't have access to FTP, you can get instructions for using their mail server by sending email to "mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu" with a blank subject line and a body containing just the word "help" (no quotes). This FAQ file is copyright 1994 by Ross Smith. It may be copied and archived freely, provided it remains unchanged. Portions may be quoted with appropriate acknowledgements. ------------------------------ Subject: 1.2. Table of contents [* Significant changes to this entry] [** New entry] Section 1. Preliminaries 1.1. Introduction 1.2. Table of contents 1.3. A note on character sets 1.4. Common abbreviations 1.5. Conversion factors Section 2. Post-WW2 aircraft 2.1. Why is the "stealth fighter" called F-117 instead of F-19? 2.2. Does the USAF have a hypersonic spyplane called "Aurora"? * 2.3. What's the status of current projects? 2.4. Why was the YF-22 chosen over the YF-23? 2.5. Is fighter X better than fighter Y? 2.6. Why wasn't the B-1 or B-2 used in Desert Storm? * 2.7. What's happened to the former USSR's aircraft carriers? * 2.8. Why do USAF aircraft have tailhooks? 2.9. Is aircraft X still in service? 2.10. Did one of the XB-70 prototypes crash during a photo shot? * 2.11. What's an Su-35? 2.12. Why do recent articles refer to the "Lockheed F-16"? 2.13. What air-to-air missiles are in service? 2.14. Whatever happened to the F/A-16? * 2.15. What's the composition of an aircraft carrier's air wing? 2.16. What's a TR-3? 2.17. Did someone buy Grumman? 2.18. Why do some aircraft have gold-tinted canopies? Section 3. World War II aircraft * 3.1. What jet aircraft were the Germans working on during WW2? 3.2. How "stealthy" was the wooden Mosquito? Section 4. Books and sources 4.1. What good books are there on air combat? 4.2. Where can I get a pilot's manual for aircraft X? * 4.3. What FTP sites have aircraft pictures and related material? ** 4.4. What military aviation related mailing lists are available? Section 5. Museums and warbirds * 5.1. Where can I see surviving examples of famous aircraft? Section 6. Aircraft designations * 6.1. American aircraft designations * 6.2. US Navy aircraft designations (pre-1962) 6.3. USAF/USN fighters and attack aircraft 6.4. American missile designations 6.5. Russian aircraft designations 6.6. Russian aircraft codenames 6.7. Russian missile designations and codenames 6.8. British aircraft designations 6.9. Canadian aircraft designations 6.10. Chinese aircraft designations 6.11. German aircraft designations (WW2) 6.12. Japanese aircraft designations and codenames (WW2) 6.13. Swedish aircraft designations Section 7. Notes 7.1. Reference books 7.2. Magazines 7.3. Acknowledgements ------------------------------ Subject: 1.3. A note on character sets A FAQ on a subject like this will necessarily include a lot of non-English names and words which contain letters not in the English alphabet, mainly accented vowels. I don't like the idea of forcing foreign words into an English straitjacket by converting these letters into diphthongs (or, even worse, just ignoring the accents). There is an international standard 8-bit character set, ISO 8859/1, also known as Latin 1; it's an extension of 7-bit ASCII to include most of the characters used in European languages. I've used the Latin 1 characters in this document. A lot of news transport and news reading software now supports Latin 1, and it's becoming more widely supported; unfortunately, there's still a lot of software around that reduces everything to 7-bit ASCII. For the benefit of those using such software, here's a table of the accented letters in Latin 1 (not all of these appear in this document, of course), so you can tell whether you have 8-bit software, and if not, which characters the accented letters are being turned into. If you come across a name that seems to be spelled oddly, this should help you figure out what it's meant to be. Letter A a E e I i N n O o U u Y y Acute accent (') Á á É é Í í - - Ó ó Ú ú Ý ý Grave accent (`) À à È è Ì ì - - Ò ò Ù ù - - Caret (^) Â â Ê ê Î î - - Ô ô Û û - - Tilde (~) Ã ã - - - - Ñ ñ Õ õ - - - - Umlaut (") Ä ä Ë ë Ï ï - - Ö ö Ü ü - ÿ Ring (o) Å å - - - - - - - - - - - - Slash (/) - - - - - - - - Ø ø - - - - ------------------------------ Subject: 1.4. Common abbreviations (See also section 6) Abbreviations in common use on Usenet :-) = Smile :-( = Frown AFAIK = As Far As I Know AKA = Also Known As BTW = By The Way FAQ = Frequently Asked Questions FTP = File Transfer Protocol FWIW = For What It's Worth FYI = For Your Information GIF = Graphic Interchange Format HTTP = Hypertext Transfer Protocol IIRC = If I Remember Correctly IMHO = In My Humble Opinion IMNSHO = In My Not So Humble Opinion ISTR = I Seem To Recall RL = Real Life ROTFL = Rolling On The Floor Laughing UL = Urban Legend URL = Uniform Resource Locator WRT = With Respect To WWW = World-Wide Web YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary Abbreviations related to military aviation AA = Anti-Aircraft AAA = Anti-Aircraft Artillery AAM = Air-to-Air Missile AB = Air Base a/c = Aircraft ACM = Air Combat Manoeuvring AEW = Airborne Early Warning AEW&C = Airborne Early Warning and Control AF = Air Force AFB = Air Force Base AFTI = Advanced Fighter Technology Integration AGM = Air-to-Ground Missile AH = Attack Helicopter ALARM = Air-Launched Anti-Radiation Missile ALCM = Air-Launched Cruise Missile AMRAAM = Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile AOA = Angle of Attack AP = Armour Piercing APU = Auxiliary Power Unit ARH = Active Radar Homing ARM = Anti-Radiation Missile ASM = Air-to-Surface Missile ASPJ = Airborne Self-Protection Jammer ASRAAM = Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile ASTOVL = Advanced Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing ASV = Anti-Surface-Vessel ASW = Anti-Submarine Warfare AT = Advanced Trainer ATB = Advanced Technology Bomber ATF = Advanced Tactical Fighter ATGM = Anti-Tank Guided Missile ATGW = Anti-Tank Guided Weapon ATM = Anti-Tank Missile AWACS = Airborne Warning and Control System BDA = Bomb Damage Assessment BUFF = Big Ugly Fat Fucker (B-52) CAD = Computer Aided Design CAG = Carrier Air Group CAM = Computer Aided Manufacturing CAP = Combat Air Patrol CAS = Close Air Support CAW = Carrier Air Wing CCIP = Continuously Computed Impact Point CO = Commanding Officer COD = Carrier On-Board Delivery COIN = Counter-Insurgency CTOL = Conventional Take-Off and Landing CV = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air CVA = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Attack CVE = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Escort CVN = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Nuclear Powered CVS = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Anti-Submarine CVW = Carrier Air Wing DACT = Dissimilar Air Combat Training DS = Desert Storm EAP = Experimental Aircraft Programme ECCM = Electronic Counter-Countermeasures ECM = Electronic Countermeasures ECR = Electronic Combat and Reconnaissance EFA = European Fighter Aircraft EFIS = Electronic Flight Information System ehp = Equivalent Horsepower ekW = Equivalent Kilowatts ELINT = Electronic Intelligence EMP = Electromagnetic Pulse ESM = Electronic Support/Surveillance Measures Eurofar = European Future Advanced Rotorcraft EW = Electronic Warfare F/A = Fighter/Attack FAC = Forward Air Control FAST = Fuel and Sensor, Tactical FB = Fighter-Bomber FBW = Fly by Wire FGA = Fighter/Ground Attack FLA = Future Large Airlifter FLIR = Forward-Looking Infrared FOD = Foreign Object Damage FR = Flight Refuelling FSW = Forward-Swept Wings Ftr = Fighter FY = Fiscal Year GA = Ground Attack GCA = Ground Controlled Approach GCI = Ground Controlled Interception GPS = Global Positioning System HARM = High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile HE = High Explosive Helo = Helicopter HOTAS = Hands On Throttle and Stick HUD = Head-Up Display IADS = Integrated Air Defence System IAS = Indicated Airspeed IFF = Identification Friend-or-Foe IFR = Instrument Flight Rules IIR = Imaging Infrared INS = Inertial Navigation System Intel = Intelligence INU = Inertial Navigation Unit IR = Infrared IRH = Infrared Homing IRST = Infrared Search and Track JATO = Jet-Assisted Take-Off JPATS = Joint Primary Aircraft Training System JSTARS = Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System JTIDS = Joint Tactical Information Distribution System KE = Kinetic Energy LAMPS = Light Airborne Multi-Purpose System LANA = Low-Level All-Weather Night Attack LANTIRN = Low-Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night LCA = Light Combat Aircraft LGB = Laser-Guided Bomb LLLTV = Low-Light-Level Television LTA = Lighter Than Air LWF = Lightweight Fighter M = Mach MAD = Magnetic Anomaly Detection MFI = Multirole Fighter/Interceptor MG = Machine Gun MP = Maritime Patrol MRF = Multirole Fighter MSIP = Multi-Stage Improvement Programme NAS = Naval Air Station NATF = Naval Advanced Tactical Fighter NAVSAT = Navigation Satellite NAW = Night/All Weather NBC = Nuclear/Biological/Chemical Warfare NOTAR = No Tail Rotor NVG = Night Vision Goggles PGM = Precision Guided Munitions PR = Photographic Reconnaissance PRF = Pulse Repetition Frequency PT = Primary Trainer RATO = Rocket-Assisted Take-Off RCS = Radar Cross-Section Recce = Reconnaissance Recon = Reconnaissance RPV = Remote-Piloted Vehicle RTB = Return to Base RWR = Radar Warning Receiver SABA = Small Agile Battlefield Aircraft SAM = Surface-to-Air Missile SAR = Search and Rescue SARH = Semi-Active Radar Homing SEAD = Suppression of Enemy Air Defences SDI = Strategic Defense Initiative SFC = Specific Fuel Consumption SHAR = Sea Harrier SL = Sea Level SLAM = Standoff Land Attack Missile SLAR = Sideways-Looking Airborne Radar SLUF = Short Little Ugly Fucker (A-7) SOP = Standard Operating Procedure SPAAG = Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun Sqn = Squadron SR = Strategic Reconnaissance SRAM = Short-Range Attack Missile STOL = Short Take-Off and Landing STOVL = Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing TACAMO = Take Command and Move Out TARPS = Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System TAS = True Airspeed TASM = Tomahawk Anti-Ship Missile TCS = Television Camera System TFR = Terrain-Following Radar TFW = Tactical Fighter Wing TIALD = Thermal Imaging and Laser Designation TLAM = Tomahawk Land Attack Missile TO&E = Table of Organisation and Equipment TOW = Tube-Launched Optically-Tracked Wire-Guided Missile TRAM = Target Recognition and Attack Multi-Sensor UAV = Unmanned Air Vehicle UH = Utility Helicopter VFR = Visual Flight Rules VG = Variable Geometry VIFF = Vectoring in Forward Flight V/STOL = Vertical/Short Take-Off and Landing VTO = Vertical Take-Off VTOL = Vertical Take-Off and Landing WIG = Wing In Ground-Effect WSIP = Weapons System Improvement Programme WSO = Weapon Systems Officer Abbreviations for air forces and other organisations ACC = Air Combat Command (USA) AETC = Air Education and Training Command (USA) AFPLA = Air Force of the People's Liberation Army (China) AFRES = Air Force Reserve (USA) AMC = Air Mobility Command (USA) ANG = Air National Guard (USA) ARPA = Advanced Research Projects Agency (USA) AVMF = Aviatsiya Voenno-Morsko Flota (Naval Air Force) (Russia) BMDO = Ballistic Missile Defence Office (USA) CIS = Commonwealth of Independent States DA = Dalnaya Aviatsiya (Strategic Aviation) (Russia) DARO = Defence Aerial Reconnaissance Office (USA) DARPA = Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (USA) DOD = Department of Defense (USA) FA = Frontovaya Aviatsiya (Tactical Aviation) (Russia) FSU = Former Soviet Union FUSSR = Former USSR IDF/AF = Israeli Defence Force/Air Force (Heyl Ha'Avir) JASDF = Japan Air Self-Defence Force KLu = Koninklijke Luchtmacht (Royal Netherlands Air Force) MAC = Military Airlift Command (USA) MATS = Military Air Transport Service (USA) NASA = National Aeronautics and Space Administration (USA) NATO = North Atlantic Treaty Organisation NRO = National Reconnaissance Office (USA) PVO = Protivo-Vozdushnoy Oborony (Air Defence Force) (Russia) PVOS = Protivo-Vozdushnoy Oborony Strany (Air Defence Force) (Russia) RAAF = Royal Australian Air Force RAF = Royal Air Force (UK) RNAF = Royal Norwegian Air Force RNZAF = Royal New Zealand Air Force ROKAF = Republic of Korea Air Force (South Korea) RSAF = Royal Saudi Air Force RVSN = Raketnye Voiska Strategityesko Naznatseniya (Strategic Missile Force) (Russia) SAAF = South African Air Force SAC = Strategic Air Command (USA) TAC = Tactical Air Command (USA) USAAF = United States Army Air Force USAF = United States Air Force USMC = United States Marine Corps USN = United States Navy VTA = Voenno-Transportnaya Aviatsiya (Military Transport Aviation) (Russia) VVS RF = Voenno-Vozdushniye Sily Rossiskoi Federatsii (Air Forces of the Russian Federation) WP = Warsaw Pact Abbreviations for manufacturers' names AIDC = Aero Industry Development Centre (Taiwan) An = Antonov (Ukraine) AS = Aérospatiale (France) ASTA = Aerospace Technologies of Australia BAC = British Aircraft Corporation BAe = British Aerospace Be = Beriev (Russia) BMAC = Boeing Military Aircraft Corporation (USA) CAC = Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (China) CASA = Construcciones Aeronauticas SA (Spain) CNIAR = Centrul National al Industriei Aeronautice Române (Romania) DASA = Deutsche Aerospace SA (Germany) DH = De Havilland (UK) DHC = De Havilland Canada EC = Eurocopter (France/Germany) EHI = Ellicoteri/Helicopter Industries (Italy/UK) Embraer = Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica (Brazil) Euroflag = European Future Large Airlifter Group (France/Germany/Italy/Portugal/Spain/Turkey/UK) GD = General Dynamics (USA) GE = General Electric (USA) HAL = Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (India) HAMC = Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (China) HP = Handley Page (UK) HS = Hawker Siddeley (UK) IAI = Israel Aircraft Industries Il = Ilyushin (Russia) Ka = Kamov (Russia) LTV = Ling-Temco-Vought (USA) MBB = Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (Germany) MD = McDonnell Douglas (USA) Mi = Mil (Russia) MiG = Mikoyan-Gurevich (Russia) NAMC = Nanchang Aircraft Manufacturing Company (China) P&W = Pratt and Whitney (USA) P&WC = Pratt and Whitney Canada RR = Rolls-Royce (UK) SAC = Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (China) SEPECAT = Société Européenne de Production de l'Avion d'Ecole de Combat et d'Appui Tactique (France/UK) Su = Sukhoi (Russia) Tu = Tupolev (Russia) XAC = Xian Aircraft Company (China) Yak = Yakovlev (Russia) ------------------------------ Subject: 1.5. Conversion factors I've used metric units throughout this FAQ. The following conversion factors may come in useful. Length Inch = 2.540 cm Foot = 0.3048 m Yard = 0.9144 m Mile = 1.609 km Nautical mile = 1.852 km Volume Gallon (US) = 3.785 L Gallon (UK) = 4.546 L Mass Pound = 0.4536 kg Short ton = 907.2 kg Long ton = 1016 kg Speed Mile per hour = 1.609 km/h Knot = 1.852 km/h Force Pound force = 4.448 N Kilogram force = 9.807 N Power Horsepower = 0.7457 kW ------------------------------ Subject: 2.1. Why is the "stealth fighter" called F-117 instead of F-19? Nobody really knows for sure. It's been suggested, and sounds plausible (but there's no real evidence), that it was called F-19 to start with, but the number was changed as a security measure after the open press started using that designation in the early 1980s (the aircraft first flew in 1981, but wasn't revealed to the public until 1988). Why they picked F-117 as the new number is a mystery; there are three main theories, any of them fairly plausible. The first theory has it that the "stealth fighter" (actually it's a bomber; see below) was flying from the same bases as the small fleet of captured Russian aircraft that the USAF flies; these are believed to use the nonexistent designations "F-112", "F-113" and so on as a cover, and the F-117 just happened to be the next number in sequence. The second theory claims that the aircraft was using the call sign "117" (possibly for reasons connected with the above, or possibly just an arbitrarily assigned number) on some of its early test flights, and the number just happened to stick (presumably for lack of any other designation); when Lockheed got around to printing pilot's manuals for the aircraft, they were labelled "F-117", and from then on it became official. The third theory is that there isn't any reason; the Pentagon just picked a number at random. The mythical "F-19" may have been part of a "leak identification" project; it's common practice in many "black" projects to create several false stories and track down leaks by watching to see which one gets out. There's also the separate question of why it was given an F-series (fighter) designation at all, when it's clearly a light bomber with essentially zero air-to-air capability; it should have an A-series (attack) or B-series (bomber) number. Again, the Pentagon isn't telling, but a favourite theory here on the Net is that the USAF, being dominated by former fighter pilots, couldn't bear the idea of its most glamorous plane having anything but a fighter designation... The F-117 has been popularly known as "Nighthawk" for some time; the Air Force made the name official on 24 June 1994. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.2. Does the USAF have a hypersonic spyplane called "Aurora"? Maybe. Here's the evidence. In 1985, a censor's error let an item labelled "Aurora", with no further explanation, appear in that year's Pentagon budget request, with a reference to "production funding" for 1987. It was located next to the operating budgets for the SR-71 and U-2. The Pentagon refused to comment on the item, and it has never been mentioned since. In 1986, the US government sealed off large areas of land around the top secret Groom Lake base in Nevada. Many new buildings have been built at Groom Lake during the 1980s, and intense activity continues. The government is currently (mid 1994) in the process of taking over more large areas of land around the base, in order to make it impossible to observe the base from publicly accessible land. The extensive security measures imply that some very important and very secret activity is going on there. Officially, the USAF won't even admit that the base exists. In February 1988, the _New York Times_ reported that the USAF was working on a stealthy reconnaissance aircraft capable of Mach 6. The story was attributed to "Pentagon sources". In August 1989, Chris Gibson, an oil exploration engineer and former member of the Royal Observer Corps, was working on an oil rig in the North Sea when he saw an unusual formation of aircraft pass overhead. It consisted of a KC-135 tanker, two F-111s, and a fourth aircraft of a type that Gibson (an expert on aircraft recognition) had never seen before. Seen from below, it appeared to be a perfect triangle, slightly larger than the escorting F-111s, with a leading edge sweep angle of about 75 degrees. It was completely black, with no visible details (unlike the F-111s), and appeared to be taking on fuel from the KC-135. In early 1990 the USAF retired its fleet of SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft; the official reason given was that satellites could now perform all strategic reconnaissance missions required by the Pentagon. Many observers consider this explanation to be suspicious, for several reasons. First, satellites exist in limited numbers and fixed, predictable orbits; surely there will always be a requirement for high-speed reconnaissance missions at short notice, which could only be performed by an aircraft like the SR-71. Second, the cost of running the SR-71 fleet was only about 7 per cent of what the Pentagon spends on satellites; it would still be a good investment even if only as an emergency backup. Third, the USAF never raised the slightest objection to the plan to replace manned aircraft with unmanned satellites, which is highly unusual behaviour for an organisation composed almost entirely of pilots. At about the same time, _Aviation Week_ carried reports from witnesses who had heard an incredibly loud aircraft taking off from Edwards Air Force Base in California late at night. Some of them referred to a pulsing sound with a period of about one second. On several occasions from June 1991 to June 1992, sonic booms were heard over southern California. They were not produced by any officially acknowledged military flight (which are always careful to remain subsonic over urban areas). The booms were powerful enough to show up on the seismographs operated by the US Geological Service, and the times of arrival of the sound at various points allowed fairly accurate calculation of the course and speed of the aircraft responsible; the USGS had already demonstrated this by tracking incoming space shuttles. The aircraft were headed