Shadow

Theres an interesting article in the New York Times and Yahoo about the F-35, hitting some big snags.

Interesting read. I'll put the link up.

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting...-back-on-course

Hear, hear, wish we could get rid of all this stealth nonsense and get back to building planes that actually look good. Which is off course the most important thing!

Wasn't the YF-23 designed with more stealth in mind compared to the YF-22 which sacrificed some of this for better maneuverability thanks to the thrust vector nozzles? Also to comment on so-called bad-looking stealth aircraft. I thought the F-117 and B-2 always looked cool. Well from the front, the F-117 looked cool atleast.

I have to admit though, the more I do look at the T-50, the more appealing it is. Looking forward to what the mass produced versions formal designation will be in the future, if it makes it to that stage.

115 or more of these aircraft for the Russian air force. Hmm, don't see that happening anytime soon, though I'm concerned more with the export sales of this aircraft if it really does kick off into mass production in the coming years. Might convince Congress into re-looking at putting the F-22 onto the market for allies.

Basically agree what others have said about the looks. An Su-27 melded with a YF-23. It's sorta reminds me of the X-02 from Ace Combat. Wonder what its weapons storage capabilities will be compared to the F-22.

The Super Hornet could be considered as one of the Navy's best bang-for-the-buck buys. Besides, the Super Hornet so far has been able to do the missions that the Navy wants it to do.

I think that will depend on how valuable the stealth attributes are on F-35.

Versatility and price is the big thing now it seems, especially the multi-role capability. Even some F-22s have been reconfigured to carry JDAM bombs basically replacing the F-117 Nighthawk. Only difference being, it can still carry air to air ordinance.

I'm not sure if this is news to anyone here, but the US Government has been operating several Su-27's for over a decade. It wasn't the USA government that bought two Su-27's from the Ukraine a year or so ago, it was the Tactical Air Support company which provides aggressor training to the US Navy. Although the unit has been "officially" deactivated, the 6513th Test Squadron "Red Hats" flies MiG-29's and Su-27's out of groom lake for both air combat testing/training and ground/missile/air radar/sensor testing. The USA also purchased 21 nuclear-capable MiG-29's from Moldova in 1997. If you search around the net you can find many pics and vids of the MiGs and Sukhois at groom lake (stay away from those UFO-believing crazies, though).

I take it then most of the MiG-17, 21s and 23s the Red Eagles operated have long been scrapped or put in a museum?

Interesting, I've never heard the term Franken but I get why.

The Intruder and Prowler are still some of my favorite Naval aircraft but I'm curious though. The Navy operates the EA-6 but does it also operate the EA-18G Growler or is that strictly a USMC aircraft?

Fiat has unveiled it's first new Chrysler. And it's...

Shhh... Chrysler-badged Lancia Delta Appears at the Detroit Motor Show

I do have to say...what a nice ride. The Delta's not too bad, either.

So the Delta is finally coming over to our shores. It's a shame we never received this car 20 years ago or we may have seen the Delta Integrale.

Don't know if this was posted yet but for those that keep up with Formula 1. Lotus is making its return to the sport with Trulli and Kovalainen as its drivers.

http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/auto_ra...ory/240690.html

I don't get people hating on the F-35's looks. Sure the X-35 was ugly but how can you look at this and not say it's beautiful.

It really depends on the angle but overall I don't find the F-35 aesthetically appealing as say an F-16, Rafale or even the F-22 to a degree but that's just my opinion though. Everyone has different tastes.

I watched that winter classic and saw the B-2 fly over but they cut it off as it was about to go right over the stadium.

It's been reported a Predator drone was hacked by insurgents in Iraq. I can't really say this wasn't inevitable at some point. Interesting story though.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126102247889095011.html

WASHINGTON -- Militants in Iraq have used $26 off-the-shelf software to intercept live video feeds from U.S. Predator drones, potentially providing them with information they need to evade or monitor U.S. military operations.

Senior defense and intelligence officials said Iranian-backed insurgents intercepted the video feeds by taking advantage of an unprotected communications link in some of the remotely flown planes' systems. Shiite fighters in Iraq used software programs such as SkyGrabber -- available for as little as $25.95 on the Internet -- to regularly capture drone video feeds, according to a person familiar with reports on the matter.

U.S. officials say there is no evidence that militants were able to take control of the drones or otherwise interfere with their flights. Still, the intercepts could give America's enemies battlefield advantages by removing the element of surprise from certain missions and making it easier for insurgents to determine which roads and buildings are under U.S. surveillance.

