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Propagandalf posted:Turn academy grads into generals. Considering iyaayas01's post I'm not entirely sure AF brass isn't grown underground like a fungus and fed with a steady diet of horseshit, contractor promises and LockMart powerpoints.
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Feb 26, 2014 02:33
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When I worked at the Fed I saw ads on the Washington Metro extolling the virtues of the Global Hawk. I always wondered why they felt it necessary. Now I know. edit: There were also ads for the MQ-8, not sure what to make of that in light of this. Mortabis fucked around with this message at 02:40 on Feb 26, 2014 |
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Feb 26, 2014 02:34
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Is a plane with the wingspan and handling of the U-2 not also weather sensitive? Don't answer if that's improper. One wonders if it would be cheaper to convert the U-2 frames to remote/drone control than to futz with Global Hawk.
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Feb 26, 2014 02:37
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Snowdens Secret posted:Is a plane with the wingspan and handling of the U-2 not also weather sensitive? Don't answer if that's improper. It's a matter of degrees. Obviously something like the U-2 isn't going tooling through the heart of a thunderstorm anytime soon, but there are other differences that go beyond the "long thin wings flying at high altitude" similarities for why the U-2 is less affected by weather than the RQ-4. I'm talking less about "can both airframes fly through the exact same type of weather" and more along the lines of "will given weather within x miles of a planned flight path cause the RQ-4 to scrub the mission where the U-2 could press?" This article goes into some of the specifics. e: Party Plane Jones posted:Considering iyaayas01's post I'm not entirely sure AF brass isn't grown underground like a fungus and fed with a steady diet of horseshit, contractor promises and LockMart powerpoints. Hey, they made the right decision about the Global Chicken, Congress tied our hands! Ignore the fact that right up until the purse strings got tight and we had to choose between the U-2 and RQ-4 the brass was all about the Global Chicken, even going so far as to certify it essential to national security against a Nunn-McCurdy breach back in '11...less than two years before they were trying to completely divest themselves of the entire program. Like I said, the whole thing stinks to high heaven. iyaayas01 fucked around with this message at 03:20 on Feb 26, 2014 |
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Feb 26, 2014 02:58
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Mortabis posted:When I worked at the Fed I saw ads on the Washington Metro extolling the virtues of the Global Hawk. I always wondered why they felt it necessary. Now I know. The local - and most popular - FM news radio station in the DC area routinely plays pro-military spending advertisements for no reason other than some old crank might hear "carrying our military into the twenty-first century" and write a letter to his congressman/senator, or all the D/I lobbyists/executives in the area just like wasting money for  's sake.And the Global Chicken is BIG. Big things are good because big things are expensive. Expensive things are good for general's post-career prospects. 
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Feb 26, 2014 04:13
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The Navy MQ-4 program sounds like it's still going strong. If DOD wanted to save money it could probably shift airframes over to that instead of parking them in the desert, there'd be a conversion cost but presumably it's less than building new ones. Counterpoint, turf wars. Someone might suggest the Navy might as well be doing recon in areas like the Pacific where it's almost all over water already.
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Feb 26, 2014 11:16
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Shithead Deluxe posted:Spain's rations look like canned meat and packs of rubbers. Australia's sound awful. quote:...a serving of love-it-or-hate-it Vegemite to jam sandwich biscuits and a tube of sweetened condensed milk. The bag includes a can-opener-cum-spoon...
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Feb 26, 2014 13:42
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You say that like cum-spoons are bad things.
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Feb 26, 2014 15:00
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iyaayas01 posted:I can't remember what's open source so this will be general, but the answer to your question is "a lot." From a sensor standpoint the two aircraft aren't even comparable. Here's a decent article on what NG's proposals were for upgrading the Global Chicken's sensor suite to something closer to the U-2...the proposals basically boiled down to "pay us three quarters of a billion dollars to integrate the sensor suite that already works on the U-2, also that doesn't include actually procuring said sensor suite, so you would have to pull the sensors off of the U-2, where they work, onto our plane, where we can't guarantee they will." It sounds like the best solution is to crash the bloody things and be done with it. Then you don't have to pay to maintain them.
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Feb 26, 2014 23:47
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BIG HEADLINE posted:During Desert Storm they had state-of-the-art revetments and facilities, and the crews were fresh out of the European theater after having been drilled hard for years in regards to precision and expedience in regards to maintenance and deployment that they could've done everything in their sleep. No offense met to current crew chiefs, but the Cold War variety were drilled in a sense that in a scramble they should expect warheads to be raining down momentarily, and those were the guys who got tapped to arm and maintain those planes. *citation needed
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Feb 27, 2014 03:18
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Mortabis posted:When I worked at the Fed I saw ads on the Washington Metro extolling the virtues of the Global Hawk. I always wondered why they felt it necessary. Now I know. I used to transfer at the Pentagon metro station every morning. Now *there* was a plethora of ads! The ones for the Zumwalt always made me chuckle when they slashed the order for them.