northeast, over Los Angeles and the Mojave Desert, towards either the Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada or the nearby Groom Lake base. The speeds involved ranged from Mach 3 to Mach 4. In February 1992, _The Scotsman_ reported that an RAF air traffic controller, in November 1991, had seen a radar blip emerge from the base at Machrihanish, Scotland, and quickly accelerate to Mach 3. When he called Machrihanish to ask what had happened, he was told to forget it. In May 1992, a photographer snapped some strange contrails over Amarillo, Texas; the trails appeared to have been produced by a high-speed aircraft, and resembled "doughnuts on a rope". A few days later, similar trails were reported over Machrihanish. All this appears to add up to a hypersonic aircraft, with a cruising speed around Mach 6, being operated by the USAF from Groom Lake, Nevada, Edwards AFB, California, and Machrihanish, Scotland, since about 1988 (Machrihanish, by the way, is due to be closed in 1995). The aircraft described by Chris Gibson matches several design studies of hypersonic aircraft in the 1970s and 80s, which came up with a triangular planform with a sweep angle of 75 degrees. The engines appear to be rocket based combined cycle (RBCC) engines, an advanced hybrid of turbojet, ramjet, and rocket. Unclassified studies from the US, Japan, and Russia have investigated RBCC engines for hypersonic propulsion; such engines would be extremely loud on take-off, would produce a pulsing sound with a frequency on the order of one second, would leave contrails resembling "doughnuts on a rope", and should theoretically have a maximum speed not far above Mach 6. The most likely fuel for an RBCC engine would be methane; given the assumptions of methane-fuelled RBCC engines, Mach 6 cruising speed, and intercontinental range, the resulting aircraft would indeed be about the size of an F-111. Does this aircraft exist? We don't know for certain, but the circumstantial evidence is certainly persuasive. Incidentally, the aircraft (if it exists) is almost certainly not called Aurora. Even if the mystery item in the 1985 budget did refer to this project, the name would probably have been changed after the security leak. But Aurora is the only name anyone has, so we continue to use it as a convenient label. Recently (mid 1994) there are moves afoot in the US Senate to reactivate three SR-71 aircraft (possibly in connection with the Korean situation). It was reported (from what sources is unclear) that the Blackbird successor programme had collapsed "after consuming several hundred million dollars". This has been interpreted by some to suggest that the "Aurora" was a failure. This conclusion seems doubtful, for several reasons. First, the "successor programme" referred to was supposedly under development when the SR-71 was retired in 1990 -- but if the evidence is to be believed, the "Aurora" was already flying by 1989. Secondly, judging by the costs involved in programmes like the B-2, an aircraft in the Aurora's class would cost billions to develop -- carrying the programme as far as the actual flying hardware that seems to exist would have consumed a lot more than "several hundred million dollars". This suggests that the Blackbird successor referred to in the Senate reports was either completely mythical (an attempt at disinformation), or a different aircraft to the "Aurora". The price tag suggests something less ambitious, perhaps something more in the SR-71's own class (if so, perhaps the successor, rather than being a technical failure, was simply cancelled in favour of the more capable Aurora). [Most of this information comes from Bill Sweetman's book _Aurora_] ------------------------------ -- ... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ... "Being in the air farce and navy means you only get to kill people by remote control, which takes some of the fun out of it." (Steve Kieffer-Higgins, in alt.tasteless) Archive-Name: mil-aviation-faq/part2 Posting-Frequency: Monthly Last-Modified: 21-Aug-1994 rec.aviation.military Frequently Asked Questions Ross Smith avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ------------------------------ Subject: 2.3. What's the status of current projects? * A/F-X: The A/F-X (Attack/Fighter X) was a joint USAF/USN project to produce a heavy attack aircraft with a secondary fighter role; it would have replaced the F-111 and A-6 in the attack role, and (partially) the F-14 in the fighter role. It was a short-lived programme, originating in 1991 after the cancellation of the McDonnell Douglas/General Dynamics A-12, a highly advanced, highly stealthy aircraft intended to replace the A-6. A new programme, originally designated A-X, was initiated to provide a cheaper A-6 replacement. At the same time, the NATF (Naval Advanced Tactical Fighter) programme, intended to produce an F-14 replacement, had recently been put on hold, and the USAF was starting to think seriously about an F-111 replacement. The three programmes were merged under the title A/F-X. The leading contender was the Lockheed/Boeing AFX-653, essentially a navalised version of the USAF's F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter (see below). This would have been a two-seat aircraft with Tomcat-like swing wings, but otherwise similar to the F-22. The A/F-X project was cancelled at the end of 1993; the US Navy intends to procure the F/A-18E/F series as partial replacements for its aircraft. Lockheed and Boeing are still working on the AFX-653, and hope to offer a further developed version for a future project (but probably not JAST (see below), for which the AFX-653 would probably be too big). You can find an article on the subject, with plans of the AFX-653, in the 26-Jan-94 issue of _Flight International_. Vital statistics (AFX-653): power plant: two 113 kN Pratt & Whitney PW7000 augmented turbofans; armament: one 20mm cannon, internal bays for various air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons, including AGM-86E missiles and GBU-24 guided bombs. * Bell/Boeing V-22 Osprey: The tilt-rotor programme began with Bell's XV-15 technology demonstrator. A tilt-rotor multimission aircraft was commissioned under the title JVX (Joint VTOL X); the aircraft, developed jointly by Bell Helicopter Textron and Boeing Vertol, was later designated V-22 Osprey. The first prototype flew on 19 March 1989; development has been interrupted by the destruction of two of the prototypes in crashes. Despite attempts by the US Secretary of Defence to have the programme halted in favour of conventional helicopters and transport aircraft, the Osprey has survived several rounds of budget cutting, thanks mainly to lobbying by the US Marine Corps. The first production aircraft is expected to fly in December 1996. Current production plans consist of 552 MV-22A assault transports for the USMC, 50 HV-22A combat rescue aircraft for the US Navy, and 55 CV-22A special mission transports for the Special Operations Forces. The US Army's original requirement for 251 transport versions has been deferred, but not irrevocably cancelled. Japan is expected to order four search and rescue aircraft, and is considering the V-22 for the anti-submarine role. Vital statistics (MV-22A): length 19.09 m, span 14.36 m, empty weight 14463 kg, max weight 27442 kg, max speed 556 km/h, range 3892 km, payload 9072 kg; power plant: two 4586 kW Allison T406-AD-400 turboshafts. * Boeing/Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche: The LHX (Light Helicopter X) programme, to provide the US Army with a light scout/attack helicopter to replace the AH-1 Cobra, OH-6 Cayuse, and OH-56 Kiowa, was initiated in 1982. The original plan was to acquire 5000 helicopters, in a mixture of LHX SCAT (scout/attack) and LHX Utility versions; the latter was intended as a UH-1 replacement. The utility role was dropped, and the requirement reduced to 2096 aircraft, in 1987. Two consortia were awarded demonstration and validation contracts in October 1988, one consisting of Bell and McDonnell Douglas, the other Boeing and Sikorsky. On 5 April 1991, the Boeing/Sikorsky team was awarded a contract for development of the LHX, now designated RAH-66A Comanche. The programme has survived recent budget cuts; the first flight is scheduled for September 1994, service delivery 1997. The production total is now expected to be 1292 aircraft, of which about one third will be the RAH-66B version, carrying a slightly smaller version of the Longbow radar fitted to the AH-64D Apache. Vital statistics (RAH-66A): fuselage length 13.22 m, rotor diameter 11.90 m, empty weight 3402 kg, max weight 7790 kg, max speed 328 km/h, range 2335 km; power plant: two 690 kW LHTEC T800-LHT-800 turboshafts; armament: 20mm cannon, internal and external carriage for up to 14 Hellfire or 18 Stinger missiles. * Dassault Rafale: When France withdrew from what was then the FEFA programme (now Eurofighter 2000; see below) in 1985, Dassault went ahead with a very similar multirole fighter of its own, named Rafale (squall). In the first few years there were half-hearted attempts to bring in foreign partners, but nothing came of this. The first prototype Rafale A flew on 4 July 1986. The Armée de l'Air (French AF) has ordered the "Rafale D", a generic name covering the two-seat Rafale B and single-seat Rafale C; the first pre-production Rafale C flew on 19 May 1991. The original plan was for a force consisting mainly of single-seat aircraft, but the Armée de l'Air now appears to like the idea of two-seat combat aircraft, and it is expected that most, possibly all, of the Rafales for the Armée de l'Air will be the Rafale B version. The Armée de l'Air is expected to order 235 Rafales, entering service in 2000, or possibly 2002. The Aéronavale (French Navy air arm) has ordered the Rafale M, a single seat carrier-borne fighter; the first Rafale M flew on 12 December 1991, and made its first carrier landing on the _Foch_ on 19 April 1993. The Aéronavale intends to purchase 86 Rafales, probably entering service in 1999. Vital statistics (Rafale B): length 15.30 m, span 10.90 m, empty weight 9060 kg, max weight 19500 kg, max speed 2124 km/h (Mach 2.0), ferry range 3706 km; power plant: two 73.55 kN Snecma M88-2 augmented turbofans; armament: 30mm cannon, AAM rail on each wingtip, 12 hardpoints; max external load 8000 kg. * Eurofighter: In 1982 British Aerospace began development of what was then called ACA (Agile Combat Aircraft), a fighter technology demonstrator, originally privately funded, although it later attracted some assistance from the British government. The single aircraft first flew on 8 August 1986, by which time it had been redesignated EAP (Experimental Aircraft Programme). Meanwhile, in December 1983, the air forces of France, Germany (then West Germany), Italy, Spain, and the UK announced a programme for the development of a next generation combat aircraft, designated FEFA (Future European Fighter Aircraft), based largely on the EAP demonstrator, and on similar work done by MBB (now part of DASA) in Germany, under the designation JF-90 (a research project rather than an actual aircraft). FEFA was originally intended to enter service with all five countries in the mid-1990s. From the beginning the programme was dogged by political, commercial, technological, and military infighting (leading _Flight International_ columnist Roger Bacon to suggest that the acronym actually stood for Five Europeans Farting Around). Disagreement over the size of the aircraft and the production schedule led France to withdraw from the programme in July 1985 (France wanted a smaller aircraft, and postponement of production to avoid competing with Dassault's Mirage 2000). In June 1986 Eurofighter GmbH was formed to manage what was now the EFA (European Fighter Aircraft) programme, with participation by British Aerospace (33%), MBB (now DASA, 33%), Aeritalia (now Alenia, 21%), and CASA (13%). The aircraft is now known as the Eurofighter 2000; a proper name is expected to be assigned eventually. The first flight was made on 27 March 1994; production delivery is expected to begin in 2000. Orders are 250 for the UK (but they're considering an increase to 350), 165 for Italy, 100 for Spain, and probably about 100-120 for Germany (who originally wanted 140 but are expected to reduce their order). Vital statistics (Eurofighter 2000): length 14.50 m, span 10.50 m, empty weight 9750 kg, max weight 17000 kg, max speed 1912 km/h (Mach 1.8), ferry range 1112 km; power plant: two 90.00 kN augmented turbofans; armament: 27mm cannon, AAM rail on each wingtip, 11 hardpoints; max external load 6500 kg. * JAST: The US Joint Advanced Strike Technology programme, established in early 1994, is intended to be a technology development programme rather than an actual service aircraft. It involves all the improvements that would be expected for a next generation aircraft (advanced materials, stealth, reduced costs, better systems integration, and so forth), plus two particularly innovative concepts. The first is the idea of a modular aircraft design, so that individual aircraft could be built with different combinations of components for different services and missions (take-off capability, for example -- the same basic airframe could be built in conventional runway versions for the USAF, carrier-borne versions for the USN, and V/STOL versions for the USMC). The second is the possibility of providing a "virtual reality" environment for the pilot, which would integrate tactical information with the outside view. JAST has inherited much of the defunct A/F-X project, and may be partially combined with ARPA's ASTOVL (Advanced Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing) programme (though this is being resisted by the DOD, which wants JAST to be a relatively low-risk project). Twelve technology development contracts were awarded in May 1994, the largest going to Boeing. The JAST project is expected to lead to the construction of two technology demonstrator aircraft (at least one of which will probably have V/STOL capability), and eventually to a service aircraft (which may or may not be derived from one of the demonstrators) which will begin to replace the F-16 in USAF service, the F/A-18 (and possibly F-14) in USN service, and the AV-8B in USMC service by 2010. No contracts for actual flying hardware have been awarded yet (this is expected to happen in 1997), but its leading role in the initial phases and its experience with the A/F-X project suggest that Boeing will probably be the prime contractor. * Lockheed/Boeing F-22: The ATF (Advanced Technology Fighter) programme began in September 1983, when design contracts were awarded to seven companies; in October 1986, development contracts were awarded to two consortia, one consisting of Lockheed (prime contractor), Boeing, and General Dynamics, the other of Northrop (prime contractor) and McDonnell Douglas. The first Northrop/MD YF-23A (unofficially "Black Widow II") flew on 27 August 1990, followed by the first Lockheed/Boeing/GD YF-22A (unofficially "Lightning II") on 29 September 1990. In April 1991, the YF-22A was selected for development and eventual service. Recent budget cuts have slowed down the schedule slightly; the first flight of the production Lockheed/Boeing F-22A (General Dynamics sold its fighter division to Lockheed in December 1992), originally scheduled for June 1996, will now be in (probably) March 1997. Service entry is expected to begin in 2003; the USAF is currently fighting an attempt by the General Accounting Office to delay this to 2010. Total production, originally planned to be 648 aircraft, has now been reduced to 442. Reports differ as to whether the aircraft has an official name yet; for a while the Pentagon was considering "Superstar", and some magazine reports have claimed that the name "Rapier" has been assigned. However, Chris Ridlon of USAF ROTC/Academy reports that all the USAF people he knows (including F-22 acquisition officers) are using Lockheed's name of "Lightning II", so that may be officially approved after all. Vital statistics (YF-22A): length 18.90 m, span 13.56 m, empty weight 15422 kg, max weight 28123 kg, max speed 2655 km/h (Mach 2.5), ferry range 3704 km; power plant: two 155.68 kN Pratt & Whitney F119-100 augmented turbofans; armament: 20mm cannon, internal bays for two AIM-9 and four AIM-120A or six AIM-120C air-to-air missiles, or two AIM-9, two AIM-120, and two air-to-surface missiles, external hardpoints for four more AIM-120s or other ordnance; radar: Westinghouse/Texas Instruments APG-77. * McDonnell Douglas C-17 Globemaster III: The USAF initiated the C-X (Cargo X) programme in October 1980; McDonnell Douglas was selected as prime contractor on 19 August 1981. The C-X, later designated C-17, is primarily a C-141 replacement, with some overlap with the roles of the C-5 and C-130. The first prototype flew in September 1991. The programme has suffered many technical and political setbacks, but production has begun, although the USAF's order has been reduced from the original 210. 40 have been definitely ordered, of which 10 had been delivered by February 1994. A follow-up order for another 80 is on hold, conditional on MD correcting design flaws and cost overruns; a decision will be made by the end of 1995. McDonnell Douglas are considering a civilian airfreight version, under the designation MD-17. Vital statistics (C-17A): length 53.04 m, span 52.20 m, empty weight 122016 kg, max weight 263083 kg, cruise speed 818 km/h, range 8710 km, payload 78108 kg; power plant: four 185.50 kN Pratt & Whitney F117-PW-100 turbofans. * Mikoyan 1.42: Also known as MFI (Multirole Fighter/Interceptor), and sometimes referred to in the West as "ATFski", Mikoyan's Project 1.42 is a low-visibility multirole fighter, with air superiority as the primary mission, intended as an Su-27/35 replacement; in short, the Russian equivalent of the F-22. The 1.42 is one of the few Mikoyan projects to survive the recent wave of defence budget cuts from the Kremlin, although its schedule has apparently been slowed by shortage of funds as well as technical problems. The first airframe is reported to be already complete, but problems with the engines have delayed the first flight, now expected to be in September 1994. _Jane's Defence Weekly_ and _Flight International_ have published CAD images of the 1.42; they show an aircraft resembling a scaled-up F-16, with two engines with vectored-thrust nozzles, inward-canted twin tails, slightly downturned wingtips, Rafale-like rounded intakes, and possibly foreplanes. The 1.42, like the F-22, can carry weapons both internally and externally. It is expected to enter service about 2004 to 2006; service designation will probably be MiG-35. The related Project 7.01, a heavier and stealthier interceptor designed along similar lines, has been cancelled. The only available vital statistic is a maximum take-off weight of 30000 kilograms. * Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit: Development of the ATB (Advanced Technology Bomber) began in 1978; the programme was revealed to the public in 1981, when Northrop's design was chosen over a Lockheed/Rockwell proposal. Although no details of the design were revealed, it was widely assumed that the aircraft would be a "flying wing" design, based on Northrop's experience with the XB-35 and YB-49, and this was confirmed when the first prototype was rolled out on 22 November 1988. It made its first flight on 17 July 1989, and the first production B-2 was delivered to the USAF in 1993. Production plans have been drastically cut from 135 aircraft to only 20, of which the last is expected to be delivered in 1997. The aircraft was officially named "Spirit" in February 1994; Northrop became Northrop Grumman in May 1994. Vital statistics (B-2A): length 21.03 m, span 52.42 m, empty weight 72575 kg, max weight 168434 kg, max speed 1103 km/h, range 13898 km, payload 22370 kg; power plant: four 84.51 kN General Electric F118-100 turbofans. * Saab JAS 39 Gripen: Development of the JAS 39 Gripen (JAS = Jakt/Attack/Spaning = Fighter/Attack/Reconnaissance; Gripen = Griffon) began in 1980. It is a light multirole fighter, intended to gradually replace all versions of the Saab 37 Viggen and Saab 35 Draken in Flygvapnet (Swedish AF) service; devlopment and production is carried out by IG-JAS, a consortium led by Saab. The first prototype flew on 9 December 1988; development has been delayed by the loss of two aircraft in crashes attributed to faults in the digital flight control software. The programme remains intact, however, and the Swedish government has confirmed its order for 140 production aircraft (including 14 two-seat JAS 39B conversion training aircraft). Saab has high hopes for export success with the Gripen; the Swedish government has agreed to a slight relaxation of the export restrictions that made the Viggen a