Graham

Depends on the year. If it was the 2040s' it would be a VF-17. Graham

Heh, I know the guy that does the boxes and you will make him cry. Graham

Had a meeting with Yamato today. One thing of interest I found out is that since the Nora SV-51, Yamato have had a new QC guy on board. I think you will all agree that the QC on the Nora was excellent and a big improvement over the Ivanov. This bodes well for the YF-21. I also should get to mess around with a YF-21 sample soon so I can check for problems before it is released. Graham

Glad I passed on the Aoshimas. Graham

And of course Lanka instead of Ranka. Graham

Agreed that computers onboard military aircraff/vessels/vehicles are usually extremely well shielded. Also agreed that any interference powerful enough to take out the Ghosts electronics would also take out the electronics on the VF-171 and VF-25. Two reasons I think why the VFs were not effected: - 1) The interference was localised to the area around the bugs base. The Ghosts approached too close and were affected. The VF-171s and VF-25s didn't get that close. 2) The NUNS and SMS were already aware of the interference and had set a higher protection level. Graham

We’ve been discussion the Ghosts the last few posts and seem to have reached a consensus that the ECM from the bug’s base somehow disrupted the Ghost’s A.I., thus rendering them ineffective. Hopefully, the Ghosts will be made more resistant to the bug’s ECM and will prove to be effective in future encounters. Graham

As others have already mentioned, the Bandai reissues have many Tampo printed markings on them. The Takatoku’s IIRC had no or minimal printing markings, using stickers for their markings. The Bandai reissues (except the Hikaru VF-1J) all came with canopies that could be removed without tools and replaced by a swappable plug-in heatshield. The Takatoku’s canopies were all held on by screws and no separate heatshield was included. The stripes on the wings of the Bandai reissues are recessed into the wings to prevent scratching, whereas the stripes on the Takatoku’s are flush with the wing top, making them prone to scratching. It’s very difficult to find a Takatou where the plated (chrome or nickel?) metal parts still look new. Usually there will be some mild pitting, corrosion or just the luster will have faded. Graham

What's wrong with the VF-11C? The head is the same as the VF-11B. Personally, I prefer the overall color scheme of the VF-11C to the VF-11B. I really like the white with black trim and blue/green FPs. I've been bugging Yamato to realease a VF-11C forever. Graham

You are right, I hadn't noticed the two missiles that hit the red bug just before we see Gilliam's white VF-25 fly down into the colony. Looking at the two missiles though, they appear to be full size missiles, not micro missiles, so I think they would definitely be too large to fit in the shoulders. My guess is internal leg bays like on the YF-19. Graham

Yeah, I guess we have to consider it as being some type of powerful ECM that can affect electronic systems such as A.I.s. Hopefully, the Ghost’s protection level can be increased so that they will be immune to it like the VF-171s. Same goes for the missiles as well, because at the moment all missiles are effectively useless. Graham

I don't buy that. Even if the Ghost's radar is blind, I'm sure they don't fly just on radar alone, but rely on a fusion of multiple sensors and different cameras. Graham

I’m still bothered by how the bugs managed to jam the Ghosts. After all, how do you jam an autonomous A.I.? Jamming in the classical sense is defined as techniques to limit the effectiveness of an opponent's communications and/or detection equipment. At best jamming would have cut off communication between the Ghosts and the Macross 25 and reduced the effectiveness of the Ghost’s onboard sensors. Jamming should not have stopped the autonomous A.I.s from continuing to operate independently. However, what we see on screen is Ghosts appearing to veer out of control and crash into one another and electrical discharges around the Ghosts dorsal sensor pod. This leads me to suspect a number of possible conclusions: - 1) By 2059 Ghosts are no longer controlled by onboard autonomous A.I.s, but are instead controlled remotely from a mother ship. Perhaps after the Sharon Apple incident the use of autonomous A.I. fighters is prohibited and the Ghost Fighters are now remotely controlled, perhaps as somebody else suggested by BDS/BDI systems similar to the YF-21. If they are remote controlled, this would explain why they lost control when the jamming started. 2) Or if the Ghost are still controlled by onboard autonomous A.I.s, perhaps what we saw on screen was not jamming per se, but rather a massive Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP), strong enough to overcome any shielding and disrupt the Ghost’s control systems. If it was an EMP, why did the bugs not use it against the VF-171’s and VF-25s as surely it would have been effective against them too? The only thing I can think of is that the EMP or jamming originated from the bugs asteroid or mother ship and is limited in range, so was only used against the Ghosts when they came in range. Graham

