F-22 Raptor at Farnborough

[mtrocket]

F-22 Raptor Makes Its European Debut & Really set the rest of the World back on its heels (including Russia).

Al Norman, Lockheed Martin'sChief F-22 Test Pilot, describesthe flight demo of the Raptor at the Farnborough Air Show for the First time.

Amazing performance!

http://www.militarytimes.com/multim...w=&state=vid&em=false&fn=/flv/20080714_rc_f22

 

[GizmoQ]

F-22 Raptor Makes Its European Debut & Really set the rest of the World back on its heels (including Russia).

Al Norman, Lockheed Martin'sChief F-22 Test Pilot, describesthe flight demo of the Raptor at the Farnborough Air Show for the First time.

Amazing performance!

That aircraft has redefined aerial combat tactics! Never got to fly in one, but I got 18 hrs in the simulator and signed 002 along with the entire engineering/development staff at its rollout for flight testing.

Funny story: new pilots originally flew it closer to its limits than seasoned pilots during tactics development because the older pilots "knew an aircraft wasn't supposed to be able to do that!"

 

[Phrede]

A truly amazing aircraft. Thanks for the post. Too bad it is so expensive, but then anything cutting edge always is. Surely a potent answer for a MiG 29.

The F-35 still has me scratching my head.

 

[GizmoQ]

A truly amazing aircraft. Thanks for the post. Too bad it is so expensive, but then anything cutting edge always is. Surely a potent answer for a MiG 29.

The F-35 still has me scratching my head.

I helped with the initial design of the F-35 and by the time all the services had had their say, it was a cluster****. My AF team and a small Navy team spent months locked in a vault figuring out how to satisfy everybody with existing technology. It was finally decided to build it like Boeing builds 747s: start with a basic framework and add/subtract components depending on each customer's needs. Great for commonality, not so great for performance.

Then the Navy took it over and the rest is history.

 

[Phrede]

I helped with the initial design of the F-35 and by the time all the services had had their say, it was a cluster****. My AF team and a small Navy team spent months locked in a vault figuring out how to satisfy everybody with existing technology. It was finally decided to build it like Boeing builds 747s: start with a basic framework and add/subtract components depending on each customer's needs. Great for commonality, not so great for performance.

Then the Navy took it over and the rest is history.

I was involved with manufacturing major components. Thinking that major competitors (Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grummann and BAe) would all of a sudden share everything, play well with each other and work as a team was dreaming. Yes, they always presented themselves as helping each other and cooperating but behind the scenes methods and equipment were held close to the vest. It was a political nightmare for a first tier vendor to them all. So now you have multiple companies making something for multiple customers that is supposed to be everything to everyone and no one can agree on anything. Is it any wonder it is so much over budget?

 

[carterchapman]

I flew F-4's back in the dark ages, and it just amazes me what the next generation (F-15/F-16/F-18) fighters could do, and now what the latest generation (F-22/F-35) can do...

 

[Cadillac Tech]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing.

 

[CanadianViking]

oh great, the F-35 has been identified as the next generation aircraft for the RCAF...

F-35 | Canada's Next Generation Fighter

I helped with the initial design of the F-35 and by the time all the services had had their say, it was a cluster****. My AF team and a small Navy team spent months locked in a vault figuring out how to satisfy everybody with existing technology. It was finally decided to build it like Boeing builds 747s: start with a basic framework and add/subtract components depending on each customer's needs. Great for commonality, not so great for performance.

Then the Navy took it over and the rest is history.