non-starter outside Sweden. An agreement with Britain was signed in February 1994, under which British Aerospace (which assisted Saab in the design of the Gripen) will market the aircraft; BAe will probably also be involved in production. Vital statistics (JAS 39): length 14.15 m, span 8.40 m, empty weight 5800 kg, max weight 9526 kg, max speed 2336 km/h (Mach 2.2), range 600 km; power plant: one 80.50 kN Volvo Flygmotor RM12 augmented turbofan; armament: 27mm cannon, wingtip AAM rails, 6 hardpoints. * Shenyang J-8/F-8: Development of this large interceptor, the first jet fighter designed in China to enter service, began in 1964. The first prototype flew on 5 July 1969. Production of the J-8I began in July 1979; about 100 were delivered to the AFPLA before production ended in 1987. The J-8I resembled a scaled-up MiG-21 (J-7), with a tailed delta configuration powered by two engines fed from a single annular nose intake, carrying radar in the centrebody cone (it resembled Mikoyan's experimental Ye-152A, although, contrary to some early reports, it was not based on that aircraft). The more advanced J-8II was developed in the early 1980s, the first prototype flying on 12 June 1984. It differed externally in having two side intakes (similar to an F-4 or MiG-23) and a solid nose with a much larger radome. A plan to fit American avionics, including an advanced radar, fell through in the early 1990s; however, the J-8II has entered production anyway, carrying a Chinese SR-4 "lookdown-shootdown" radar. Both versions have been offered for export, as the F-8I and F-8II, but there have been no takers so far. Vital statistics (J-8II, estimated): length 21.59 m, span 9.34 m, empty weight 9820 kg, max weight 17800 kg, max speed 2336 km/h (Mach 2.2), ferry range 2200 km; power plant: two 65.90 kN Wopen 13A-II augmented turbojets; armament: one Type 23-3 twin-barrel 23mm cannon with 200 rounds, 7 hardpoints, max external load 3500 kg. * Yakovlev Yak-41 "Freestyle": Design of the Yak-41 began in 1975; the first prototype flew in March 1987, followed by a second in April 1989. Tests were conducted on the aircraft carrier _Admiral Gorshkov_. In April 1991, one of the prototypes set several records for VTOL aircraft; it was displayed at the Paris Air Show shortly afterwards. One prototype was lost in a crash (attributed to pilot error) on the carrier in November 1991, after which development was suspended (due to lack of funds rather than any problems with the aircraft); the surviving aircraft has been mothballed. Yakovlev are continuing development privately as funds allow (i.e. very slowly), and attempts have been made to attract a foreign partner (India being the most likely choice, with China another possibility), but so far there has been no sign of any agreement or progress. A more advanced version, the Yak-41M, has been designed, with the emphasis now on Air Force rather than Navy service. This version has an extensively modified airframe, with a strong emphasis on stealth (there is a distinct resemblance to the F-22), a much more powerful engine, and more fuel and payload. Finally, Yak-41 is the correct designation; Yak-141, quoted in many sources, actually refers only to the single prototype modified for record attempts, not the standard fighter. Vital statistics (Yak-41): length 18.36 m, span 10.11 m, empty weight 11650 kg, max weight 19500 kg, max speed 1800 km/h (Mach 1.7), range 2100 km; power plant: one 152.00 kN Soyuz R-97V-30 augmented turbofan, two RD-41 lift jets; armament: 30mm cannon, 5 hardpoints, max external load 2600 kg. [Most of the above information comes from recent issues of _Flight International_] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.4. Why was the YF-22 chosen over the YF-23? When the Lockheed YF-22 and Northrop YF-23 were unveiled in 1990, it was generally believed that the two companies had made different trade-offs among the various design requirements. The YF-23 appeared to be optimised for stealth, with its trapezoidal wings, butterfly tail, and generally futuristic appearance (the distinct resemblance to the fictional "Firefox" attracted a lot of comments). The YF-22, on the other hand, had a more conventional appearance; although it was obviously designed with stealth in mind, there was a definite resemblance to the F-15 it was intended to replace, and the impression was of an aircraft designed for manoeuvrability first and stealth second. The YF-22 had thrust-vectoring jet nozzles, while those of the YF-23 were designed to hide the engines' infrared signature from below. In April 1991, the YF-22 was selected for production. According to the USAF, neither aircraft showed any clear advantage in either manoeuvrability or stealth. The reasons given for the choice were that the Lockheed aircraft was better designed for maintainability, had more potential for future development, and was slightly cheaper. An unconfirmed report has it that one factor was the fact that the YF-23 had its internal AAMs "stacked" in its bays, while the YF-22's missiles each had a bay to themselves; this meant that, on the YF-23, a malfunction in one launcher might prevent the launch of another missile in the same bay. There remains a popular opinion that the reasons given were bogus, and that a preference for manoeuvrability over stealth was the real reason for the choice. However, there is no obvious reason why the USAF should want to lie about its reasons, and it seems likely that the external appearance of the two aircraft wasn't as good a guide to their capabilities as many people thought. [From Mike Spick & Barry Wheeler, _Modern American Fighters and Attack Aircraft_, and magazine reports] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.5. Is fighter X better than fighter Y? This is the kind of question that gets discussed all the time, but doesn't really have an answer. First, best for what? Every fighter is designed with a particular set of requirements in mind. "Fighter" is a fairly general term that covers a multitude of missions. A Tornado F.3 or a MiG-31 is an excellent long-range interceptor, but you wouldn't want to send one of them up against an F-16 or an Su-27 in a dogfight. Second, the aircraft itself isn't the only factor involved, or even the most important one. Put two aircraft of similar (or even somewhat different) capabilities up against each other, and by far the most important factor is the relative skills of the two pilots. It's widely believed that superior pilot training was the main reason why American F-86 Sabres consistently gained air superiority over technically superior Russian MiG-15s in the Korean War. Third, even apparently identical fighters can differ enormously in their electronics fit; and in modern fighters, the electronics is at least as important (not to mention expensive) as the airframe. Export versions of fighters are normally much less capable in the electronic sphere as the equivalent models for the home air force, even when the aircraft have the same designation; does anyone expect the F-16Cs exported to, say, Egypt to be anywhere near the capability of the F-16Cs in USAF service? Older aircraft can be upgraded to modern electronic standards at a fraction of the cost of new fighters, an option increasingly popular in these days of tightened defence budgets (for example, the RNZAF recently upgraded its Skyhawk fleet with a radar and avionics suite equivalent to that of the F-16A). Most of the modern generation of fighters are fairly similar in performance. Leaving out specialised interceptors such as the Tornado and MiG-31 mentioned above, if almost any two modern fighters came up against each other in a dogfight, pilot skill would certainly be the main deciding factor. We can (and certainly will) argue endlessly about the relative merits of, say, F-16 vs Sea Harrier, or F-22 vs Su-35 (both the subject of recent discussion on this newsgroup; Harriers versus conventional fighters is a particularly hardy perennial), and there are real differences there; but such technical details are not the the most important thing in combat. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.6. Why wasn't the B-1 or B-2 used in Desert Storm? The B-1s weren't used for several reasons. First, their primary mission is (or was at the time) strategic nuclear strike; Pentagon policy was to keep them in the United States as part of the strategic triad. Second, at the time (January 1991) the B-1s had not yet been fully cleared for tactical operations with conventional weapons. Third, there was no need for them -- the aircraft already available, notably B-52s and F-117s, were perfectly capable of the required missions, and sending B-1s over wouldn't have added enough capability to be worth the extra maintenance involved. Fourth, in late 1990 most of the B-1 fleet was grounded anyway, due to engine problems. No B-2s were in service at the time; only a single prototype was flying. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.7. What's happened to the former USSR's aircraft carriers? Of the four 43000 tonne Kiev class carriers, three (_Kiev_, _Minsk_, and _Novorossiysk_) have been retired, leaving only one (_Admiral Gorshkov_) in service with the Northern Fleet. The Yak-38 V/STOL strike aircraft formerly assigned to the ships have also been retired; the _Gorshkov_ now carries only helicopters. _Minsk_ and _Novorossiysk_ have been stricken for scrapping; _Kiev_ is mothballed, but will be cannibalised for parts to keep _Gorshkov_ in service. However, _Gorshkov_ itself is currently described as "inactive"; given the Russian government's chronic shortage of money, and the fact that there are no shipyards in Russia capable of servicing them (the only suitable one is in the Ukraine), it's quite possible that the entire class may disappear in the near future. The 67500 tonne _Admiral Kuznetsov_, the only conventional aircraft carrier ever operated by the Soviet Navy, remains in service with the Russian Navy's Northern Fleet. Its sister ship, _Varyag_, remains at the Nikolayev shipyard, not quite complete. Its fate was decided in June 1994, when the Ukrainian government ordered it to be scrapped, after Russia's decision not to buy the vessel, and no success in attempts to sell it to other countries such as China and India. The 75000 tonne, nuclear powered _Ulyanovsk_ was never completed; the hull has been scrapped. The _Kuznetsov_, although nominally in active service, has so far been used primarily for testing aircraft and operating procedures, the Russian Navy having very little experience with fixed-wing carrier operations. Its primary aircraft type is the Sukhoi Su-33 single-seat multirole fighter (production version of the Su-27K prototypes), which is currently in low-rate production. The Mikoyan MiG-29K was tested aboard _Kuznetsov_ alongside the Su-27K, but has not been selected for production. A naval training version of the Sukhoi Su-25, the Su-25UTG, is also in production (a handful of another version, the Su-25UBP, were also built). The _Kuznetsov_ also carries a number of Kamov Ka-27/28/29/32 helicopters, in various subtypes. Two AEW aircraft were developed but cancelled. The first was an AEW version of the Antonov An-72 twin-turbofan STOL transport, codenamed "Madcap" by NATO; this interesting design (the radar disc was mounted atop a forward-swept, V-shaped set of tail fins) was cancelled in favour of Yakovlev's Yak-44, a twin turboprop apparently very similar to the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye. The official reason given was that a turboprop was more efficient for the AEW role than a jet (although your FAQ compiler suspects that the fact that Yakovlev is a Russian company while Antonov is Ukrainian probably had something to do with it too). However, the Yak-44 has also in turn been cancelled, and recent reports suggest that an AEW version of the Kamov Ka-32 helicopter is under development. Assuming the _Kuznetsov_ remains in service, a strike aircraft is likely to be added to its air wing; this will almost certainly be another Su-27 variant, since the Russian air forces currently have a policy of minimising the number of different types in service by using Su-27 derivatives wherever possible. Navalised strike versions of the MiG-27, Su-24, and Su-25 were all tested on imitation flight decks on land bases, but none were ever developed into carrier-capable naval aircraft (the naval Su-25s are all trainers). Both surviving carriers serve with the Northern Fleet, because current Russian Navy policy is to concentrate all carriers, aircraft, and pilots in one fleet. [Much of the above is from recent magazine reports; thanks to Simon Shpilfoygel for additional information] [Oh, and thanks to John Iodice for pointing out to me that "Kuznetsov" is Russian for "Smith" :-) ] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.8. Why do USAF aircraft have tailhooks? To help stop the aircraft in the event of brake failure, or some similar accident leading to a runway overrun. Just past the end of many military runways, you'll find an arrester cable strung across the field. The cable (unlike those on aircraft carriers) isn't attached to anything firm; instead, each end is linked to a long chain, which just drags on the ground. The idea is to slow the aircraft down in a reasonable distance; the tailhooks on Air Force fighters are smaller and weaker than the superficially similar hooks on Navy planes. The inevitable next question, "Does this mean Air Force planes could land on a carrier in an emergency?", has been discussed at length in this newsgroup. It has been conclusively established that, no, an Air Force fighter could never land on a carrier because, first, its landing gear is likely to break in the much heavier touchdown required for carrier landings (sink-rate figures quoted in the newsgroup give an F-15's main gear roughly a fifty-fifty chance of taking a carrier landing without breaking); second, even if it could get on the deck in one piece, the weaker AF tailhook would break when it caught the Navy arrester cable; and third, even if the aircraft was physically capable of it, Air Force pilots aren't trained in the highly specialised and difficult art of carrier landings. It has been pointed out that, if the USAF thought there was even the slightest chance of ever being able to save one of its planes by landing it on a carrier, it would have been tested on the mock carrier deck at Pensacola; the fact that this has never been tried is pretty solid evidence that the Air Force engineers (who would presumably know) are certain it can't be done. The F-16Ns used by the US Navy as adversaries in training have the standard Air Force tailhooks and undercarriage, and are definitely not carrier capable. The RAF pilots who learned to operate from carriers in a few weeks on the way to the Falklands are a different matter entirely; they were flying Harriers, and of course most of the above is irrelevant to VTOL aircraft. Some training was still required, of course, but the requirements are very different, both for the aircraft and the pilots. (As one Harrier pilot put it: "It's much easier to stop and then land, than to land and then try to stop.") A few land-based aircraft have been flown from carriers with minimal modification, notably the Lockheed C-130 Hercules and U-2. Both of these were fairly special cases involving aircraft designed for very low speeds (and, in the case of the Hercules, rough landings) from the start. On 30 October 1963, a USMC KC-130F made several carrier landings and take-offs on the flight deck of USS _Forrestal_, in a series of tests intended to determine whether it would make a good COD (carrier on-board delivery) aircraft. The only modification was an anti-skid braking system. The aircraft made several landings and take-offs, with no use of arrester gear or catapults, and performed well (the pilot, Lieutenant James H Flatley III, was awarded the DFC for his part in the tests). However, it turned out that the Hercules would have been unable to fit in a carrier's hangar deck, so the smaller Grumman C-2 Greyhound was developed instead. Modifications to the U-2 involved the addition of an arrester hook and a strengthened landing gear (the U-2 already had folding wings). In 1964 two modified U-2As, designated U-2G, were flown from USS _Ranger_; the tests were successful, and several modified aircraft were apparently flown from carriers by the CIA during the 1960s (the service version may have been designated U-2J). In 1969, a similarly modified U-2R was flown from USS _America_, but this does not seem to have led to any service use. Land-based aircraft have been successfully modified to be carrier-based; the modifications involved, when the aircraft is a fast jet, are extensive. It isn't just a matter of adding a tailhook and new landing gear; most of the airframe needs to be redesigned. The best known example in the West is the BAe/MD T-45 Goshawk, the US Navy's new trainer, based on BAe's Hawk. The Russians have had some success in adapting several fighters and attack aircraft for carrier service. Carrier tests were made by modified MiG-29 and Su-27 fighters, and by trainer versions of the Su-25; the naval MiG-29K was cancelled, but the Su-33 (based on the Su-27K) and Su-25UTG have entered service. A report of an early MiG-29K being torn in half on its first attempt at a tailhook arrest gives a hint of the difficulties involved. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.9. Is aircraft X still in service? * Blackburn Buccaneer: The last squadron of Buccaneers in RAF service was disbanded in early 1994. South Africa, the only other Buccaneer user, had already disposed of its aircraft by then. * Boeing B-29 Superfortress: China still has 15 Russian-built B-29 copies (Tu-4) on its inventory; these are now used entirely for training and research. One was fitted with a pylon-mounted disk for AEW radar experiments. * Convair F-106 Delta Dart: The last aircraft in US service were retired in 1988. About 180 were converted to QF-106 target drones; most have been destroyed by now, of course, but some are still flying (July 1994). * Dassault Ouragan: El Salvador still has eight Ouragans in service. * De Havilland Vampire: There are no Vampires in military service; several are still flying in private hands. * De Havilland Venom: There are no Venoms in military service; several are still flying in private hands. * English Electric Canberra: The Canberra is still in service with Argentina, Chile, India (largest user, with 46), Peru, and the UK. The 20 aircraft on the British inventory are used for training and photographic reconnaissance (a few used for ECM are being retired), not in the bomber role. * Grumman S-2 Tracker: Eight countries still have S-2s in service. Many retired examples have been converted to civilian firebombers. * Handley Page Victor: The RAF retired its last Victor K.2 tanker on 30 November 1993. * Hawker Hunter: The Hunter is still in service with Chile, India, Oman, and Switzerland (largest user, with 87). Lebanon and Somalia still have a handful of Hunters listed, but these are almost certainly unserviceable. The handful of Hunters still flying in the UK are operated by civilian organisations. Switzerland plans to dispose of its Hunters by the end of 1995. * Ilyushin Il-28 ("Beagle"): The Chinese-built Hong-5 is in service in large numbers (about 650) with China, as well as North Korea and Romania, but only Egypt still operates five Russian-built Il-28s. * Lockheed F-104 Starfighter: Remains in service with Greece, Italy, Taiwan, and Turkey (largest user, with 220). * Lockheed P-2 Neptune: Japan still flies 14 of its locally-built P-2J version. * Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird: These were retired from USAF service in 1990. Three aircraft were transferred to NASA, and are used for atmospheric research. Currently (June '94) there seems to be serious talk of reactivating some USAF SR-71s for reconnaissance, probably in connection with the Korean situation. * Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star: 14 countries still use T-33s for training; the largest user is Japan, with 113. * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 ("Fagot/Midget"): About 20 countries operate the MiG-15UTI (or the Chinese JJ-2) as a trainer; three (Albania, Cuba, and Romania) still operate the single-seat MiG-15/J-2 fighter. All Chinese J-2s and JJ-2s have been retired. * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 ("Fresco"): About 25 countries still use the MiG-17, or the Chinese-built J-5. The Chinese PLA Air Force only operates the JJ-5 trainer version. * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19 ("Farmer"): The Chinese J-6 is still in service with 14 countries, but only Cuba still flies the genuine article (about 30). Production of the J-6 stopped about 1981. * Myasishchyev M-3/4 ("Bison"): The