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Old 10-23-2011 | 11:10 AM
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USMCFLYR
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From: FAA 'Flight Check'
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Originally Posted by UAL T38 Phlyer
AZ/USMC:

Standard Manufacturer's hype. While impressive (and, I'm sure at an impressive cost), the manufacturer never mentions the weaknesses in their product.

Not mentioned:

1. IR sensors are always VMC-only. They bragged about day/night, but not clouds/precip/battlefield explosions. USMC: ever played with IIR-Maverick?

2. Just like AMRAAM and AIM-7s before, it is great to have long-range shot capability (BVR)....IF you have the Rules of Engagement to employ it. Hasn't happened much in the last 30 years. Same principle to fratricide on the ground? Same thing, not "Oh my goodness, an SA-4 is shooting at me, let me (and my wingman in a non-tactical formation) take it out immediately."

3. There are numerous deceptive tactics that could be used to fool a system such as this. I'm not even talking hardware, but will keep this discussion unclassified.

4. I particularly enjoyed the part with the SU-27s and the narrator: "With highly maneuverable adversaries, the F-35 with DAS can choose to exit the fight...and let its missiles do the work."

(That was the same design philosophy as the original Phantom...before they put in the gun and leading-edge slats for turning fights!!)

5. Finally, who does Northrop Grumman think we will be fighting over the next 20-30 years? Apparently, they think a first-world adversary with 5th-gen fighters.

I think more likely a third-world dirt-hole where the greatest technological achievement is a 1999 Toyota 4-wheeldrive with a 27mm mounted in the back, and one house with a flush-toilet.
You asked if I ever played with variants of the Maverick.
Yes.

Don't be fooled by my initial post.
You have to give me some credit after being in the business for 20 years that I know manufacturer's hype when I see it! If not, then you might as well send me out to the looney bin a little sooner than advertised!

Now that we know that Afghanistan would back the Pakistanis if we ever went to war (today's Yahoo news), then I guess it could be a mixture of 4th-5th generation threats all the way to insurgent tactics.

USMCFLYR
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