Kresphy, Does the article specifically state “Nuclear” or does it say “Reaction”. I know that technically, they are the same, it’s just that in Macross they are always referred to as “Reaction Weapons”, so this would be a first if the actually call it a nuclear bomb/missile. Anyway, it makes more sense now why only Ozuma as squadron leader was authorized to launch in the Armored VF-25, whereas the other pilot(s) were only authorized to use Super packs. Graham

Going back a few pages to the discussion about the wrap-around imaging screens in the VF-17, here's line-art of the VF-17's cockpit interior, clearly showing the location of all the imaging panels. Graham

There's a new update on the official site (see attached pic). Can somebody translate please? Graham

Radar? What is this radar you speak of? Everybody knows it's just a guy in the nosecone with a pair of binoculars! Graham

The VF-17D and now maybe the VF-171 are my favourites. I also love the YF-19, VF-22, VF-0A/S, VF-2SS w/SAP, VF-11B/C & VF-5000. The SV-51 and VF-25 are also really growing on me. Somebody should start a least favorite VF poll. . My least favorite would be the VF-9 Cutlass and Metal Siren. I find them hideous in all 3 modes. Graham

Just checking the official site for the 10th time today and noticed the "What's New" part is blank. I guess they are getting ready to put up a new update. Graham

As far as Macross mecha go, my main areas of speciality are the VF-1, VF-17, YF/VF-19, YF-21 & VF-22. While I'm resonably knowledgable about other vFs and Destroids, I'm not an expert. Graham

Yes, that's me when I still had my beard and moustache and much more hair on top. That pic is probably about 10-12 years old now. Gotta see if I still have the original somewhere. The pic was drawn by a girl in UK by the name of Emmeline Dobson and was part of a series. She also drew one for Rik Newman, webmaster of the macross.co.uk site and huge Macross 7 fan(see attached pic). There was another pic of Olie Barder (MWer: Cacophanous), with a Max DYRL VF-1 body IIRC, but that has been lost to the mists of time. And yes, I have an original copy of the VF-X2 Special Version. So far I have resisted all requests to burn a copy or to make it available online. Maybe I'm being selfish, it's just I feel that something so rare and so hard to come by should remain rare and hard to come by. Graham

Yep, the Nora is pretty much perfect. Best toy Yamato have made in a while. Graham

Yep, that is correct the VF-17 did feature wrap around imaging screens in the cockpit. These are clearly shown on the official lineart. Graham

Wolfx, as promised, here's some lineart with notes, showing how the VF-17 stores and ejects it's gunpod and where the firing port is for fighter mode. Presumably it's the same for the VF-171 as in the manga, the VF-171's gunpod looks identical, or nearly so. Graham

The Compendium makes no mention of active stealth for the VF-17, but does say the following: "In order to maintain passive stealthiness, the VF-17 does not normally use any Super Parts or external weapon stations".. I take passive stealth to mean shaping and RAM (radar absorbant materials). We went over this already in one of the other threads. The F-117 does not have the radar cross section of a flock of birds. It has the radar cross section of a bird (singular). Speculating about the capabilities of Cyclops radar is pointless. We know nothing about it. Why? Stealth is stealth. If it deflects or absorbs radar wave to prevent detection in an atmosphere, it should also work in space. Graham