last M-3M and M-4 "Bison-A" bombers and M-3MD "Bison-C" maritime patrol aircraft were retired or converted in 1987. A small number of M-3MS-2 "Bison-B" tankers remain in service with the Russian AF, but are being replaced by the Il-78T "Midas", and will probably be gone by the end of 1994. A few aircraft (possibly only one) have been converted to M-3VM-T Atlant heavy transports; these remain in use, mainly for transporting space hardware, pending the manufacture of more An-225 transports. * North American F-86 Sabre: The Bolivian Air Force still operates four F-86F interceptors. * North American F-100 Super Sabre: Turkey, the last operator of the F-100, disposed of its aircraft in 1989. * Sukhoi Su-7 ("Fitter/Moujik"): Only Algeria, Iraq, and North Korea (largest user, with 30) still fly the Su-7. * Sukhoi Su-15 ("Flagon"): This was withdrawn from Russian service about 1992. * Tupolev Tu-128 ("Fiddler"): This was withdrawn from Russian service about 1992. * Vought A-7 Corsair II: In service with Greece (largest user, with 85) and Portugal. The last A-7s in US service were withdrawn at the end of 1993. * Vought F-8 Crusader: 19 F-8E(FN) Crusaders serve with the French Navy, and are expected to remain in service until the Rafale M is available in 1999. * Yakovlev Yak-28 ("Brewer/Firebar/Maestro"): The last Yak-28P "Firebar" interceptors were withdrawn in the 1980s, the last Yak-28R "Brewer-D" reconnaissance aircraft about 1990, and the last Yak-28PP "Brewer-E" electronic warfare aircraft (along with the last Yak-28U "Maestro" trainers) about 1992. * Yakovlev Yak-38 ("Forger"): The Russian Navy retired the last of its Yak-38 fleet around the end of 1993. [Most of the above comes from the "Air Forces of the World" directory in the 24-Nov-93 issue of _Flight International_] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.10. Did one of the XB-70 prototypes crash during a photo shot? On 8 June 1966, XB-70 AV/2 (Air Vehicle 2) took part in a publicity flight involving five aircraft powered by General Electric engines, over the Mojave Desert. The aircraft were flying in a V formation; from left to right, a Northrop T-38A Talon, a McDonnell Douglas F-4B Phantom II, the XB-70 Valkyrie, a Lockheed F-104N Starfighter, and a Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter. Two more aircraft, a Learjet and an F-104D, carried photographers. At 9:26 a.m., just after the end of the photo session, with no warning or explanation, the F-104N's tail hit the XB-70's right wingtip. The F-104 flipped over and passed above the XB-70, slicing off parts of both of its vertical fins on the way, then rammed into its port wing several times. The XB-70 then flipped over and began spinning, spraying fuel from the ruins of its port wing. Both aircraft dived into the ground. The command pilot of AV/2, Al White (North American's test pilot), ejected and survived, although he suffered back injuries when the air bag that should have served as shock absorber on his ejection capsule failed. He said later that the other pilot, Major Carl Cross (USAF), was slumped forward in his seat; White tried to activate Cross's ejection capsule but was unable to do so before he had to eject himself. It was speculated that Cross had suffered a blow to the head, or was incapacitated by G forces. The F-104N pilot, Joseph A Walker (NASA's chief research pilot) was apparently killed in the initial collision. The collision is believed to have been caused by the F-104 getting too close to the XB-70 and getting caught in its wingtip vortices, but nobody knows for certain. The surviving XB-70, AV/1 (tail number 20001), is on display at the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio. [Information from _Valkyrie -- North American XB-70_ by Steve Pace (thanks Dan); also thanks to Al Bowers for additional details] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.11. What's an Su-35? Formerly known as the Su-27M, the Sukhoi Su-35 is an advanced derivative of the Su-27 "Flanker". The first Su-27M prototype was displayed at the 1992 Farnborough Air Show. The Su-35 is expected to go into production in 1994; a production standard aircraft will probably appear at Farnborough '94. Changes from the Su-27 include a new radar, requiring a somewhat larger nose; foreplanes, as on the naval Su-33; more powerful engines (also originally developed for the Su-33); an enlarged and improved infrared search and track unit in front of the cockpit; an infrared missile-warning scanner on the fuselage spine; numerous internal electronic improvements; larger tail fins (required by aerodynamic changes imposed by the enlarged nose); and a large "spine" between the engines containing a rearward-facing air-to-air radar, allowing the use of rear-firing semi-active radar guided missiles. Not present on the prototype, but expected to be on the production version, are two-dimensional thrust-vectoring engine nozzles (as on the F-15SMTD demonstrator and YF-22). The interesting concept of rearward-firing missiles has apparently been tested on Su-27s, using modified R-73 missiles mounted on rotating pylons that can fire missiles in either direction. The production version apparently has a "nose cone" over the rocket engine (jettisoned on launch), and modified fins to prevent instability problems while briefly flying backwards after launch. The launch rails are fitted with gas cartridges to boost the missile backwards, so its own engine doesn't have to overcome the aircraft's full forward speed. It isn't clear whether the missiles will be mounted on fixed rearward facing rails, or rotating pylons similar to those used during development. How well any of this will work in practice remains to be seen. Besides being a better fighter, the Su-35 also has greatly improved ground attack capability compared to the original Su-27, which was more specialised for the air-to-air role. Other Su-27 derivatives include the tandem two-seat Su-30 in interceptor (Su-30, formerly Su-27PU, intended to supplement the more capable but more expensive MiG-31) and ground attack (Su-30M and export Su-30MK, possibly intended for the "Wild Weasel" anti-radar role, replacing the MiG-25BM) versions; Su-33 (formerly Su-27K) carrier-borne multirole fighter; and Su-34 (formerly Su-27IB/KU) side-by-side two-seat strike aircraft (intended to replace the MiG-27, Su-17, and Su-24 in the interdiction/strike role). The Su-34 shares the Su-35's tail radar and rear-firing AAMs. Vital statistics (Su-35): length 21.96 m, span 14.70 m, empty weight 18400 kg, normal TO weight 25700 kg, max speed 2440 km/h (Mach 2.30), ferry range 3500 km; power plant: two 137.30 kN Lyulka AL-31MF augmented turbofans; armament: one GSh-30 30mm cannon, 14 hardpoints, max external load 8200 kg. [My main source here is Steven Zaloga's _Russian Falcons_; thanks also to Rustam Yusupov for posting additional details] ------------------------------ -- ... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ... "Being in the air farce and navy means you only get to kill people by remote control, which takes some of the fun out of it." (Steve Kieffer-Higgins, in alt.tasteless) Archive-Name: mil-aviation-faq/part3 Posting-Frequency: Monthly Last-Modified: 21-Aug-1994 rec.aviation.military Frequently Asked Questions Ross Smith avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ------------------------------ Subject: 2.12. Why do recent articles refer to the "Lockheed F-16"? General Dynamics sold its military aircraft division to Lockheed in December 1992. Although readers of this newsgroup probably associate GD with aircraft like the F-16 and F-111, the company has always been primarily a shipbuilder, and has now decided to concentrate exclusively on this area. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.13. What air-to-air missiles are in service? The following list covers the air-to-air missiles known to be in service or under development, as of late 1993. Guidance types: AR = active radar, IR = infrared, Opt = optical, PR = passive radar, SAR = semi-active radar. Missile Length Mass Range Speed Warhead Guidance (m) (kg) (km) (M) (kg) ------------------------------ ------ ---- ----- ----- ------- -------- International AIM-132A ASRAAM 2.90 87 15 ? 10 IR S225X ? ? 100 ? ? AR Brazil MAA-1 Mol 2.82 90 10 2.0 12 IR China PL-2 2.99 76 3 ? 11 IR PL-3 2.99 82 3 ? 14 IR PL-5B 2.89 85 16 ? 9 IR PL-7 2.75 90 ? ? 13 IR PL-8 3.00 120 5 ? 11 IR PL-9 2.99 120 5 ? 10 IR PL-10 3.99 300 15 3.0 ? SAR France MICA AR 3.10 110 60 ? ? AR MICA IR 3.10 110 60 ? ? IR R.550 Magic 1 2.72 89 10 2.0 13 IR R.550 Magic 2 2.75 90 10 2.0 13 IR Super 530D 3.80 270 40 4.5 30 SAR Super 530F 3.54 245 35 4.5 30 SAR Germany Iris ? ? ? ? ? IR India Astra ? ? ? ? ? AR Israel Python 3 3.00 120 15 3.5 11 IR Python 4 3.00 ? ? ? ? IR Shafrir 2 2.60 93 5 ? 11 IR Italy Aspide 1 3.70 220 100 4.0 35 SAR Aspide 2 3.65 230 100 4.0 35 SAR Japan AAM-3 Type 90 2.60 70 5 ? ? IR Russia K-13A/R-13S "AA-2 Atoll" 2.84 75 8 2.5 11 IR K-13M/R-13M "AA-2-2 Atoll-D" 2.87 90 13 2.5 11 IR K-13R/R-13R "AA-2-2 Atoll-C" 3.50 93 8 2.5 11 SAR Kh-31P "AS-17 Krypton" 5.23 600 200 3.0 90 PR KS-172 RVV-L 7.40 750 400 ? ? AR R-23R "AA-7 Apex" 4.46 244 27 3.4 35 SAR R-23T "AA-7 Apex" 4.16 217 27 3.4 35 IR R-24R "AA-7 Apex" 4.46 ? ? ? ? SAR R-24T "AA-7 Apex" 4.16 ? ? ? ? IR R-27EA "AA-10 Alamo" 4.78 350 130 ? 39 AR R-27EM "AA-10 Alamo" 4.78 350 170 ? 39 SAR R-27ER "AA-10 Alamo-C" 4.78 350 130 ? 39 SAR R-27ET "AA-10 Alamo-D" 4.78 350 130 ? 39 IR R-27P "AA-10 Alamo" ? ? ? ? 39 PR R-27R "AA-10 Alamo-A" 4.08 235 60 ? 39 SAR R-27T "AA-10 Alamo-B" 3.80 245 40 ? 39 IR R-33 "AA-9 Amos" 4.15 490 120 ? 47 SAR R-37 ? 600 150 ? ? AR R-40RD "AA-6 Acrid" 5.98 461 70 4.5 38 SAR R-40TD "AA-6 Acrid" 5.98 460 30 4.5 38 IR R-60 "AA-8 Aphid" 2.14 45 7 2.5 4 IR R-60M "AA-8 Aphid" 2.14 45 ? 2.5 4 IR R-60MK "AA-8 Aphid" 2.14 45 12 2.5 4 IR R-73/R-73M1 "AA-11 Archer" 2.90 105 15 ? 7 IR R-73E/R-73M2 "AA-11 Archer" 2.90 110 30 ? 7 IR R-77 RVV-AE "AA-12" 3.60 175 90 3.0 18 AR South Africa Darter 2.75 89 10 4.2 16 IR V3B Kukri 2.94 73 4 3.9 ? IR Taiwan Sky Sword I 2.87 90 15 ? ? IR Sky Sword II 3.60 190 40 ? ? SAR United Kingdom Active Sky Flash 3.66 208 50 4.0 30 AR Sky Flash 3.66 192 50 4.0 30 SAR United States of America AIM-7M Sparrow 3.66 230 100 2.5 39 SAR AIM-7P Sparrow 3.66 230 45 ? 39 SAR AIM-7R Sparrow 3.66 ? 45 ? ? IR+SAR AIM-9J Sidewinder 3.07 78 15 2.5 ? IR AIM-9L Sidewinder 2.87 87 18 2.5 10 IR AIM-9M Sidewinder 2.87 87 8 2.5 10 IR AIM-9P Sidewinder 3.07 82 8 2.5 12 IR AIM-9R Sidewinder 2.87 87 8 2.5 10 Opt AIM-9S Sidewinder 2.87 87 8 2.5 10 IR AIM-9TC Sidewinder 3.00 84 ? ? ? IR AIM-54C Phoenix 4.30 463 200 4.0 60 AR AIM-92A Stinger 1.52 14 5 2.0 3 IR AIM-120A AMRAAM 3.65 157 75 4.0 22 AR Have Dash 3.00 180 50 3.0 ? AR+IR [Most of the information here is from Doug Richardson and Piotr Butowski's survey of AAMs in the October 1993 issue of _Air International_] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.14. Whatever happened to the F/A-16? At one time the USAF had a plan to replace its A-10s with F-16s fitted with a version of the Avenger cannon. This was tested during Desert Storm, when F-16As of the 174th Tactical Fighter Wing were fitted with GPU-5 pods on their centreline pylons, and given the new designation F/A-16A. The GPU-5 contains the GAU-13 cannon (a four-barrelled version of the seven-barrelled GAU-8 Avenger 30mm cannon fitted to the A-10) and 353 rounds of ammunition. If the tests were successful, there were plans for a fleet of F/A-16Cs with the same armament. The tests were a disaster. Precision aiming was impossible for several reasons: the pylon mount isn't as steady as the A-10's rigid mounting; the F-16 flies much faster than an A-10, giving the pilots too little time approaching the target; the tremedous recoil from the gun shook the plane around badly; and some essential CCIP (continuously computed impact point) software was unavailable. They ended up using it as an area weapon, spraying multiple targets with ammunition, producing an effect rather like a cluster bomb. It took only a couple of days of this before they gave up, unbolted the gun pods, and went back to dropping real cluster bombs. The F/A-16C plan was quietly forgotten. The USAF still has plans to replace the A-10 with F-16s, but they no longer involve 30mm gun pods (or, apparently, a designation with an "A" in it). [Thanks to Kevin Au for posting most of this information] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.15. What's the composition of an aircraft carrier's air wing? Most of the questions along this line refer to the US Navy's carriers, so I'll discuss them first, then cover other countries. * United States: The US Navy currently operates thirteen aircraft carriers, although at any given time at least two are undergoing refit. The oldest carriers in service are the two surviving members of the 79250 tonne Forrestal class (CV-60 Saratoga and CV-62 _Independence_). CV-41 _Midway_ (the last of its class) was retired in 1992, AVT-59 _Forrestal_ and CV-61 _Ranger_ (also Forrestal class) in 1993 (_Ranger_ is mothballed for the Ready Reserve Fleet). USS _Saratoga_ is due to be decommissioned in September 1994, leaving the US Navy with twelve carriers until USS _John C Stennis_ becomes operational in 1996. These are followed by three 81775 tonne Kitty Hawk carriers (CV-63 _Kitty Hawk_, CV-64 _Constellation_, and CV-66 _America_), and the USS _John F Kennedy_ (CV-67), the sole vessel of its class, and the US Navy's last conventionally powered carrier. _Kennedy_ will be used as a training carrier after 1995. The first nuclear powered carrier was the 93970 tonne USS _Enterprise_ (CVN-65), launched in 1961; this was followed in 1975 by the first of the 93300 tonne Nimitz class, which consists so far of CVN-68 _Nimitz_, CVN-69 _Dwight D Eisenhower_, CVN-70 _Carl Vinson_, CVN-71 _Theodore Roosevelt_, CVN-72 _Abraham Lincoln_, and CVN-73 _George Washington_, to be followed by CVN-74 _John C Stennis_ (to become operational in 1996, replacing _America_) and CVN-75 _United States_ (in 1998, replacing _Independence_). A ninth Nimitz class vessel (CVN-76, not yet named) has been authorised, and a tenth (CVN-77) will be requested. The ships from CVN-71 on differ slightly from the first three (displacing 96836 tonnes), and are sometimes considered a separate class (Roosevelt class). In principle, the air wings embarked on the carriers are interchangeable; actually, the slightly different capabilities of the various carrier classes mean that this cannot quite be achieved in practice. Three slightly different types of carrier air wing (CVW) are currently in use. The "Conventional CVW", currently the most common, consists of nine squadrons. There are two VF fighter squadrons (with twelve F-14 Tomcats each), two VFA fighter/attack squadrons (twelve F/A-18 Hornets each), one VA attack squadron (ten A-6E Intruder attack aircraft and four KA-6D tankers), one VAW airborne early warning squadron (four E-2C Hawkeyes), one VAQ electronic warfare squadron (four EA-6B Prowlers), two anti-submarine squadrons (one VS with eight or ten S-3B Vikings, and one HS with six SH-3H Sea King or SH-60F Ocean Hawk helicopters), and two C-2A Greyhound COD (carrier on-board delivery) transport aircraft. Total complement is 86 or 88 aircraft. The USN is progressively switching to the "Transitional CVW", which consists of ten squadrons. It is essentially the same as the "Roosevelt CVW" described below, except that the two VA and one VS squadron each consist of only eight aircraft, and most HS squadrons have the older composition of six SH-3Hs. Total complement is 82 aircraft, or 84 if the newer HS squadron is present. The "Roosevelt CVW", taking its name from the carrier on which it was first deployed, is expected to become standard by the turn of the century. It consists of ten squadrons. There are two VF fighter squadrons (ten F-14 Tomcats each), two VFA fighter/attack squadrons (ten F/A-18 Hornets each), two VA attack squadrons (ten A-6E Intruders each), one VAW airborne early warning squadron (five E-2C Hawkeyes), one VAQ electronic warfare squadron (five EA-6B Prowlers), two anti-submarine squadrons (one VS with ten S-3B Vikings, and one HS with six SH-60F Ocean Hawk and two HH-60H Rescue Hawk helicopters), and two C-2A Greyhound transports. Total complement is 90 aircraft. A variant of this, tested in one air wing, replaces one of the F-14 squadrons with a third F/A-18 squadron. Strictly speaking, the C-2s belong to separate units and are assigned to carriers individually; they are not officially part of the carrier's air wing. The A-6 will be retired before the end of the 1990s. The attack role will be taken over by additional F/A-18s, including the considerably enhanced F/A-18E/F series. The F-14 will also gain an air-to-ground role, and probably a change of designation to F/A-14. The new standard CVW, circa 2000, will probably have four squadrons of F/A-18s. In addition to its giant carriers, the US Navy also operates a number of smaller helicopter and VTOL carriers; the aircraft aboard these are operated by the US Marine Corps. The oldest belong to the 18300 tonne Iwo Jima class, built between 1961 and 1970 (six ships; LPH-3 _Okinawa_, LPH-7 _Guadalcanal_, LPH-9 _Guam_, LPH-10 _Tripoli_, LPH-11 _New Orleans_, and LPH-12 _Inchon_; LPH-2 _Iwo Jima_ was retired in 1993). Normal complement is four AH-1T/W Cobras, 20 CH-46D/E Sea Knights, four CH-53D Sea Stallions, and four UH-1N Iroquois; they have occasionally carried Harriers, mainly on tests. The five ships of the 39300 tonne Tarawa class were built from 1976 to 1980 (LHA-1 _Tarawa_, LHA-2 _Saipan_, LHA-3 _Belleau Wood_, LHA-4 _Nassau_, and LHA-5 _Peleliu_). Complement is four AH-1T/W Cobras, 12 to 16 CH-46D/E Sea Knights, six CH-53D Sea Stallions or CH-53E Super Stallions, and four UH-1N Iroquois. Like the Iwo Jimas, they have sometimes carried Harriers. The five ships of the 40530 tonne Wasp class (LHD-1 _Wasp_, LHD-2 _Essex_, LHD-3 _Kearsage_, LHD-4 _Boxer_, and LHD-5 _Bataan_) entered service beginning in 1989. These are intended to be dual-role ships, carrying different complements of aircraft for the assault role or the "sea control" role. The assault complement, which will probably be the more common, consists of 30 helicopters (an unspecified mix of AH-1W Cobras, CH-46E Sea Knights, CH-53D Sea Stallions, CH-53E Super Stallions, SH-60B Seahawks, and UH-1N Iroquois) and six AV-8B Harrier attack aircraft. In the sea control role, the ships become true aircraft carriers, with 20 AV-8B Harriers and four to six SH-60B Seahawk helicopters. * Argentina: The Argentine Navy's single carrier, the 20000 tonne _Veinticinco de Mayo_ (25th of May) was originally a British carrier of World War II vintage, being laid down in 1942 as HMS _Venerable_; it also saw service with the Netherlands (as _Karel Doorman_) before being bought by Argentina in 1968. The ship played no part in the Falklands War of 1982, being withdrawn to port after the sinking of the _General Belgrano_. In 1986 it was laid up for a complete refit; the ship has yet to return to sea. Although Argentina operates the Super Etendard strike aircraft, designed for carrier service, early tests indicated that it would be unsuitable for use with the _Veinticinco de Mayo_ (presumably because the aircraft were designed for the larger French carriers), and Argentina's Super Etendards have always been operated from land bases. The carrier's combat wing originally consisted of A-4Q Skyhawks, which have since been retired; however, Argentina has recently bought 54 A-4Ms from the US, and it seems likely that some of these will be aboard when the carrier sails again. The Argentine Navy also has six S-2E Trackers, re-engined with turboprops. The future air wing of the _Veinticinco de Mayo_ will probably consist of about six A-4Ms for light attack, five S-2ETs for outer-zone anti-submarine warfare, three or four SH-3D/Hs for inner-zone ASW, and two Alouette IIIs for plane guard and search and rescue. * Brazil: Brazil's single carrier, _Minas Gerais_ (also originally British, starting life as HMS _Vengeance_, a sister ship to Argentina's carrier), was laid up in 1987. The original plan involved a catapult refit, but the ship was recommissioned in October 1993 with this left undone, although she does have new boilers and electronics. The former air wing comprised six to eight S-2E Trackers (now re-engined with turboprops) and four to six SH-3E Sea Kings in the anti-submarine role, plus two Bell 206B Jetrangers and two or three HB.350 Esquilos (licence-built Ecureuils) for utility duties; it seems to be more or less unchanged. Plans to build a larger, 40000 tonne carrier, with an air wing including a navalised AMX, appear to have been abandoned. * France: The French Navy currently operates two 33223 tonne carriers, _Clemenceau_ and _Foch_, commissioned in the early 1960s. They carry 16 to 20 