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Feb 27, 2014 03:40
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Nostalgia4Infinity posted:*citation needed It's mostly accurate. The Saudis were building facilities for the US faster than Dubai can put up skyscrapers. I doubt crew chiefs were much different than they are now, based on my my dad's and his friends' alcohol consumption and general attitudes towards poo poo.
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Feb 27, 2014 04:44
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I know the usual Cold War hot scenario started with Pact pouring through the Fulda Gap, but this Ukraine stuff makes me wonder what our diplomatic / military plans were if in peacetime a major USSR member seriously decided to get out and align West. Especially after what some feel was a missed opportunity in '56, among others. My instinct is "it was wargamed, everything up to and possibly including invasion by Nazis from the Moon was wargamed, all of it still classified" Which also brings up what in the world we thought we were going to do with all the coastal landing assets we'd built up on the Atlantic side in the first place. Free Occupied Sweden?
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Feb 27, 2014 11:16
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Snowdens Secret posted:Which also brings up what in the world we thought we were going to do with all the coastal landing assets we'd built up on the Atlantic side in the first place. Free Occupied Sweden? There were contingency missions in Norway, Denmark, and possibly the Med as well. Though Central Europe was pretty much locked off as a realm of military opportunism due to the escalatory risks, conflict on the Northern and Southern 'fringe' was being talked about as far more likely IIRC.
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Feb 27, 2014 11:45
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I can't believe I forgot this thread existed- then I went to Bangladesh and hung out on some guys roof. Thought y'all might like some Mig-29s and assorted Chengdus 2720 by Powercube, on Flickr  28264 by Powercube, on Flickr  F946 by Powercube, on Flickr
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Feb 27, 2014 16:27
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Which one of y'all bought an ad for this thread?
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Feb 27, 2014 16:37
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Koesj posted:There were contingency missions in Norway, Denmark, and possibly the Med as well. Though Central Europe was pretty much locked off as a realm of military opportunism due to the escalatory risks, conflict on the Northern and Southern 'fringe' was being talked about as far more likely IIRC. There's still an entire MEB's worth of poo poo pre-positioned in a couple of caves in Norway. The idea was that while the rest of the real military was occupied with preventing the Soviets from steamrolling through Central Europe the Marines (both US and Royal) would go up there and gently caress around in the cold.
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Feb 28, 2014 04:32
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spankmeister posted:Which one of y'all bought an ad for this thread? Well it got me here under the false hope we'd be discussing electronic warfare! 
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Feb 28, 2014 05:33
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vulturesrow posted:Well it got me here under the false hope we'd be discussing electronic warfare!
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Feb 28, 2014 08:11
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Dead Reckoning posted:I think the issue is that most people who could do an effortpost on the subject would end up skirting the line between "things anyone can figure out based on antenna theory" and "things you can only learn in a SCIF." I've been trying to find a good open source history of EW and electronic surveillance efforts, but I'd guess most of it is still classified. Yeah I'd love to read about EW beyond "That B-52 that accidentally turned on its EW suite over the States and pissed a lot of people off" but it seems like something that would be really tricky to talk about. I dunno, maybe someone could post about Wild Weasel pilots and their massive balls or something?
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Feb 28, 2014 08:21
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http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f30_1393584675  Hinds are so cool, but not that many in one place outside of an airshow, that would be incredibly unnerving.
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Feb 28, 2014 13:59
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A minor proxy war between NATO and Russia is highly unlikely but would be an incredible sight to behold. Obviously not something I'd like to see happen as death is Not Good, though.
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Feb 28, 2014 14:11
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simplefish posted:A minor proxy war between NATO and Russia is highly unlikely but would be an incredible sight to behold. Obviously not something I'd like to see happen as death is Not Good, though. Fighting Russia over Sevastopol around Balaclava? I know just what weight of brigade to use for that.
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Feb 28, 2014 14:16
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Vindolanda posted:Fighting Russia over Sevastopol around Balaclava? I know just what weight of brigade to use for that. All while plugged into the mains to restore their batteries, no doubt
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Feb 28, 2014 14:36
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simplefish posted:A minor proxy war between NATO and Russia is highly unlikely but would be an incredible sight to behold. Obviously not something I'd like to see happen as death is Not Good, though. One could argue " A minor proxy war between NATO and Russia" better describes Syria
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Feb 28, 2014 14:39
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Dead Reckoning posted:I think the issue is that most people who could do an effortpost on the subject would end up skirting the line between "things anyone can figure out based on antenna theory" and "things you can only learn in a SCIF." I've been trying to find a good open source history of EW and electronic surveillance efforts, but I'd guess most of it is still classified. This is true. This is my area of expertise (I'm an EA-6B guy) and I'm very hesitant to say too much just to make sure I don't inadvertantly cross a line I shouldn't. Generally speaking, theory is usually ok and the more specific you get with capabilities and platforms the more likely it is you shouldn't be talking about it. I'm not sure if I'm up for effort posting but I'd be happy to discuss even if the best I can do is generalities.
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Feb 28, 2014 14:56
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Snowdens Secret posted:One could argue " A minor proxy war between NATO and Russia" better describes Syria I wasn't aware that Saudi Arabia and Qatar were in NATO.