The drone intercepts mark the emergence of a shadow cyber war within the U.S.-led conflicts overseas. They also point to a potentially serious vulnerability in Washington's growing network of unmanned drones, which have become the American weapon of choice in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Obama administration has come to rely heavily on the unmanned drones because they allow the U.S. to safely monitor and stalk insurgent targets in areas where sending American troops would be either politically untenable or too risky.

The stolen video feeds also indicate that U.S. adversaries continue to find simple ways of counteracting sophisticated American military technologies.

Nice looking airliner actually. I'm surprised to see F-80s as chase planes, atleast I think those were F-80s.

The Air Force's F-35A is supposed to enter service by 2013 while the STOVL F-35B is intended for 2012 I believe. Not sure when the C model is due.

Rear bumper of an Insight while the front reminds me of the Audi Q7. Not digging it all though I'm not real big on the new Accords in general.

Heh, I still have some old micromachines of the F-19. Never found a model in any store though.

I first saw it when it aired on Encore's Action Channel back in like 2000. When it re aired, I eagerly recorded it. It was the same with other movies that aired at the time like Patlabor 1 and 2.

What's neat is that the Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0L Turbo qualifies under the cash for clunkers bill, i'm not sure what your gas mileage is, but you could trade in your mustang + $5000 credit from the govt and pick up a Genesis, i know i would.

Darn, that's actually tempting cause I think I'm going to be on the market sometime soon for a new car. I'm sure the Cavalier would qualify under that bill.

That is a cool Pikes Peak video. Though my other favorite one is still from 1988 showing Ari Vatenen in the Peugeot 405 climbing the peak.

As for the J-10/Superflanker threat, its questionable whether it will ever materialize. Its not like we don't have any F-22s and no Russian or Chinese proxy will ever buy more than two dozen next generation fighters... if that.

Quite true, one can never really predict if a sufficient number J-10/Su-35s would be procured by a potential hostile country but the same applies to the opposite scenario. A greater threat to our new fighters particularly the F-35 could be new air defense systems like the S-300, (SA-21/22) system being sold in greater numbers then some new generation of fighter aircraft. Aircraft like the MiG-29 and Su-30 are rather prolific among Russian and Chinese proxies. So with an advanced air defense network, a country may not need to invest in the higher end Super Flankers and just rely on their current line of aircraft to still do their job without as much fear of being shot down.

Silly question though, was the Super Flanker re-designated the Su-27M or is it still the 35?

I can understand both arguments but I wish they would have agreed to procure the minimum 240 F-22s planned instead of just dropping the bomb on it. The long term effects of this could turn out bad if the F-35 doesn't perform up to expectations I think.

I enjoyed reading through this. Makes you wonder what the weapons would've been today, if the Nazi had the resources to continue with the war.

Then again wasn't the F-117 a late seventies concept, first flown in the early eighties, and only revealed in 1990? Who knows what's up there right now.

On another note, what has happened to the SU-47 and the replacement to the Mig-29?

The Su-47 was built more or less as a test bed for future platforms. From what I've heard, its not going into any kind of mass production.

If you mean the MiG-35 as the 29s replacement, that's being built for the export market only.

Awesome pictures and yeah, that Hornet is almost frighteningly close.

Interesting video of an instructor in a T-38 getting a kill on his student who's flying an F-22.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXmDj3mFrXQ

I'd almost say this would be a time to let up on the ban to sell the F-22, to allies like Israel and Japan. I can understand the need to meet defense demands in regions of current conflict like Afghanistan. The F-22 is simply not needed in such regions. I do however hope that production is resumed in the future when the finances are there. It's still a shame that more people will lose their jobs if the production line is cut.

So the Air Force is replacing the C-5 with the C-17. I take it they intend to keep the 130 in service still for years to come? I hope that is the case atleast.

It's disappointing but not surprising to hear they're halting Raptor production. Seems there laying most of their cards down on the F-35 for future Air Force operations.

Haven't seen it yet. I plan to though maybe when it reaches the cheap theaters. Thats alittle surprising to hear they didn't show the new R35 GT-R except for a picture of it. I think the only thing that really interested me though from the trailers was the site of the Ford RS200 lined up with a Corolla.

Used to take a pack of those with me to school everyday for lunch back in the day. Loved those things.

Sucks to hear about the F-22 crash. My condolences go out to the test pilots family.