Super Etendards in the strike role, about 7 F-8E(FN) Crusader fighters, four Etendard IVP reconnaissance aircraft, six Alize ASW aircraft, and a handful of AS.365F Dauphin helicopters for plane guard and SAR duties; these are often augmented by a few Lynx ASW helicopters. The Etendard IVPs are expected to be retired in 1995; the F-8s, originally expected to be retired fairly soon and temporarily replaced by F/A-18s pending the arrival of the Rafale M, will now soldier on until the Rafale enters naval service in 1999. The Alizes are nominally scheduled to be retired in 1998, but in fact are likely to survive into the next century. Two Grumman E-2C Hawkeye AEW aircraft have been ordered, with an option for two more. France's two current carriers are intended to be replaced by two 35000 tonne nuclear powered carriers, _Charles de Gaulle_ and _Richelieu_; the first was launched in April 1994, while the second, originally planned for 2004, is likely to slip to 2009 (or possibly be cancelled altogether). The air wings will be similar to those of the existing carriers, probably consisting of 16 to 20 Super Etendards, about 10 Rafale M fighters, two E-2C Hawkeye AEW aircraft, possibly a few Alizes, and the same complement of helicopters. * India: The Indian Navy's first carrier was the 19512 tonne INS _Vikrant_ (originally laid down in 1945 as HMS _Hercules_, but sold to India before its completion in 1961). It originally carried Sea Hawk fighters and Alize ASW aircraft; the Sea Hawks were retired in 1979 and the Alizes were relegated to shore duties in 1990. The present complement of the _Vikrant_ consists of about six Sea Harrier Mk 51 fighters, six Sea King Mk 42B ASW/ASV helicopters, and three Sea King Mk 42C utility transport helicopters. In 1987 the Indian Navy acquired a second carrier, the 29000 tonne INS _Viraat_ (formerly HMS _Hermes_), which currently carries an air wing of the same composition. The _Viraat_ is somewhat larger than the _Vikrant_, however, and its Sea Harrier complement is expected to be enlarged. India has plans to build two or three new carriers in the near future, probably carrying new combat aircraft (candidates include the Russian MiG-29K, Su-33, and Yak-41). * Italy: The Italian Navy operates a single carrier, the 13452 tonne _Giuseppe Garibaldi_, launched in 1983 and commissioned in 1987. Its air arm is still in training, but is planned to consist of 16 AV-8B-Plus Harriers in the fighter/attack role and 18 SH-3D Sea King ASW helicopters (possibly including some AEW variants). The Sea Kings will eventually be replaced by EH.101s. The Italian Navy intends to acquire a second carrier in the same class, and possibly a third. * Russia (and the former USSR) (see also section 2.7): The USSR's first serious attempt at seagoing aviation were the two 19200 tonne helicopter carriers of the Moskva class, _Moskva_ and _Leningrad_, the first being launched in 1967; these carry 15 to 18 Ka-25 helicopters of various subtypes. They were followed in 1976 by the first of the 43000 tonne Kiev class, which eventually numbered four ships (_Kiev_, _Minsk_, _Novorossiysk_, and _Baku_; the last was later renamed _Admiral Gorshkov_), and carried the USSR's first V/STOL aircraft, the Yak-38. The air wing originally consisted of twelve Yak-38F/M strike fighters, one Yak-38U trainer, and 15 to 20 helicopters of the Ka-25 and Ka-27/28/29 families. The first three of these carriers were retired in the early 1990s, along with the entire fleet of Yak-38s; the one surviving ship, _Admiral Gorshkov_, now carries only helicopters. The four ships were actually divided into three subclasses, _Novorossiysk_ and _Baku_/_Gorshkov_ differing from the first two ships, and from each other. _Novorossiysk_ was designed for a larger air wing, although by the time it entered service, the Yak-38 was falling out of favour, and it probably carried extra helicopters rather than fixed-wing aircraft. _Gorshkov_ carried a still larger air wing, and was designed with the (now cancelled) Yak-41 in mind; the actual capacity of the ship's hangars has never been released, but it probably carries about 35 to 40 aircraft or helicopters. The USSR's first conventional carrier, the 67500 tonne _Tbilisi_ (later renamed _Admiral Kuznetsov_), was launched in 1985. It was originally used for sea trials of a variety of naval aircraft prototypes; the aircraft types involved have now been narrowed down, and the _Kuznetsov_ is now involved in training of naval pilots and crew. When it enters full service, it is expected to carry an air wing of about 50 to 60 aircraft, comprised of about 20 Su-33 multirole fighters, perhaps another 10 to 20 strike aircraft of unknown type (probably another Su-27 derivative), a few Su-25UTG trainers, and the usual assortment of Ka-27/28/29/32 helicopters. The Yak-44 AEW aircraft has been cancelled; a Ka-32 helicopter has been seen with what appears to be an AEW system. _Varyag_ (formerly _Riga_), sister ship to _Kuznetsov_, was left incomplete at the Nikolayev shipyard; Russia, after dithering for several years, finally decided not to buy the ship, and (after failing to sell it to anyone else) the Ukrainian government has ordered it to be scrapped. The third large carrier, the 75000 tonne, nuclear powered _Ulyanovsk_, was never completed and has already been scrapped. * Spain: Spain's only current aircraft carrier, the 16700 tonne _Principe de Asturias_, was commissioned in 1989 to replace the aging 13000 tonne _Dedalo_. The design was based on the Sea Control Ship concept, developed in 1974 for the US Navy but then abandoned. It carries six to eight AV-8B Harrier strike aircraft (expected to be upgraded to AV-8B-Plus standard, with air-to-air radar), six to eight SH-3H Sea King helicopters (mainly in the ASW role, but also including one or two AEW versions), and four to eight AB.212ASW helicopters. * United Kingdom: The Royal Navy's three 20600 tonne Invincible class carriers (_Invincible_, _Illustrious_, and _Ark Royal_) were originally designated "through-deck cruisers", to get around political attempts to prevent the RN from operating carriers. At any time, two of the carriers are in service while the third undergoes refit. The two active air wings normally each consist of nine Sea Harrier FRS.1 strike fighters (to be replaced by the more advanced F/A.2 version), nine Sea King HAS.6 ASW helicopters, and three Sea King AEW.2A AEW helicopters. The composition of the Sea King complement varies to meet the requirements of particular missions, often including the HC.4 assault transport version. A new helicopter carrier, HMS _Ocean_, was ordered in 1994. [Most of this information comes from Lindsay Peacock's article in the June 1993 issue of _Air International_, and from _Modern Warships_ by Tony Gibbons and David Miller, and _Modern US Navy_ by John Jordan; thanks to Simon Shpilfoygel for additional information on the Russian carriers, and to Robin Lee for recent updates] ------------------------------ Subject: 2.16. What's a TR-3? A report in _Aviation Week and Space Technology_ in mid 1991 described a "triangular flying wing" reconnaissance aircraft, developed by Northrop (now Northrop Grumman) from 1982, designated TR-3A and nicknamed "Black Manta". According to the report, the aircraft had a length of about 13 metres, wingspan of about 19 metres, and a range of 5600 kilometres; it had been deployed for trials to Alaska, Okinawa, Panama, and the UK, and a few had been employed in Desert Storm in the reconnaissance role. The aircraft was apparently developed from a Northrop technology demonstrator known as THAP (Tactical High Altitude Penetrator), which first flew in 1981 and was similar in design, but slightly smaller. After this report, however, nothing more was heard of the TR-3 for two years. In 1993, Steve Douglass, an amateur "stealth watcher" who keeps an eye on the USAF's "black" programmes for a hobby, took a videotape of an aircraft landing at White Sands Missile Range. Enhancement of the image revealed a formerly unknown aircraft, almost certainly the TR-3. Apart from having a curved trailing edge, it resembled a scaled-down B-2 (or a Horten IX; see section 3.1). It appears to be a single-seat, twin-engine, approximately triangular flying wing, which fits the description given in the earlier report. You can find more details, including an artist's impression based on the video images, in the February 1994 issue of _Wired_. Of the various "black" aircraft supposed to be flown by the USAF (see also section 2.2), more solid evidence exists for the TR-3 than any other, and its existence seems virtually certain. Although it's difficult to judge the exact size of the aircraft from Douglass's image, the dimensions quoted in the original report are plausible. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.17. Did someone buy Grumman? Yes. Northrop took it over in May 1994, and is now known as Northrop Grumman. ------------------------------ Subject: 2.18. Why do some aircraft have gold-tinted canopies? Gold-tinted canopies have been noticed on the EA-6B and the F-16C/D. Officially the purpose of this treatment is classified, but discussion on the newsgroup has brought general agreement (based on unclassified sources and hints dropped by pilots) that the gold coating is a shield against electromagnetic rdiation (mainly radar). On the EA-6B, the coating protects the crew from the powerful emissions of the Prowler's jamming pods; on the F-16C/D, it reduces the aircraft's radar signature, by reducing reflections off the complex interior shape of the cockpit. The coating is a very thin layer of actual gold metal, not a gold-tinted paint. Other aircraft, such as the F-15E and F/A-18C/D, have a distinct greenish tinge to their canopies. This is a different coating (on the inside of the canopy rather than the outside) that reduces internal reflections to help visibility. Several newgroup readers report having similar coatings on their glasses, so it's not exactly a secret. ------------------------------ Subject: 3.1. What jet aircraft were the Germans working on during WW2? * Arado Ar 234 Blitz (Lightning): The world's first jet bomber. First flight, 15 June 1943; service entry, September 1944. The two versions to see service, the Ar 234B-1 unarmed reconnaissance aircraft and B-2 bomber, were single-seat aircraft powered by two 8.83 kN thrust Jumo 004B turbojets. The Ar 234C series, with four 7.85 kN BMW 003A-1 turbojets, never reached service, although several prototypes flew. 210 Ar 234s were completed before the end of the war; the Ar 234 was involved in the Battle of the Bulge, the destruction of the Remagen bridge, and several other battles. Plans included the Ar 234C-1 reconnaissance plane, C-2 bomber, and C-3 in bomber, ground attack, and night fighter subtypes; a C-3 variant carrying a V-1 cruise missile on its back was also planned. Other proposals included the Ar 234D (two Heinkel HeS 011A turbojets), Ar 234E (fighter based on Ar 234D), Ar 234P (night fighter), and Ar 234R (rocket engines). Vital statistics (Ar 234B-2): length 12.65 m, span 14.20 m, empty weight 5200 kg, max weight 8410 kg, max speed 742 km/h, range 1630 km; armament: two 20mm cannon, 1500 kg bomb load. * Bachem Ba 349 Natter (Viper): This was a tiny, extremely short-range rocket-powered interceptor. It was designed to be launched vertically, fire its rocket armament into a bomber formation, and then come apart in mid-air; the forward section would be thrown away, the rear section would descend by parachute to be re-used, and the pilot, released from between the two, would descend on his own parachute. The initial version, the Ba 349A, was powered by four 11.77 kN Schmidding 109-533 booster rockets and one 16.67 kN Walter 109-509A-2 sustainer rocket; 20 of this version were built, of which only one made a single manned flight. Part of the forward fuselage broke away prematurely, and the aircraft crashed, killing the pilot. There were plans for a Ba 349C with a more powerful rocket and a larger tail for better control. Vital statistics (Ba 349B): length 6.10 m, span 3.60 m, max weight 2200 kg, max speed 800 km/h, range 40 km; armament: 24 Föhn rockets. * DFS 228: High-altitude, air-launched reconnaissance aircraft with a rocket engine, in development during 1945. Claimed are a ceiling of 20000 m, a speed of 1000 km/h, and a range of 720 km -- but no DFS 228, and few documents, survived the war. * DFS 346: A 1945 design for an aircraft with two 20 kN Walter rocket engines, swept wings and a prone pilot position. It had an estimated top speed of Mach 2.6 at 30500 m. The incomplete prototype was captured by the USSR and test flown, with one of the interned B-29s as launch aircraft. * Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg: Basically a manned version of the V-1 (Fi 103) flying bomb (the first cruise missile). In theory, this wasn't a Kamikaze-style suicide weapon, since the pilot was intended to bail out after aiming the aircraft/missile at its target. In practice, this would have presented certain difficulties, since the cockpit was placed directly underneath the jet intake! The engine was the same one used on the V-1, one 2.94 kN As 109-014 pulse-jet. Versions planned were the Fi 103R-I and R-II training gliders, R-III powered trainer, and R-IV operational version. About 175 were built, and a few test flights were made by the R-III, but none flew operationally. Vital statistics (for the V-1; the Fi 103R-IV would have been very similar): length 7.90 m, span 5.30 m, weight 2180 kg, max speed 645 km/h, range 240 km; armament: 850 kg warhead. * Focke-Wulf Ta 183: Single-seat jet fighter powered by one 12.75 kN Heinkel HeS 011 turbojet. Planned versions included the Ta 183A-1 and A-2 fighters, and A-3 photo-reconnaissance version. It was selected for production in January 1945 in favour of the Messerschmitt P-1101; it is not known how far it had progressed by the end of the war, but it is unlikely that any examples flew. Drawings and parts were taken by the Russians, and probably contributed to the design of the MiG-15, which was similar in appearance. Vital statistics (Ta 183A-1): length 9.20 m, span 10.00 m, max weight 4300 kg, max speed 954 km/h, range 722 km; armament: four 15mm or 20mm cannon or two 30mm cannon; 500 kg bomb load. * Heinkel He 162 Salamander: A tiny, single-engine fighter, famous for the speed of the development programme -- the first prototype flew on 6 December 1944, less than three months after the requirement was issued! It was intended to be a "Volksjäger" (people's fighter) that could be flown by Hitler Youth volunteers after minimal training; fortunately for the youths concerned, the war ended before this plan could be put into action. 280 aircraft were completed before the end of the war (and another 800 were found in various stages of completion in the factories), but only a handful actually saw combat, in the hands of expert pilots. By all accounts the Salamander had lousy handling characteristics and was difficult for even experienced pilots to fly. Versions built were the He 162A-1 and A-2, both powered by one 7.85 kN BMW 003E-1 or E-2 turbojet (differing only in being armed with two 30mm or two 20mm cannon, respectively); proposals included the He 162B (one or two pulse-jet engines), He 162C (forward-swept wings), He 162D (swept-back wings), and various combinations of jet and rocket propulsion. Vital statistics (He 162A-2): length 9.00 m, span 7.20 m, empty weight 2180 kg, max weight 2695 kg, max speed 784 km/h, range 695 km; armament: two 20mm cannon. * Heinkel He 280: The first jet fighter to fly, the He 280 was powered by two 8.24 kN Junkers Jumo 004 turbojets. Development was delayed, and eventually abandoned in favour of the superior Me 262. Vital statistics (He 280 V6): max speed 817 km/h; armament: three 20mm cannon. * Henschel Hs 132: A dive bomber powered by a single 7.85 kN BMW 003A-1 turbojet, the Hs 132 was built along the same general lines as the He 162, with the engine mounted dorsally on the fuselage. The unique feature was a prone pilot position, intended to improve G tolerance. The factory was overrun by the Soviet Army shortly before the first flight was planned. Vital statistics: Max speed 700 km/h; armament: one 500 kg bomb. * Horten Ho IX (also known as Gotha Go 229): A flying wing fighter of futuristic and elegant appearance. It had a flat, tailless design, and was intended to be constructed mainly of wood, with special glues and lacquers to minimise radar signature -- in other words, it was the first stealth fighter! Only one prototype flew, the Ho IX V2, making its first and only powered flight in January 1945; unfortunately it crashed on landing. The prototype was powered by two 8.73 kN Jumo 004B turbojets (which would also have powered the production Go 229 versions). Production of the fighter was assigned to the Gotha factory; versions planned were the single-seat Go 229A day fighter, and the two-seat, radar-equipped Go 229B night fighter. Vital statistics (Go 229A-0): empty weight 4600 kg, max weight 7507 kg, max speed 977 km/h, range 1900 km; armament: four 30mm cannon; 2000 kg bomb load. * Horten Ho X: Single-engined flying wing fighter, basically a slightly scaled-down Ho IX. None were built. * Horten Ho XVIII "Amerika bomber": Six-engine flying wing bomber. Apart from the curved trailing edge, this design bore an amazing resemblance to the Northrop B-2. None were built, although the first prototype was under construction at the end of the war. Rumour has it this aircraft was intended to carry the German atomic bomb to America. Vital statistics: range 11900 km; armament: 3600 kg bomb load. * Junkers Ju 287: A heavy jet bomber, unusual in having forward swept wings. A single prototype flew before the end of the war (a second was completed and flown in Russia after the war). The prototype was powered by four turbojets, one under each wing and one on either side of the nose; planned versions included several different arrangements of two, four, or six engines. * Lippisch P13a: This one takes the prize (any prize). It was a ramjet-powered, sharply swept delta, with the cockpit built into the tail fin. It was powered by coal gas generated from solid fuel, and had a nominal design speed of 1650 km/h. Yes, you read that right -- a coal-powered supersonic fighter. A small rocket engine was provided for take-off. Alas, it never flew. The DM-1 glider, built along the same general lines and intended to validate the airframe design, was completed after the war and test-flown in the US; I have no idea what the results were. Vital statistics: length 6.7 m, span 6.0 m, max speed 1650 km/h (Mach 1.55; this was the original design speed, although wind tunnel tests went up to Mach 2.6), range 1240 km; armament: two cannon. * Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet: The only rocket-powered aircraft ever to enter service. First flight, early 1941; service entry, May 1944. Unusual in appearance as well as propulsion, it had a short fuselage with swept wings and no horizontal tail; despite the tailless design, it had excellent flight characteristics and was reportedly very easy to fly. Landing was a different matter, though -- the awkward centreline skid arrangement (to save weight, the wheeled trolley used for take-off was jettisoned once the plane was airborne), combined with the presence of highly volatile and explosive rocket fuel, resulted in many Komets living up to their name and ending their days as fireballs. In the air, however, the combination of tremendous speed, small size, and the element of surprise made them reasonably successful against American bomber formations, on the few occasions they entered combat. There was only one service version, the Me 163B-1, powered by one 16.67 kN Walter HWK 509A-2 liquid fuel rocket; about 370 of these saw service. Plans existed for a greatly improved version, the Me 263 (also known as the Junkers Ju 248; Junkers did much of the development work), with a new engine (16.67 kN Walter HWK 109-509C-4, with separate boost and cruise chambers, giving a 15-minute endurance), more fuel, and a real landing gear, but none were built by the end of the war. Vital statistics (Me 163B-1): length 5.69 m, span 9.30 m, empty weight 1905 kg, max weight 4110 kg, max speed 960 km/h, range 100 km; armament: two 30mm cannon. * Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow): The first jet fighter to enter service with any country. First flight, 4 April 1941; service entry, 30 June 1944. The Me 262 was much faster and more heavily armed than the contemporary Gloster Meteor, and could have had a much greater effect on the war than it actually did if Hitler had not crippled it by insisting that it be used only as a bomber! Problems with engine development were another delaying factor. The Me 262 was also the first aircraft in service with swept wings, although this came