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Feb 28, 2014 15:05
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mlmp08 posted:I wasn't aware that Saudi Arabia and Qatar were in NATO. Turkey is.
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Feb 28, 2014 15:07
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simplefish posted:All while plugged into the mains to restore their batteries, no doubt I am seeking the pun. I cannot find it. Help me. help.
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Feb 28, 2014 16:28
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Beijing Military Museum dump from 2009 I think. Backing up photos to my OneDrive and thought that I would post some here. (excuse the dark photos, they had lovely lighting in the wings of the museum) Hero Mig 15: Apparently shot down a few UN-aligned aircraft.  Space Capsule  SCUD Clone  Pretty Sure the next two are anti-ship missiles.   Taiwan Saber:   Mig 15 Trainer  Shooting Star  Mig 21   Something Soviet  Taiwanese U2 Wreckage 
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Feb 28, 2014 17:15
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Blistex posted:Something Soviet Looks like a Yak-38 but that's actually a Q-5.
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Feb 28, 2014 17:31
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Blistex posted:Beijing Military Museum dump from 2009 I think. Backing up photos to my OneDrive and thought that I would post some here. This made me read up on the Taiwan Strait Crisis and holy poo poo I didn't know the AIM-9 was that old.
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Feb 28, 2014 17:33
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Yeah, that designation is only going to go away when they run out of alphabet letters (and maybe not even then, but you know there will be a 9Z at some point)
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Feb 28, 2014 18:37
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Servicio en Espanol posted:A reformer Air Force colonel named James Burton heard about this idea, decided it was terrible, and came up with something he named the "Blitzfighter." It was to be a 5,000-10,000 pound, single engine attack aircraft armed with a four-barreled version of the A-10's Avenger cannon. It would have a titanium bathtub for the pilot to sit in, a radio, and that motherfucker of a cannon, and that is it. No radar, no infra-red sensors, nothing not deemed absolutely essential for lighting up T-72s coming through the Fulda Gap. They would be able to operate from pastures or whatever like the A-10s were supposed to after the airfields got cratered and would essentially go tear-assing after the flow of battle at treetop level engaging tanks they'd acquire visually and cost 2 million dollars apiece. Basically a tank-busting version of the F-5 Freedom Fighter in terms of selling/giving allies a cheap, effective warplane. I wonder how much killing this project inadvertently de-escalated things. After all, the "Blitzfighter" sounds exactly like what you'd want if you were thinking of invading through the Fulda gap in an Eastward direction. Cheap, able to operate off of rustic forward bases, and designed to tear-rear end around at treetop level engaging T-72s ahead of the Leopards on their way to invade Poland yet again. It's the classic case of a defensive apparatus that can be easily mistaken as preparation for an attack.
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Feb 28, 2014 18:48
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Poor Poland. Wonder when they are going to make a super highway for tanks straight through with gas stations and whorehouses so the armies move through faster and calmer.
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Feb 28, 2014 19:16
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Personally I think the idea of the Blitzfighter got canned when someone asked the question of "so, uh, who's going to fly this "austere" deathtrap into day-one Soviet anti-air?" and all the pilots in the room sort of looked at each other and walked out
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Feb 28, 2014 19:21
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LingcodKilla posted:Poor Poland. Wonder when they are going to make a super highway for tanks straight through with gas stations and whorehouses so the armies move through faster and calmer. Back when I was an undergrad I went to hear Lech Walesa give a talk. Dude was an amazing speaker and really goddamned funny - he was talking about some seriously heavy poo poo but sprinkled these just awful, hilarious jokes in with it. One of the ones that I remember really distinctly was when he was talking about how Poland, historically, has always kind of been stuck between Europe and Russia. I'm paraphrasing the hell out of it, but it went something like this: "Poland is a beautiful country. We have beautiful rolling hills, thick beautiful forests, beautiful coastlines, it is a wonderful place. The problem is that the Germans and the Russians both know this and they keep wanting to come and visit. In theory we are OK with this. Come! Drive through! Maybe spend some money! But please, leave eventually." Psion posted:"so, uh, who's going to fly this "austere" deathtrap into day-one Soviet anti-air?"
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Feb 28, 2014 19:25
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Cyrano4747 posted:Back when I was an undergrad I went to hear Lech Walesa give a talk. Dude was an amazing speaker and really goddamned funny - he was talking about some seriously heavy poo poo but sprinkled these just awful, hilarious jokes in with it. I remember reading his autobiography years back and it was pretty humorous. He mentioned his fondness for drinking and I remember at some point said "You kind of have to find out where the limit is sometimes to reset things." or something like that.
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Feb 28, 2014 19:38
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Another video of the helicopters in this story. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/10666893/Ukraine-crisis-live-Russia-admits-its-troops-are-moving-in-Crimea.html Some enterprising person overlayed "Hell March" though 
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Feb 28, 2014 20:06
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Haha fabulous. Still one of the best game themes of all time, especially the Red Alert 2 version.
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Feb 28, 2014 20:12
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