about by accident -- a redesign of the fuselage happened to move the centre of gravity further back than had originally been intended, and the wings were angled slightly back to compensate; it was only later that it was discovered that this had fortuitously improved the aerodynamics. Variants to see service were the Me 262A-1a fighter, A-2a fighter-bomber, B-1a two-seat trainer, and B-1a/U1 radar-equipped night fighter, all powered by two 8.83 kN Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets. Although 1433 Me 262s had been delivered by VE day, shortage of fuel (and pilots) meant that only about 100 of them ever saw active service. Plans included the Me 262B-2a night fighter with enlarged fuselage carrying more fuel and Schräge Musik upward-firing cannon, and Me 262C with rocket boosters (a few prototypes flew before the war ended). Vital statistics (Me 262A-1a): length 10.60 m, span 12.50 m, empty weight 4000 kg, max weight 7045 kg, max speed 870 km/h, range 1050 km; armament: four 30mm cannon. * Messerschmitt Me 328: This was a short-lived design, powered by two 2.94 kN Argus As 014 pulse-jets and intended to be a cheap and quickly-built ground attack aircraft, with a secondary role as a day fighter. Only one prototype flew, sometime in 1944; this was enough to convince even the desperate Germans that a pulse-jet powered fighter was a Dumb Idea. Vital statistics (Me 328A-1): max speed 755 km/h; armament: two 15mm machine guns. * Messerschmitt P-1101: Jet fighter powered by one Junkers Jumo 004B turbojet, mounted in the lower forward fuselage and fed by a nose inlet, in a design similar to the post-war Yak-17 or Saab 29. The unique feature was the variable geometry wings, the first time "swing wings" had been tried on an aircraft. Only one prototype was completed before the P-1101 was cancelled in favour of the Focke-Wulf Ta 183; it was never flown during the war, but was taken back to the US and fitted with an Allison J35 turbojet. Unfortunately it was damaged in the only attempt to take off. The Bell X-5 was based on the P-1101's design, and was successfully used to investigate variable sweep. The P-1101 prototype (like the X-5) lacked true variable geometry; the sweep angle could only be adjusted on the ground, and could not be varied in flight. The cancelled production version would have had true variable sweep. * Mistel 5: This was an unmanned flying bomb, intended to carry an He 162 fighter piggyback, in the same way as the Me 109 or Fw 190 was coupled with a warhead-carrying Ju 88 in the original Mistel versions. The He 162 pilot would aim the missile at its target, then separate the two aircraft and fly his fighter back home. The unmanned component is referred to by different sources as either the Arado E-377a or the Junkers Ju 268. Power plant was two BMW 003 turbojets. This one never left the drawing board. For those interested in plastic modelling, the Dragon line of kits includes many of the above types (Ar 234B/C/C+V1, Ba 349, Fi 103, Go 229A/B, He 162, Me 163, Me 262A/B, Mistel 5, P-1101) in 1/48 or 1/72 scale; the Japanese company Mauve produce a 1/48 kit of the Lippisch P13a; PM Models make a Ta 183 kit. Two other projects are worthy of note. The A9/A10 was a planned two-stage missile; the first stage would have been basically a scaled-up V-2, while the second stage would have been a winged skip-glide re-entry vehicle that could have carried a massive warhead (I don't know exactly how massive) to the United States. Prototype versions of the two components were tested separately, but not together; the winged rocket, with no booster, reached 4340 km/h (Mach 4.1)! There were also plans for a manned version. The Sänger-Bredt "spaceplane" was a design for a manned craft launched by a captive rocket booster on rails; the booster remained on the ground after the spaceplane separated (at about Mach 1.5!). The 100-tonne plane (of which 90 tonnes was fuel) would not reach orbit, but would attain a maximum altitude of 185 kilometres in a series of boosts and glides which would carry it all the way around the world. It was designed as a bomber, but could easily have been adapted for other purposes. An orbital version, although not officially investigated, must surely have been on the minds of the designers, Eugen Sänger and Irene Bredt. [Most of the above is from Bill Gunston's _Encyclopaedia of the World's Combat Aircraft_ and Kenneth Munson's _German War Birds_; also thanks to Steve Malikoff for further information on the Lippisch deltas, and Emmanuel Gustin for much additional information] ------------------------------ Subject: 3.2. How "stealthy" was the wooden Mosquito? The suggestion that the Mosquito, being made largely of wood, would have made a good "stealth bomber" is brought up every now and then. It's a myth. It's true that wood absorbs some radio waves, but it also reflects some and transmits some. The Mosquito showed up perfectly well on radar, mainly because the waves that passed through the wood reflected very well off the metal internal structures -- framework, wing spars, bomb racks, cockpit, and (especially) engines. On modern stealth aircraft, the cockpit in particular is still a problem; most canopy materials are almost as transparent to radio waves as they are to visible light, and the complex shape of the interior of the cockpit (not to mention the pilot, especially their helmet) is an excellent radar reflector. The materials used for canopy coatings are among the most secret parts of stealth designs (see 2.18). It would, however, have been possible to built a stealth aircraft out of wood, if (unlike the Mosquito) it was designed with stealth in mind from the start. The Germans tried it with the Horten Ho IX flying-wing fighter, which (besides its tailless design, which helped a lot) was constructed with special glues and coatings designed to absorb radar. Presumably the same would have been true of the Ho XVIII bomber. (See 3.1 for further details.) ------------------------------ Subject: 4.1. What good books are there on air combat? The definitive work on air combat manoeuvring (ACM) is generally believed to be _Fighter Combat_ by Robert L Shaw (the full title is either _Fighter Combat: Tactics and Manoeuvring_ or _Fighter Combat: The Art and Science of Air-to-Air Warfare_, depending on which edition you have). The book is published by the US Naval Institute, Annapolis, Maryland (ISBN 1-85260-201-5). It covers a wide range of mission profiles, engagements (one-on-one to many-on-many), and weapon types. ------------------------------ Subject: 4.2. Where can I get a pilot's manual for aircraft X? You might try: Historic Aviation Snail: 1401 Kings Wood Rd, Eagan, Minn 55122, USA Voice: US/Canada 1-800-225-5575, overseas 1-612-454-2493 They have a wide selection of aircraft related books, including reproduction pilot's manuals (and Shaw's book, mentioned above). Most manuals cost about US$10.00, some running up to US$15.00; the SR-71 manual is a special case, costing US$99.95. Dwight Brown reports good service from them. Manuals available include AT-6, B-17, B-24, B-25, B-26, B-29, F-80, F-82, F4U, F6F, FM-2, Hurricane, Me 262, Mosquito, P-38, P-39, P-40, P-47, P-51, P-61, P-63, Spitfire, and SR-71. ------------------------------ -- ... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ... "Being in the air farce and navy means you only get to kill people by remote control, which takes some of the fun out of it." (Steve Kieffer-Higgins, in alt.tasteless) Archive-Name: mil-aviation-faq/part4 Posting-Frequency: Monthly Last-Modified: 21-Aug-1994 rec.aviation.military Frequently Asked Questions Ross Smith avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ------------------------------ Subject: 4.3. What FTP sites have aircraft pictures and related material? "byrd.mu.wvnet.edu": Military history site. The directory "/pub/history/military/airforce" stores J Baugher's posts on American fighters, Emmanuel Gustin's lists of military aircraft, the "Boomerang Barbara" posts, several other fact sheets, this FAQ, and some pictures. Other directories are worth scanning too. "ftp.cs.ruu.nl": "/pub/AIRCRAFT-IMAGES" contains aircraft pictures; also reachable via WWW ("http://www.cs.ruu.nl/ftp/aircraft-images.html"). "ftp.rutgers.edu": "/pub/wwii/usaf" contains part of the USAF history. "ftp.shell.portal.com" (IP 156.151.3.4): "/pub/trader" contains information related to "excessive military secrecy", Groom Lake, and similar subjects. "ftp.sunet.se": "/pub/pictures/vehicles/aircraft" contains a lot of modern aircraft pictures. "ftp.uws.edu.au": "/pub/images" contains a number of ".bmp" images, including F-111 dump-and-burn, helicopters, Mustangs, Neptunes, others. "harbor.ecn.purdue.edu": "/pub/skunk-works" contains articles, lists and pictures of Lockheed "Skunk Works" aircraft. "rascal.ics.utexas.edu": "misc/av" contains numerous aviation-related files. Includes "combat-aircraft", "humor-folder", "aircraft-info-folder", etc. "rtfm.mit.edu": Has directories "/pub/usenet/rec.travel.air" and "/pub/usenet/sci.military". [Disclaimer: I don't have FTP access, so I haven't been able to check any of these myself] ------------------------------ Subject: 4.4. What military aviation related mailing lists are available? Groom Lake Desert Rat: Covers America's secret aircraft mecca. To subscribe, send requests to Glenn Campbell at "psychospy@aol.com". Neon Azimuth: Devoted to the sources and methods that can be used to locate secret US military programs. To subscribe, send requests to Paul McGinnis at "trader@cup.portal.com". Skunk Works Digest: To subscribe, send a message to "majordomo@mail.orst.edu"; in the body of the message, include the line "subscribe skunk-works-digest". [Thanks to Paul McGinnis] ------------------------------ Subject: 5.1. Where can I see surviving examples of famous aircraft? There are many museums all over the world with historic aircraft in their collections; the following are just the random sample I've assembled from posts on the newsgroup and contributions by email. Further contributions are solicited. United States: * Davis-Montham AFB, Tucson, Arizona * EAA Aviation Museum, Oshkosh, Wisconsin (B-17, Voyager) * Hill AFB Museum, Utah (SR-71C, others) * Museum of Flight, Boeing Field, Seattle, Washington (707 and 747 prototypes, B-29, B-47, F4U, SR-71 + D-21, others) * Pima County Air Museum, Tucson, Arizona (B-29, B-58, SR-71, YF-107) * San Diego Aerospace Museum, San Diego, California (Bf 109, F-4, Spitfire, SR-71) * Sea, Air, and Space Museum, New York City (A-12; the museum itself is the retired aircraft carrier USS _Intrepid_) * Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, Washington, DC (many historically significant aircraft) * Wright Field USAF Museum, Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio (B-36, B-58, Fw 190, Kawanishi N1K2 Shinden, Me 262, P-75, Storch, Wright 1909 Military Flyer, XB-70, many more; probably the largest aircraft museum in the world) * US Navy Aviation Museum, Pensacola, Florida * Virginia Air and Space Museum, Hampton, Virginia (F-4, F4U, F-84, F-104, F-106, Langley Aerodrome, P-39, YF-16) United Kingdom: * Cosford Air Museum, Wolverhampton (Avro 707, F.D.2, Hunter, Lincoln, Me 163, P.5, S.R.177, TSR.2, many others) * Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yevilton, Somerset * Imperial War Museum, Duxford, Cambridgeshire (probably the biggest collection in Europe) * Imperial War Museum, Lambeth, London * RAF Museum, Hendon, London * Science Museum, South Kensington, London * Shuttleworth Collection, Old Warden, Sandy, Bedfordshire ("string and fabric" planes) Western Europe: * Aviodome, Schiphol, Netherlands (many Dutch aircraft) * Caproni Museum, Trento, Italy (Breda 19, Ca 6, Ca 9, Ca 100, Ca 163, Ca 193, Fokker D.VIII, others) * Deutsches Museum, München, Germany (Ba 349, Do 335, Ju 52, Me 262 many other aircraft from pre-WW1 to present) * Le Bourget, Paris, France (large collection) * Military Museum, Brussels, Belgium (CF-100, Draken, F-86, Hanriot HD-1, Hurricane, MiG-15, Spad XIII, others) * Motor und Technik Museum, Sinsheim, Germany (F-104, Fw 190, He 111, Ju 52, Ju 87, Ju 88, Me 109, MiG-21, MiG-23, Venom, others) * Musee de l'Hydravion, Biscarosse, France * Museo Nazionale Leonardo da Vinci, Milano, Italy * Museum of the Aviation Legere de l'Armee, Dax, France (mainly helicopters) Eastern Europe: * Monino, Moscow, Russia (vast collection of rare and unusual Russian types, e.g. La-250, M-52, T-4, T-6, V-12, Yak-36, Ye-166, Ye-231, many others) * Plovdiv Museum, Plovdiv, Bulgaria (Ar 196, Il-2, Il-28, Li-2, Mi-1, Mi-4, MiG-15, MiG-17, Yak-9, Yak-11, Yak-23, many others) China: * Chinese People's Revolutionary Military Museum, West-City Region, Beijing (J-5/MiG-17, MiG-15, captured U-2, many missiles, tanks, model warships) * Datang Mountain Aerospace Museum (Da4-Tang1-Shan1-Hang2-Kong1-Bo2- Wu4-Guan3), Chang-Ping, Beijing (all Chinese military aircraft, including prototypes such as J-12 and Tu-4/B-29 AWACS plane, plus many missiles and Russian aircraft; this is the Chinese equivalent of Monino in Russia, and is probably the largest aircraft collection in Asia) Australia: * Airworld, Wangaratta, Victoria (Dragon, Hudson, Rapide, Staggerwing, others; mainly civil aircraft) * Australian War Memorial Museum, Canberra, ACT (Bf 109, Lancaster, Me 163, Me 262, P-40, Spitfire, Zero, others) * RAAF Museum, Point Cook, Victoria (Boomerang, Canberra, F-4, F-86, Meteor, Mirage, P-2, P-51, Vampire, Ventura, Walrus, Wirraway, others; claimed to be the largest collection of military aircraft in the Southern Hemisphere) * RAN Fleet Air Arm Museum, Nowra, NSW (A-4, Firefly, Gannet, MiG-15, S-2, Sea Fury, Sea Venom, Vampire, others) ------------------------------ Subject: 6.1. American aircraft designations The US Air Force (and its predecessor, the US Army Air Force) has used several aircraft designation systems in its history. The three most important are the USAAF system adopted in 1924 and used through World War II and up to 1948; the USAF system used from 1948 to 1962; and the Tri-Service system adopted in 1962 to provide a common system for USAF, US Army, and US Navy aircraft. The three systems are similar enough that they can conveniently be described together. A designation consists of a letter (or set of letters) indicating the type and mission of the aircraft, and a sequence number indicating a specific aircraft within a category, separated by a hyphen. The number may be followed by a series letter to indicate a variant of an aircraft. Most aircraft are also given a proper name, but this is not part of the formal designation. Mission codes used in the USAAF system included the following: A = Attack AG = Assault glider AT = Advanced trainer B = Bomber BC = Basic combat BG = Bomb glider BQ = Guided bomb BT = Basic trainer C = Cargo transport CG = Cargo glider CQ = Target control F = Photographic reconnaissance FG = Fuel-carrying glider FM = Multiplace fighter G = Gyroplane GB = Glide bomb GT = Glide torpedo JB = Jet-propelled bomb L = Liaison O = Observation OA = Observation amphibian OQ = Target P = Pursuit PB = Biplace pursuit PG = Powered glider PQ = Manned target PT = Primary trainer R = Rotorcraft TG = Training glider These were sometimes modified by one of the following prefixes, indicating a special status or modification: C = Cargo transport F = Photographic reconnaissance K = Ferret R = Restricted operations T = Trainer U = Utility V = Staff transport X = Experimental Y = Service test Z = Obsolete The first version of a type had no series letter; the second was suffixed with "A", the third with "B", and so on. For obvious reasons, the letters "I" and "O" are usually skipped. For example, the B-29A is the second version of the 29th bomber aircraft identified by the USAAF. The USAF system (1948) was similar to the USAAF system; it retained the three-part code, although the series letters now started with "A" for the first version rather than the second. The mission codes were rationalised somewhat; "F" for "Fighter" replaced "P" for "Pursuit" (the existing P-series aircraft being redesignated, and new aircraft receiving F-series numbers continuing the old P-series), "H" for "Helicopter" replaced "R" for "Rotorcraft", and "R" for "Reconnaissance" replaced "F" for "Photographic". The "L" for "Liaison" code was subsumed by "O" for "Observation", and most of the two-letter codes were combined into one (e.g. a single "T" series replaced the old "AT", "BT", and "PT"). The Tri-Service system (1962) underwent further changes, although it still retained the basic scheme of the older systems. The most important changes were that the system now included Navy aircraft as well as USAF and Army, and that most of the numeric sequences were restarted from 1, since some were now well past 100 and were becoming unwieldy. Starting from the central dash and moving *left*, the letter codes now consist of up to four letters (although only the "basic mission" code is mandatory, and I've never seen a real designation with more than three letters). (1) Vehicle type (optional; indicates something other than a conventional fixed-wing aircraft): G = Glider H = Helicopter V = VTOL or STOL Z = Lighter than air (Z for Zeppelin) (2) Basic mission: A = Attack B = Bomber C = Cargo transport E = Special electronics F = Fighter O = Observation P = Maritime patrol R = Reconnaissance S = Anti-submarine warfare T = Trainer U = Utility X = Research (3) Modified mission (optional; indicates that a type originally designed for the mission indicated by its "basic mission" code has been modified for a different mission); includes the A, C, E, F, O, P, R, S, T, and U mission codes, plus: D = Drone control H = Search and rescue K = Tanker (K for Kerosene) L = Cold weather M = Multi-mission Q = Drone V = VIP or staff transport W = Weather observation (4) Status (optional; indicates any unusual status): G = Permanently grounded J = Temporary special test N = Permanent special test X = Experimental Y = Prototype Z = Planning The sequence numbers are based on the vehicle type (if present) or the basic mission. For example, all helicopters (vehicle type "H") are numbered in a single sequence regardless of the basic mission code, while conventional aircraft (with no vehicle type code) follow separate sequences for attack aircraft, bombers, transports, and so on. There are a few oddities here; for example, the AV-8 Harrier seems to have taken the number 8 slot in both the "A" and "V" sequences. For some reason, the "T" (trainer) sequence, last seen in the Cessna T-47 in 1984, was restarted with the Beech T-1 Jayhawk in 1990. The system has not been followed perfectly; exceptions include the A-37 Dragonfly (attack version of T-37 trainer; there was an AT-37, so the A-37 should have either continued the AT-37 designation or been given a proper A-series number), F/A-18 Hornet (should have been just F-18, or possibly AF-18), FB-111 (bomber version of the F-111; should have been BF-111), SR-71 (the letters indicate "strategic reconnaissance", not an anti-submarine modification, and the number is actually from the pre-1962 bomber series!), and a few others. ------------------------------ Subject: 6.2. US Navy aircraft designations (pre-1962) Before the adoption of the Tri-Service system in 1962, the US Navy had its own system of aircraft designations, completely different from that used by the USAAF and USAF. This consisted of up to five parts: (1) One or two letters to indicate the function. These included: A = Attack BF = Fighter-bomber F = Fighter HC = Transport helicopter HO = Observation helicopter HU = Utility helicopter J = Utility N = Trainer O = Observation P = Patrol PB = Patrol bomber R = Transport SB = Scout bomber T = Trainer TB = Torpedo bomber W = Early warning (2) A sequence number, to distinguish between aircraft of the same function built by the same manufacturer. The number was left out if it was 1. (3) A letter to indicate the manufacturer. Because the US Navy used aircraft from considerably more than 26 different manufacturers, most of the letters of the alphabet were shared between several companies; the same company frequently used more than one letter at various times. If the same aircraft was built by more than one firm, the designation was changed to reflect the individual manufacturers (for example, the Chance-Vought F4U Corsair was also built by Goodyear, whose Corsairs were designated FG). Some of the most important manufacturers were: A = Brewster, Noorduyn B = Beechcraft, Boeing C = Cessna, Curtiss D = Douglas, McDonnell E = Cessna, Piper F = Fairchild, Grumman H = McDonnell J = North American K = Fairchild, Kaman L = Bell M = Bell, Martin O = Lockheed, Piper Q = Fairchild S = Sikorsky, Stearman T = Northrop U = Chance-Vought V = Lockheed, Vultee W = Wright Y = Consolidated, Convair (4) After a dash, a number to indicate a subtype. (5) Optionally, a letter to indicate a minor variation on a subtype. For example, the F4U was the fourth fighter designed by Chance-Vought for the US Navy. The F4U-1A was a modified version of the first subtype of the F4U. The F4U was commonly known as the Corsair, but, as with Air Force types, the name was not part of the formal designation (Vince Norris, who has quite a few hours in USN aircraft, reports that they were always referred to by their designations, not the proper names; using names instead of numbers was the mark of a civilian). When the Tri-Service system was adopted in 1962, aircraft then in USN service (as well as some under development or recently retired) were redesignated under the new system. Some were simply given the designation already used by the USAF for the same aircraft; others were given new designations. They included: Beech SNB Expediter = C-45 * Bell HTL/HUL Sioux = H-13 * Convair F2Y Sea Dart = F-7 Convair P4Y Privateer = P-4 Convair R4Y Samaritan = C-131 * De Havilland Canada UC Otter = U-1 * Douglas AD Skyraider = A-1 Douglas A3D Skywarrior = A-3 Douglas A4D Skyhawk = A-4 Douglas F3D Skyknight = F-10 Douglas F4D Skyray = F-6 Douglas JD Invader = B-26 * Douglas R4D Skytrain = C-47/117 * Douglas R5D Skymaster = C-54 * Douglas R6D Liftmaster = C-118 * Fairchild R4Q Boxcar = C-119 * Grumman A2F Intruder = A-6 Grumman F9F Panther/Cougar = F-9 Grumman F11F Tiger = F-11 Grumman S2F Tracker = S-2 Grumman TF Trader = C-1 Grumman UF Albatross = U-16 * Grumman WF Tracer = E-1 Grumman W2F Hawkeye = E-2 Kaman HOK/HTK/HUK Huskie = H-43 * Kaman HU2K Seasprite = H-2 Lockheed GV/R8V Hercules = C-130 * Lockheed P2V Neptune = P-2 Lockheed P3V Orion = P-3 Lockheed R7V/WV Constellation = C-121 * Lockheed TV Shooting Star = T-33 * Lockheed T2V Seastar = T-1 Lockheed UV Jetstar = C-140 * Martin P5M Marlin = P-5 Martin RM = C-3 McDonnell F2D/F2H Banshee = F-2 McDonnell F3H Demon = F-3 McDonnell F4H Phantom II = F-4 North American AJ Savage = A-2 North American A3J Vigilante = A-5 North American FJ Fury = F-1 North American T2J Buckeye = T-2 North American T3J Sabreliner = T-39 * Piasecki HUP Retriever = H-25 * Piper UO Aztec = U-11 Sikorsky HO4S/HRS Chickasaw = H-19 * Sikorsky HR2S Mojave = H-37 * Sikorsky HSS Sea King = H-3 * Sikorsky HSS/HUS Seabat/Seahorse = H-34 * Sikorsky HU2S Seaguard = H-52 Vertol HRB Sea Knight = H-46 Vought F8U Crusader = F-8 (* Designation already used by USAF) ------------------------------ Subject: 6.3. USAF/USN fighters and attack aircraft A complete list of US aircraft would take up far too much space; instead, I've listed only the post-war "F" and "A" series, the ones most often asked about. One star indicates a type that existed only as one or more prototypes and never entered service; two stars indicate a type that never left the drawing board; three stars indicate that the number was never assigned at all (as far as I could determine). USAF fighter designations, since the initiation of the "F" series in 1948: F-80: Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star F-81: * Convair XF-81 (experimental mixed-power jet/turboprop fighter) F-82: North American F-82 Twin Mustang F-83: * Bell XF-83 F-84: Republic F-84 Thunderjet/Thunderstreak/RF-84 Thunderflash F-85: * McDonnell XF-85 Goblin (parasite fighter experiment) F-86: North American F-86 Sabre F-87: * Curtiss XF-87 Blackhawk F-88: * McDonnell XF-88 Voodoo F-89: Northrop F-89 Scorpion F-90: * Lockheed XF-90 F-91: * Republic XF-91 Thunderceptor F-92: * Convair XF-92 F-93: North American YF-93 (F-86 derivative) F-94: Lockheed F-94 Starfire (F-80/T-33 derivative) F-95: North American YF-95 (redesignated F-86D) F-96: Republic YF-96 (redesignated F-84F) F-97: Lockheed YF-97 (redesignated F-94C) F-98: Hughes F-98 Falcon (air-to-air missile; redesignated GAR-1, later AIM-4) F-99: Boeing F-99 Bomarc (ground-to-air missile; redesignated IM-99, later CIM-10) F-100: North American F-100 Super Sabre F-101: McDonnell F-101 Voodoo F-102: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger F-103: ** Republic XF-103 (turbojet/ramjet hypersonic interceptor) F-104: Lockheed F-104 Starfighter F-105: Republic F-105 Thunderchief F-106: Convair F-106 Delta Dart F-107: * North American YF-107 (F-100 derivative) F-108: ** North American XF-108 Rapier (long range interceptor and XB-70 escort) F-109: *** (never used) F-110: McDonnell F-110 Spectre (designation used briefly for USAF version of F4H/F-4 Phantom II) F-111: General Dynamics F-111 (the common name "Aardvark" is unofficial) F-112: ***? (may have been attached to Russian aircraft) F-113: ***? (may have been attached to Russian aircraft) F-114: ***? (may have been attached to Russian aircraft) F-115: ***? (may have been attached to Russian aircraft) F-116: ***? (may have been attached to Russian aircraft) F-117: Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk USAF/USN fighter designations, since the adoption of the Tri-Service designations in 1962: F-1: North American F-1 Fury (formerly FJ) F-2: McDonnell F-2 Banshee (formerly F2H) F-3: McDonnell F-3 Demon (formerly F3H) F-4: McDonnell F-4 Phantom II (formerly F4H, briefly F-110) F-5: Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter/Tiger II F-6: Douglas F-6 Skyray (formerly F4D) F-7: * Convair F-7 Sea Dart (formerly F2Y) F-8: Vought F-8 Crusader (formerly F8U) F-9: Grumman F-9 Panther/Cougar (formerly F9F) F-10: Douglas F-10 Skyknight (formerly F3D) F-11: Grumman F-11 Tiger (formerly F11F) F-12: * Lockheed YF-12 (A-12/SR-71 derivative) F-13: *** (never used) F-14: Grumman (now Northrop Grumman) F-14 Tomcat F-15: McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle F-16: General Dynamics (now Lockheed) F-16 Fighting Falcon F-17: * Northrop YF-17 Cobra (lost to F-16 in Lightweight Fighter contest) F-18: McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet (YF-17 derivative) F-19: *** (never used, at least officially) F-20: * Northrop F-20 Tigershark (F-5 derivative) F-21: IAI F-21 Lion (leased Kfirs, used as Aggressors in training) F-22: Lockheed/Boeing F-22 Lightning II F-23: * Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 (lost to F-22 in Advanced Technology Fighter contest) Notes: The Rockwell XFV-12 was number 12 in the "V" series, not part of the "F" series. USAF/USN attack designations, since the adoption of the Tri-Service designations in 1962: A-1: Douglas A-1 Skyraider (formerly AD) A-2: North American A-2 Savage (formerly AJ) A-3: Douglas A-3 Skywarrior (formerly A3D) A-4: Douglas A-4 Skyhawk (formerly A4D) A-5: North American A-5 Vigilante (formerly A3J) A-6: Grumman A-6 Intruder (formerly A2F) A-7: Vought A-7 Corsair II (F-8 derivative) A-8: British Aerospace/McDonnell Douglas AV-8 Harrier A-9: ** Northrop YA-9 (lost to A-10 in AX contest) A-10: Fairchild A-10 Thunderbolt II A-11: ***? (apparently never used) A-12: ** McDonnell Douglas A-12 (cancelled A-6 replacement) Notes: The Harrier seems to have taken the number 8 slot in both the "A" and "V" series. The designation A-12 for the original, single-seat version of the aircraft that became the SR-71/YF-12/M-21 was an internal Lockheed designation, not an official USAF one (the A-12s were operated by the CIA and never officially entered military service). The designation A-37 for the attack version of Cessna's T-37 was derived from the trainer version of the aircraft and was not part of the real "A" series. ------------------------------ Subject: 6.4. American missile designations These have their own version of the Tri-Service designation system, consisting of a three-letter prefix, a dash, a series number to indicate the specific type, and a letter to indicate subtypes. Series numbers are assigned within vehicle types, so there are only two numeric series, the M-series for guided missiles and the R-series for unguided rockets. The three letters indicate (left to right): (1) Launch platform: A = Aircraft B = Multiple C = Container F = Individual G = Runway H = Silo stored L = Silo launched M = Mobile P = Soft pad R = Ship S = Space U = Underwater (2) Mission type: C = Cargo transport D = Decoy E = Electronics or communication G = Surface attack I = Interception L = Launch detection or surveillance M = Calibration or scientific research N = Navigation Q = Drone S = Space support T = Training U = Underwater attack W = Weather (3) Vehicle type: M = Missile (guided) R = Rocket (unguided) Example: AIM-9L Sidewinder. Aircraft-launched interception missile (i.e. air-to-air missile), the ninth missile to be designated since 1962, and the eleventh version of the AIM-9. As with aircraft, an official proper name is usually assigned, but is not part of the formal designation. (See 2.13 for current American air-to-air missiles) ------------------------------ Subject: 6.5. Russian aircraft designations In the 1920s and 1930s, many different designation systems were used for Russian aircraft; the People's Comissariat of Defence had its own system, and each manufacturer had another, usually based on the initials of the designer or organisation (for example, A N Tupolev's ANT-6 was also known as the TB-3). Prefixes used included: A = Autogyro ARK = Arctic coastal reconnaissance B = Bomber BB = Short-range bomber BSh = Armoured attack aircraft (Sh = Shturmovik) DAR = Long-range arctic reconnaissance DB = Long-range bomber DVB = Long-range high-altitude bomber DI = Two-seat fighter DIS = Twin-engined escort fighter G = Paratroop transport I = Fighter (Istrebitel; literally "destroyer") KOR = Ship-borne reconnaissance M = Seaplane MA = Amphibian MBR = Short-range maritime reconnaissance MDR = Long-range maritime reconnaissance MI = Fighter seaplane MK = Maritime cruiser (heavily armed seaplane) MP = Transport seaplane MR = Reconnaissance seaplane MTB = Maritime heavy bomber MU = Trainer seaplane P = Mailplane PB = Dive bomber PI = Single seat fighter PL = Transport PS = Mail/passenger transport R = Reconnaissance ROM = Open sea reconnaissance SB = High-speed bomber SCh = Low-level attacker SChR = Attack fighter/reconnaissance SPB = Fast dive bomber TB = Heavy bomber TSh = Heavy attack aircraft U = Primary trainer UT = Basic trainer (Uchebnotrenirovochny) UTI = Fighter trainer V = Airship VI = High-altitude fighter VIT = High-altitude tank destroyer VT = Supervised design In the early years of WW2, a new systematic designation scheme was set up for all Soviet aircraft (military and civil), based on (usually) the first two letters of the designer's name; this replaced the former military designation system. Later, as the original designers became the heads of design bureaus (OKBs), and eventually retired or died, the original initials were retained for all aircraft produced by each OKB. The full designation consists of the OKB initials, a dash, a number to indicate a particular aircraft type designed by that OKB, and optionally a letter or letters (and sometimes numbers) to indicate a subtype. Unlike the American system, subtype letters are not a simple alphabetic sequence, but are assigned arbitrarily, sometimes to indicate some particular feature of the subtype. Common suffix letters include "D" (long range), "K" (which can mean export, ground attack, or naval), "M" (modified), "P" (interceptor), "R" (reconnaissance), "T" (transport), and "U" (trainer). Stalin decided that fighters would be given odd numbers, while bombers and transports would get even numbers; this rule largely fell out of use after his death. OKB abbreviations include the following (for those still in use I've added a description of what the letters look like in the Cyrillic (Russian) alphabet, since you will often see an aircraft's designation written on it): An = Antonov (AH) Be = Beriev ([broken B] [reversed E]) Il = Ilyushin ([reversed N] [linked JI or inverted V]) Ka = Kamov (KA) La = Lavochkin M = Myasishchyev (M) Mi = Mil (M [reversed N]) MiG = Mikoyan-Gurevich (M [reversed N] [gamma]) Pe = Petlyakov Po = Polikarpov Su = Sukhoi (CY) Tu = Tupolev (TY) Yak = Yakovlev ([reversed R] K) The Lavochkin OKB still exists, but switched from aircraft to missile and space technology in the 1950s. The Petlyakov and Myasishchyev OKBs are really the same bureau, which was headed by Myasishchyev after Petlyakov's death in 1942, disbanded in 1946, but revived in 1952 under Myasishchyev's name. Polikarpov's OKB was disbanded after his death in 1944. The remaining OKBs recently became companies in the wake of perestroika. With the breakup of the USSR, Antonov is now a Ukrainian company; the rest are Russian. Beriev has been renamed Taganrog (after the city in which the new company is based), and Mikoyan-Gurevich is now just Mikoyan, but the original abbreviations are retained in their aircraft designations. One special case is the A-50 AWACS aircraft ("Mainstay"). This was a joint venture of the Ilyushin and Beriev OKBs (providing the airframe and electronics, respectively); the A-series designation, normally used by Beriev to indicate a prototype or experimental aircraft, has been retained for the production aircraft. Ilyushin used the designation Il-82 for the airframe (following the Il-76 transport, Il-78 tanker, and cancelled Il-80 SLAR reconnaissance aircraft, all based on the same airframe); Beriev argued that they had designed the most important part of the aircraft, so an Ilyushin designation was inappropriate. They were still arguing when the aircraft entered service, so its internal name of A-50 went to the print shop. A few cases where confusion has reigned should be mentioned; the present climate of openness has allowed these to be settled. All Sukhoi "Flagon" versions carried Su-15 designations; the later versions were not Su-21 (which in fact referred to Sukhoi's Su-27-derived supersonic bizjet project, now abandoned). The designation Tu-20 was used for the early "Bear" bombers ("Bear-A/B"), but was changed back to Tupolev's internal designation, Tu-95, from "Bear-C" onwards (some later versions were Tu-142). The Tupolev "Backfire" bomber is Tu-22M, not Tu-26. The "Fiddler", Tupolev's only production fighter, was Tu-128, not Tu-28. The Yakovlev "Freestyle" V/STOL fighter is Yak-41, not Yak-141 (the latter was a single prototype modified for record attempts). ------------------------------ -- ... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ... "Being in the air farce and navy means you only get to kill people by remote control, which takes some of the fun out of it." (Steve Kieffer-Higgins, in alt.tasteless) Archive-Name: mil-aviation-faq/part5 Posting-Frequency: Monthly Last-Modified: 21-Aug-1994 rec.aviation.military Frequently Asked Questions Ross Smith avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ------------------------------ Subject: 6.6. Russian aircraft codenames During the Cold War, it was common for the West to know (or suspect) that an aircraft existed in the Soviet inventory, but not know its correct designation. Even when the USSR released publicity pictures of their aircraft (or allowed Western journalists to film them flying past during displays), the aircraft's name was usually never mentioned. Because of this, a system of codenames was invented by NATO. Each type was given a name starting with "B" for bombers, "C" for cargo or passenger transports, "F" for fighters, "H" for helicopters, or "M" for miscellaneous (everything else). Fixed-wing aircraft received names with one syllable if they were propeller-driven, two syllables if they were jets (there is no rule for the number of syllables in a helicopter's codename). Variants were indicated by suffix letters (e.g. the fourth version of the MiG-25 "Foxbat" to be identified became "Foxbat-D"). With the modern opening up of the Russian military, it's becoming more common to refer to Russian aircraft by their real designations (now better known in the West). Some recent types haven't been given codenames, and the system seems likely to disappear altogether in the near future. Four foreign-built aircraft have been given codenames: The Czech-built Aero L-29 Delfin ("Maya"), at one time the standard Warsaw Pact jet trainer (oddly, its successor, the L-39 Albatros, was never assigned a codename); the US-built North American B-25 Mitchell ("Bank"), used by the Soviet air forces for a while after World War II; and the Chinese J-8 ("Finback") and Q-5 ("Fantan") (see section 6.10). Antonov An-2/3 = "Colt" Antonov An-8 = "Camp" Antonov An-10 = "Cat" Antonov An-12 = "Cub" Antonov An-14 = "Clod" Antonov An-22 = "Cock" Antonov An-24 = "Coke" Antonov An-26 = "Curl" Antonov An-28 = "Cash" Antonov An-30 = "Clank" Antonov An-32 = "Cline" Antonov An-72/74 = "Coaler" Antonov An-74AEW = "Madcap" Antonov An-124 = "Condor" Antonov An-225 = "Cossack" Beriev Be-2 = "Mote" Beriev Be-6 = "Madge" Beriev Be-8 = "Mole" Beriev Be-10 = "Mallow" Beriev Be-12 = "Mail" Beriev Be-30 = "Cuff" Beriev Be-40/42/44 = "Mermaid" Chetverikov Che-2 = "Mug" Ilyushin Il-2 = "Bark" Ilyushin Il-4 = "Bob" Ilyushin Il-10 = "Beast" Ilyushin Il-12 = "Coach" Ilyushin Il-14 = "Crate" Ilyushin Il-18/20 = "Coot" Ilyushin Il-28 = "Beagle" Ilyushin Il-28U = "Mascot" Ilyushin Il-38 = "May" Ilyushin Il-40 = "Brawny" Ilyushin Il-54 = "Blowlamp" Ilyushin Il-62 = "Classic" Ilyushin Il-76 = "Candid" Ilyushin Il-78 = "Midas" Ilyushin Il-86 = "Camber" Ilyushin/Beriev A-50 = "Mainstay" Kamov Ka-10 = "Hat" Kamov Ka-15 = "Hen" Kamov Ka-18 = "Hog" Kamov Ka-20 = "Harp" Kamov Ka-22 = "Hoop" Kamov Ka-25 = "Hormone" Kamov Ka-26/126/128/226 = "Hoodlum" Kamov Ka-27/28/29/32 = "Helix" Kamov Ka-50 = "Hokum" Lavochkin La-7 = "Fin" Lavochkin La-9 = "Fritz" Lavochkin La-11 = "Fang" Lavochkin La-15 = "Fantail" Lisunov Li-2 = "Cab" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-9 = "Fargo" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 = "Fagot" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15U = "Midget" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 = "Fresco" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19 = "Farmer" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 = "Fishbed" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21U = "Mongol" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23/27 = "Flogger" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23-01 = "Faithless" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 = "Foxbat" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29/30/33 = "Fulcrum" Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-31 = "Foxhound" Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-2A = "Faceplate" Mikoyan-Gurevich Ye-152A = "Flipper" Mil Mi-1 = "Hare" Mil Mi-2 = "Hoplite" Mil Mi-4 = "Hound" Mil Mi-6/22 = "Hook" Mil Mi-8/9/17/171 = "Hip" Mil Mi-10 = "Harke" Mil Mi-12 = "Homer" Mil Mi-14 = "Haze" Mil Mi-24/25/35 = "Hind" Mil Mi-26 = "Halo" Mil Mi-28 = "Havoc" Mil Mi-34 = "Hermit" Myasishchyev M-3/4 = "Bison" Myasishchyev M-17/55 = "Mystic" Myasishchyev M-50/52 = "Bounder" Petlyakov Pe-2 = "Buck" Polikarpov Po-2 = "Mule" Sukhoi Su-7/17/20/22 = "Fitter" Sukhoi Su-7U = "Moujik" Sukhoi Su-9/11 = "Fishpot" Sukhoi Su-11U = "Maiden" Sukhoi Su-15 = "Flagon" Sukhoi Su-24 = "Fencer" Sukhoi Su-25/28 = "Frogfoot" Sukhoi Su-27/30/33/34/35 = "Flanker" Tupolev Tu-2/6 = "Bat" Tupolev Tu-4/80 = "Bull" Tupolev Tu-10 = "Frosty" Tupolev Tu-14/89 = "Bosun" Tupolev Tu-16 = "Badger" Tupolev Tu-20/95/142 = "Bear" Tupolev Tu-22 = "Blinder" Tupolev Tu-22M = "Backfire" Tupolev Tu-70 = "Cart" Tupolev Tu-82 = "Butcher" Tupolev Tu-85 = "Barge" Tupolev Tu-91 = "Boot" Tupolev Tu-98 = "Backfin" Tupolev Tu-104 = "Camel" Tupolev Tu-110 = "Cooker" Tupolev Tu-114 = "Cleat" Tupolev Tu-124 = "Cookpot" Tupolev Tu-126 = "Moss" Tupolev Tu-128 = "Fiddler" Tupolev Tu-134 = "Crusty" Tupolev Tu-144 = "Charger" Tupolev Tu-154 = "Careless" Tupolev Tu-160 = "Blackjack" Yakovlev Yak-6/8 = "Crib" Yakovlev Yak-7U = "Mark" Yakovlev Yak-9 = "Frank" Yakovlev Yak-10 = "Crow" Yakovlev Yak-11 = "Moose" Yakovlev Yak-12 = "Creek" Yakovlev Yak-14 = "Mare" Yakovlev Yak-15/17 = "Feather" Yakovlev Yak-16 = "Cork" Yakovlev Yak-17U = "Magnet" Yakovlev Yak-18 = "Max" Yakovlev Yak-23 = "Flora" Yakovlev Yak-24 = "Horse" Yakovlev Yak-25/27 = "Flashlight" Yakovlev Yak-25RV = "Mandrake" Yakovlev Yak-27R = "Mangrove" Yakovlev Yak-28 = "Brewer" Yakovlev Yak-28P = "Firebar" Yakovlev Yak-28U = "Maestro" Yakovlev Yak-30 = "Magnum" Yakovlev Yak-32 = "Mantis" Yakovlev Yak-36 = "Freehand" Yakovlev Yak-38 = "Forger" Yakovlev Yak-40 = "Codling" Yakovlev Yak-41/141 = "Freestyle" Yakovlev Yak-42 = "Clobber" ------------------------------ Subject: 6.7. Russian missile designations and codenames Russian rockets and missiles are mostly given designations in the "R" series (guided rockets), "S" series (unguided rockets), or "Kh" series (this seems to be reserved for air-to-surface missiles, but I have no idea what the significance of the prefix is; "Kh" is one letter in Russian, and looks like an "X", so you will often see these designations quoted with an "X" prefix instead). NATO codenames for Russian missiles start with "A" (air to air), "G" (surface to air), "K" (air to surface), or "S" (surface to surface). In addition to the names, they are also given designations consisting of a two-letter code for the mission type ("AA", "AS", "SA", or "SS", plus some special codes such as "AT" for "anti-tank"), an "N" for naval missiles, and a number. (See 2.13 for current Russian air-to-air missiles) ------------------------------ Subject: 6.8. British aircraft designations Unlike the US system, the proper name is the principal part of an aircraft's formal designation in British service. The full designation consists of the name, a letter or set of letters indicating the role, and a mark number; in a few cases the mark number is followed by a letter indicating a modification. The full designation is written as, for example, "Tornado GR.1A", or sometimes "Tornado GR Mk 1A" (the Tornado GR.1 is the ground attack/reconnaissance version of the Tornado; the GR.1A is a variant in which one of the two guns is replaced by reconnaissance gear). For export versions, the role letters are usually left out, and the mark numbers are restarted from a high number, usually 50 (for example, the Indian Navy's Sea Harriers are Mk 51). Before WW2, mark numbers alone were used, and were written in Roman numerals; during the war, the role letters were added, and conventional numerals were used for mark numbers above 20. The Roman numerals were dropped altogether after the war; apart from that, the system has remained largely unchanged. Role letters (an asterisk indicates an obsolete code): AEW = Airborne early warning AH = Army helicopter AL = Army liaison AS = Anti-submarine (*) B = Bomber B(I) = Bomber/interdictor B(K) = Bomber/tanker B(PR) = Bomber/photo-reconnaissance C = Cargo transport CC = Communications (also used for VIP transports) E = Electronic warfare F = Fighter F/A = Fighter/attack FAW = All-weather fighter (*) FB = Fighter/bomber (*) FG = Fighter/ground attack FGA = Fighter/ground attack FGR = Fighter/ground attack/reconnaissance FR = Fighter/reconnaissance FRS = Fighter/reconnaissance/strike GA = Ground attack GR = Ground attack/reconnaissance HAR = Search and rescue helicopter HAS = Anti-submarine helicopter HC = Cargo helicopter HCC = Communications helicopter (also used for VIP transports) HT = Training helicopter HU = Utility helicopter K = Tanker KC = Tanker/transport Met = Weather reconnaissance (*) MR = Maritime reconnaissance NF = Night fighter (*) PR = Photographic reconnaissance R = Reconnaissance S = Strike SR = Strategic reconnaissance T = Trainer TF = Torpedo fighter (*) TT = Target tug U = Unmanned drone W = Weather reconnaissance ------------------------------ Subject: 6.9. Canadian aircraft designations The Canadian designation system is based on a simplified version of the American system. A designation consists of the letter "C" (for Canadian), a letter to indicate the aircraft's role, a dash, and a number, sometimes followed by a letter to indicate a modification (usually "A" for a modified version, or "D" for a dual-control trainer). The numbers are assigned in a single sequence for all types in Canadian service, and are always over 100. This has led to a few aircraft having a real designation that differs from the one they're commonly known by; for example, the F-5 and F/A-18 in Canadian service are usually referred to as the CF-5 and CF-18, but the correct designations are CF-116 and CF-188, respectively. Role letters: C = Cargo transport F = Fighter H = Helicopter P = Maritime patrol T = Trainer Types in current Canadian service: CC-109 Cosmopolitan = Convair 440 CH-113 Labrador = Boeing CH-46 Sea Knight CT-114 Tutor = Canadair CL-41 Tutor CC-115 Buffalo = De Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo CF-116 = Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter CH-118 Iroquois = Bell UH-1 Iroquois CH-124 Sea King = Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King CC-130 Hercules = Lockheed C-130 Hercules CT-133 Silver Star = Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star CH-135 = Bell 212 CH-136 Kiowa = Bell OH-58 Kiowa CC-137 = Boeing 707 CC-138 Twin Otter = De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter CH-139 Jetranger = Bell 206 Jetranger CP-140 Aurora/Arcturus = Lockheed P-3 Orion derivative CC-142/CT-142 = De Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8 CC-144 Challenger = Canadair CL-601 Challenger CH-146 = Bell 412 CC-150 Polaris = Airbus A310 CF-188 Hornet = McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet ------------------------------ Subject: 6.10. Chinese aircraft designations Chinese aircraft use a fairly simple system consisting of a letter or letters to indicate the role, a dash, and a number, sometimes followed by additional letters or numbers to indicate subtypes. The role letters are often replaced by their English equivalents for export versions (for example, the export version of the Q-5 (Qiang = Attack) is the A-5). The numeric sequences always start with 5. Oddly enough for one of the last bastions of Communism, this is the result of superstition; 4 is considered an unlucky number in China (because the Chinese words for "four" and "death" are very similar). The designation "J-2" for the licence-built MiG-15 is an exception, probably allocated retrospectively, after the Chinese and Soviet governments parted ways. Role letters: CJ (export PT) = Chujiao (basic trainer) H (export B) = Hong (bomber) J (export F) = Jian (fighter) JJ (export FT) = Jianjiao (fighter trainer) Q (export A) = Qiang (attack) SH (export PS) = Shuihong (maritime bomber) Y = Yun (transport) Z = Zhi (vertical, i.e. helicopter) Many Russian, and more recently Western, aircraft have been manufactured in China and given Chinese designations. These include: CJ-5 = Yakovlev Yak-18 "Max" H-5 = Ilyushin Il-28 "Beagle" H-6 = Tupolev Tu-16 "Badger" J-2 = Mikoyan MiG-15 "Fagot" J-5 = Mikoyan MiG-17 "Fresco" J-6 = Mikoyan MiG-19 "Farmer" J-7 = Mikoyan MiG-21 "Fishbed" JJ-2 = Mikoyan MiG-15UTI "Midget" JJ-7 = Mikoyan MiG-21U "Mongol" (but see below) Y-5 = Antonov An-2 "Colt" Y-7 = Antonov An-24/26 "Coke/Curl" Y-8 = Antonov An-12 "Cub" Z-5 = Mil Mi-4 "Hare" Z-8 = Aérospatiale AS.321 Super Frelon Z-9 = Aérospatiale AS.365 Dauphin 2 Training versions of the J-5 and J-6 were built (JJ-5 and JJ-6); these had no Russian counterparts (there was no MiG-17U or MiG-19U). Equating the JJ-7 to the MiG-21U in the list above is slightly misleading, since the trainer version was developed independently, not based on the Russian trainer. Indigenous Chinese fighter designs have gone up to at least J-12, although only the J-8 has entered service so far (see 2.3). Two Chinese aircraft have been given NATO codenames: J-8 "Finback" and Q-5 "Fantan". ------------------------------ Subject: 6.11. German aircraft designations (WW2) German aircraft were identified by two letters denoting the manufacturing company, a number denoting the aircraft type (separated from the letters by a space), and various modifiers for subtypes. Manufacturer codes: Ar = Arado Ba = Bachem Bf = Messerschmitt Bü = Bücker Bv = Blohm und Voss Do = Dornier Fa = Focke-Achgelis Fi = Fieseler Fl = Flettner Fw = Focke-Wulf Go = Gotha Ha = Blohm und Voss He = Heinkel Ho = Horten Hs = Henschel Ju = Junkers Me = Messerschmitt Ta = Focke-Wulf "Bf" for Messerschmitt came from Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, the company's name before Willy Messerschmitt took over. "Ha" for Blohm und Voss came from Hamburger Flugzeugbau, the name of the aircraft division of the Blohm und Voss shipbuilding company. "Ta" for Focke-Wulf was used in honour of designer Kurt Tank. Type numbers were assigned by the RLM (air ministry); a single sequence was used for all manufacturers. Related types were often given numbers differing by 100; for example, the Messerschmitt Me 210 was designed as a replacement for the Bf 110, and was developed into the Me 310 (abandoned before flight) and Me 410. Prototype aircraft had a "V" followed by a number identifying individual aircraft, separated from the main designation by a space (e.g. Me 262 V1). Major variants were denoted by a letter immediately following the type number (e.g. Me 262A), minor variants by a number separated from the major variant letter by a dash (e.g. Me 262A-1). Pre-production aircraft had a zero in this position (e.g. Me 262A-0). Further variations on a subtype could be denoted by a lower case letter attached to the variant number (e.g. Me 262A-1a). Modified aircraft were indicated by "/R" or "/U" and a number (e.g. Me 262A-1a/U5), or by "/Trop" (which I assume indicated a tropical climate adaption). ------------------------------ Subject: 6.12. Japanese aircraft designations and codenames (WW2) Japanese aircraft designations are a highly confusing subject, since four different systems were in use simultaneously in Japan, in addition to the codenames used by the Allies. The Japanese Army and Navy each used two systems to identify the same aircraft, so a type used by both services (there were a few) could theoretically have up to five different designations -- Japanese Army Kitai number, Army type number, Navy designation code, Navy type number, and Allied codename! Just to confuse matters a bit further, a few types were known best by nicknames that had no official status. The Mitsubishi A6M fighter, also known as the Carrier-Borne Fighter Type 0, had the official Allied codename of "Zeke"; but it went down in history under the unofficial nickname used by both sides: "Zero". The Japanese Army Air Force identified aircraft by "Kitai" (airframe) numbers, which simply consisted of "Ki", a dash, and a number. Originally the numbers were a simple numeric sequence; later, some randomisation was added, as a security measure. Gliders received "Ku" ("Guraida") numbers instead. Subtypes or variants were indicated by Roman numeral suffixes, or by various Japanese abbreviations (a common one was "Kai" (for "Kaizo"), indicating a major modification). In addition to Kitai numbers, most Army aircraft also received a second designation in a parallel system based on role and the year of entry into service. Originally this was the last two digits of the year; 100 was used for the Japanese year 2600 (1940), then the numbers were restarted from 1. Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft received a designation code very similar to those used by the US Navy. This consisted of a letter to indicate the aircraft's function, a sequential number to indicate a specific aircraft type (unlike the USN system, the number 1 was left in), and a letter to indicate the manufacturing company. This was followed by a dash and a number to indicate a subtype, plus an optional letter or letters for further variations. Function letters: A = Carrier-borne fighter B = Carrier-borne torpedo bomber C = Carrier-borne reconnaissance D = Carrier-borne dive bomber E = Reconnaissance seaplane F = Observation seaplane G = Land-based bomber H = Flying-boat J = Land-based fighter K = Trainer L = Transport M = Special-purpose seaplane N = Fighter seaplane P = Bomber Q = Patrol R = Land-based reconnaissance S = Night fighter Some manufacturer letters: A = Aichi D = Showa K = Kawanishi M = Mitsubishi N = Nakajima P = Nihon V = Seversky W = Kyushu, Watanabe Y = Yokosuka The IJN also used a parallel system based on role description and year number, similar to (but independent of) the Army's, except that the year 2600 (1940) became 0 instead of 100. This system was abandoned in 1943, when it was decided that revealing the year of an aircraft's entry into service might give useful information to the enemy. Aircraft were then given proper names instead. Because the correct designations of Japanese aircraft were often not known (and, as you've probably gathered by now, difficult to keep straight anyway), the Allies assigned codenames to them. The basic rules for these, not always followed, were: Bombers, dive bombers, reconnaissance aircraft, seaplanes, torpedo bombers -- Girls' names Fighters, reconnaissance seaplanes -- Boys' names Gliders -- Names of birds Trainers -- Names of trees Transport aircraft -- Girls' names beginning with "T" The following list gives various designations for some of the more important Japanese aircraft of WW2: Aichi D3A = Navy Type 99 Carrier-Borne Fighter = "Val" Kawanishi H8K = Navy Type 2 Flying-Boat = "Emily" Kawanishi N1K1/2 Shinden = "George" Kawasaki Ki-45 Toryu = Navy Type 2 Heavy Fighter = "Nick" Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien = Navy Type 3 Fighter = "Tony" Kawasaki Ki-100 = Navy Type 5 Fighter Kyofu N1K = "Rex" Mitsubishi A5M = Navy Type 96 Carrier-Borne Fighter = "Claude" Mitsubishi A6M = Navy Type 0 Carrier-Borne Fighter = "Zeke" Mitsubishi F1M = Navy Type 0 Observation Seaplane = "Pete" Mitsubishi G4M = Navy Type 1 Attack Bomber = "Betty" Mitsubishi J2M Raiden = "Jack" Mitsubishi Ki-15 Karigane = C5M = "Babs" Mitsubishi Ki-21 = Army Type 97 Heavy Bomber = "Sally" Mitsubishi Ki-30 = Army Type 97 Light Bomber = "Ann" Mitsubishi Ki-46 Shitei = Army Type 100 Reconnaissance Aircraft = "Dinah" Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu = Army Type 4 Heavy Bomber = "Peggy" Nakajima B5N = Navy Type 97 Carrier-Borne Bomber = "Kate" Nakajima B6N Tenzan = "Jill" Nakajima J1N Gekko = "Irving" Nakajima Ki-27 = Army Type 97 Fighter = "Nate" Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa = Army Type 1 Fighter = "Oscar" Nakajima Ki-44 Shoki = Army Type 2 Fighter = "Tojo" Nakajima Ki-49 Donryu = Army Type 100 Heavy Bomber = "Helen" Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate = Army Type 4 Fighter = "Frank" Yokosuka D4Y Suisei = "Judy" Yokosuka P1Y Ginga = "Frances" ------------------------------ Subject: 6.13. Swedish aircraft designations The aircraft designations used by the Swedish armed forces consist of a set of letters to indicate the role, and a number to indicate an aircraft type, with a space between them. A letter may be added after the number to indicate subtypes. The numbers are assigned in a single sequence for all types of aircraft. The same number is always used for the same basic aircraft type, but the prefix may be changed to indicate different roles. Role codes (these may be combined, e.g. "JA" for fighter/attack): A = Attack B = Bomb Fpl = Flygplan (aeroplane; used for multirole light aircraft) Hkp = Helikopter J = Jakt (fighter) S = Spaning (reconnaissance) SF = Spaning foto (photographic reconnaissance) SH = Spaning havsövervakning (maritime reconnaissance) Sk = Skol (trainer) T = Torped (torpedo bomber) (obsolete) Tp = Transport The following types are currently in Swedish service: Hkp 3 = Agusta/Bell AB-204 Iroquois Hkp 4 = Boeing/Kawasaki KV-107 Sea Knight Hkp 5 = Schweizer (Hughes) 300 Hkp 6 = Agusta/Bell AB-206 Jetranger Hkp 9 = MBB BO 105 Hkp 10 = Aérospatiale AS.332 Super Puma J 32 = Saab Lansen J/Sk 35 = Saab Draken AJ/AJS/JA/SF/SH/Sk 37 = Saab Viggen JAS 39 = Saab Gripen Sk 50 = Saab Safir Fpl 53 = Dornier 27 Tp 54 = Piper PA-31 Navajo Sk 60 = Saab 105 Fpl/Sk 61 = BAe Bulldog Tp 84 = Lockheed C-130 Hercules Tp 86 = Rockwell Sabreliner Tp 88 = Fairchild Metro SH 89 = CASA C-212 Aviocar Tp 100 = Saab 340 Tp 101 = Beech Super King Air Tp 102 = Gulfstream IV ------------------------------ Subject: 7.1. Reference books This is not intended to be a general list of reference books on military aviation; it's simply a list of most of the books I found useful in compiling this FAQ list. I've quoted ISBN numbers where I could find them. I assume Jane's Planes has a new ISBN each year; the one quoted here is from the 1990-91 edition, the latest available to me. Roy Braybrook, S Skrynnikov & L Yakutin (1993): _Russian Warriors: Sukhois, MiGs and Tupolevs_ (Osprey Aerospace, UK; ISBN 1-85532-293-5) Piotr Butowski (1992): _Military Aircraft of Eastern Europe: (1) Fighters and Interceptors_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-028-9) Piotr Butowski (1992): _Military Aircraft of Eastern Europe: (2) Bombers and Attack Aircraft_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-035-1) David Donald & Robert F Dorr (1990): _Fighters of the United States Air Force_ (Military Press, USA; ISBN 0-517-66994-3) Lou Drendel (1984): _C-130 Hercules in Action_ (Squadron/Signal Publications, USA; ISBN 0-89747-111-3) Marcus Fülber (1993): _Red Stars Over Europe_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-709-7) Tony Gibbons and David Miller (1992): _Modern Warships_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN0-86101-673-4) Yefim Gordon & Bill Sweetman (1992): _Soviet X-Planes_ (Motorbooks International, USA; ISBN 0-87938-498-0) Bill Gunston (1976): _The Encyclopaedia of the World's Combat Aircraft_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN unknown) Bill Gunston (1981): _Military Helicopters_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-110-4) Bill Gunston (1983): _Modern Airborne Missiles_ (Lansdowne Press, Australia; ISBN 0-7018-1705-4) Bill Gunston (1987): _Modern Fighters and Attack Aircraft_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-320-4) Bill Gunston (1987): _The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Aircraft Armament_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-314-X) Bill Gunston (1988): _Combat Arms: Modern Fighters_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-413-8) Bill Gunston (1989): _Combat Arms: Modern Attack Aircraft_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-451-0) Bill Gunston & Mike Spick (1983): _Modern Air Combat_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN unknown) Bill Gunston & Mike Spick (1986): _Modern Fighting Helicopters_ (Tiger Books, UK; ISBN 1-85501-164-6) John Jordan (1992): _Modern US Navy_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-8317-5061-8) Mark Lambert, ed (annual): _Jane's All the World's Aircraft_ (Jane's Publishing, UK; ISBN 0-7106-0908-6) Chris Marshall, ed (1988): _The Defenders_ (Oriole Publishing, UK; ISBN 1-870318-10-2) R A Mason & John W R Taylor (1986): _Aircraft, Strategy and operations of the Soviet Air Force_ (Jane's Publishing, UK; ISBN 0-7106-0373-8) Doug Richardson (1989): _Stealth Warplanes_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN unknown) Mike Spick (1987): _Modern Fighter Combat_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-319-0) Mike Spick & Tim Ripley (1992): _Modern Attack Aircraft_ (Smithmark Publishers, USA; ISBN 0-8317-5054-5) Mike Spick & Barry Wheeler (1992): _Modern Aircraft Markings_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-695-5) Mike Spick & Barry Wheeler (1992): _Modern American Fighters and Attack Aircraft_ (Salamander Books, UK; ISBN 0-86101-696-3) Bill Sweetman (1989): _Stealth Bomber_ (Airlife Publishing, UK; ISBN 1-85310-097-8) Bill Sweetman (1993): _Aurora_ (Motorbooks International, USA; ISBN 0-87938-780-7) Michael J H Taylor (1983): _Military Prototypes of the 1950s_ (Arms and Armour Press; UK; ISBN 0-85368-579-7) Michael Taylor (1987): _Encyclopaedia of Modern Military Aircraft_ (Bison Books, UK; ISBN 0-86124-349-8) Masami Tokoi (1990): _Soviet Military Aircraft in Monino_ (Dai Nippon Kaiga, Japan; ISBN 4-499-20561-1) Steven J Zaloga (1991): _Modern Soviet Warplanes: Fighters and Interceptors_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-014-9) Steven J Zaloga (1991): _Modern Soviet Warplanes: Strike Aircraft and Attack Helicopters_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-015-7) Steven J Zaloga (1992): _Russian Falcons_ (Concord Publications, Hong Kong; ISBN 962-361-707-0) ------------------------------ Subject: 7.2. Magazines As with the list of reference books, these are the magazines whose articles I found useful in compiling these answers. _Air Forces Monthly_ (Key Publishing, UK; monthly) _Air International_ (Key Publishing, UK; monthly) _Flight International_ (Reed Business Publishing, UK; weekly) ------------------------------ Subject: 7.3. Acknowledgements Thanks to the following people for their help: Dan Kevin Au Guy Beaver Al Bowers Martin Briscoe Carlton Brown Dwight Brown Wei-Bin Chang Dave Cherkus Rodney Clark Geoff A Cohen Jim Davis Albert Dobyns Peter Fenelon Robert M Franklin Urban Fredriksson Emmanuel Gustin Lee Hauser <76264.1727@compuserve.com> John B Iodice Cal Jewell Larry & Kim Jewell Paul Kennedy Lanny Lancaster Robin John Lee Steven Malikoff Duane P Mantick Chris Maxfield Paul McGinnis Jack McKillop Eugene N Miya Chris Neary Vince Norris Christopher Ridlon Jaap Romers Geoff Russell Simon D Shpilfoygel Steven Vincent Rustam Yusupov Stefan Zamel ...and some others who have asked not to be named. ------------------------------ -- ... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... avfaq@acheron.wanganui.gen.nz ... "Being in the air farce and navy means you only get to kill people by remote control, which takes some of the fun out of it." (Steve Kieffer-Higgins, in alt.tasteless)