Cruel Angel's Thesis

Cleaned up a few subjective statements, probably missed some still. Looking better? Going to leave this up a bit longer. Cruel Angel's Thesis Edit: None really, just notied i moved up, no longer cannon fodder. Yay!

Macross was one the anime i hold to my heart, growing up in the middle of nowhere in the Free State of Northren California there wasn't a lot to watch on TV, but there was plenty of translated anime for a young boy to watch. I enjoyed mecha anime back then as i do today. While i have not watched it all and have a so-so love for Gundam (considered the proper of watching for mecha gearheads). Kawamori bought out a lot of skill for Macross, it was his big test to see if he had it and he did. The popularity of Macross set off something that could not be stopped. Trying to recreate that is something hard and his designs show it, you can't top what made you famous. Kawamori is one of my favorites, he has done many mecha show designs and we all come back to Macross. He is in my top of mecha designers, but mostly cause of Macross, some of his other designs are good, but its Macross that i learned of him and respected him. So the groundbreaking he did in Macross is like a measuring stick and try as you may, nothing can really top a VF-1S with a Strike Package. Miyatake (sp?) is another i love and Matsumoto (he may do manga, but damn), the Arcadia is one great ship. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Father Jack, let your gf know i bow before her. The coloring was excellent and well done. Its just so <sniff> beautiful!! Thank you for taking time to sit down and color this. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Eugimon: thank you, however without of after myriad it sounds strange when said outloud. Berttt: well i am a amateur and you saw that in how i wrote this. I do see some of what you said but not all of it, then again i wrote this so i will be a bit biased. If you can give some suggestions that would be apperative. I only plan to listen to edits and corrections for a while before i post on the MZML. Please reply or send me a PM, i would appericate the help. Also i am a fan of the F-14 so i probably let a little of my love for the plane take hold in how i constructed it. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Well the Fulcrum hasn't been up against NATO or United States fighter planes all the time, several were brought down by anti-aircraft fire or crashing into the ground (it has happened more then once IIRC). Some of these never involved any clash with NATO or United States fighter planes. While it is true the US has gotten several chances to examine to Fulcrum many times or get hands on something vital about the Fulcrum. We got the radar specs not long after service, there was the defected pilot, training with the German Fulcrums and the accquitsion of Fulcrums from another country. But in the end we have seen limited engagment with the Fulcrum. Its a good thing to mention, but in the overall picture it didn't fit with what i was writing, i may rethink and include this as a side note. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Thanks for the new info David. Added it all to the post. Didn't know that about the Phoenix missiles. hopefully the brevity code entry is better, thought i was being clear, guess not. Thanks man. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Well after finally getting my computer back and having moved (still in the Free State of Northern California), I have sat down and started write-ups for the F-14 and MiG-29. Before i release these unto the MZML, i want the resident gearheads and editors to look at the write-ups and give editing and corrections so the write-ups look proper when i post them on the MZML, These will not have the game stats, i will add those at later dates. This is for the MiG-29, please only reply if you have editing or correcting. I want to avoid adding more to these write-ups then what is needed, these are long enough as they stand. I tried to be accurate as i could, but with what i have at my disposal, its hard to make sure i get accurate results. Arigato for those that can help. Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 Tochka Opori “Fulcrum†The MiG-29 is one of the last of the Cold War aircraft. Developed to be on par with the then unknown F-15, the winner of the FX competition. The MiG-29 is designed to be able to fly in any environment and be able to attack targets even with full music (ECM) singing. When the Cold War began the then new NATO needed a way to ID enemy aircraft, so they decided to do what was done in WWII in the Pacific, code name the enemy fighters, but use a system then just giving each aircraft a name. Planes with F meant a fighter, B meant bombers, etc. The MiG-29 is known as the Fulcrum. Its Russian name is Tochka Opori. However the Russian pilots are using the NATO designation as well, they found it flattering. Stats to be posted here Its 1969, the Cold War is still going, the Soviets have learned that the USAF is having a FX competition. The Soviets launch their own, to have an aircraft to defeat this new unknown winner. It was called the PFI (Perspektivnyi Frontovoi Istrebitel, trans. Advanced Tactical Fighter). The Russian aerodynamics institute, TsAGI and Sukhoi were chosen to work on this. By 1971 it was apparent that the program by itself may become too expensive. Rumors also say that MiG had a hand in this, possibly since their long time rival Sukhoi was part of this. It was then split into 2 parts (many point out the similar parallel this has to the F-16 and YF-17). One was for a light PFI, this was handled by MiG. The other was for a heavy PFI that was handed by Sukhoi. A rather interesting fact about the MiG-29. The basic design had been already figured out by the TsAGI and Sukhoi. It was sent to Mikoyan (now MAPO-MiG) to share in prototype development. With the restraints set by TsAGI, Mikoyan could make very few changes, preserving the Sukhoi characteristics while adding in Mikoyan character. The West learned of the first MiG-29 prototype in November of 1977, by the time honored tradition of satellite photography. It was designated RAM-L. The Fulcrum entered production in 1982 and was delivered to the line in 1983. NATO code-named the new fighter the Fulcrum. Since entering production the Fulcrum has been modified, with many variants and upgrade kits being manufactured. The Soviets at one point were painting the top of the MiG-29M prototypes to resemble the Fulcrum-A variants (to fool those using satellite photography). The first look at the Fulcrum happened in Finland in 1986 as part of a goodwill tour. To prevent the West from learning much, as the Soviets figured every intelligence agency of the West will have their agents there within a few hours. They had several components removed to keep the West guessing. Upgrades for the Fulcrum were fast and furious. As soon as something was available or something compromised it was fixed. The Fulcrum is one the planes with the most variants. One major change was radar, the original radar was compromised when the designer passed on the designs to the CIA. Another major change was the Fulcrum-C. The large bulge on the centerline spine led to the planes being called ‘humpbacks.’ There was a question as was this a modified fuel tank; actually it was more for the new ECM equipment. The MiG-29 has been through 14 variants several not used, many were testbeds, such as the Fulcrum-K, the naval version (never entered production, losing to Sukhoi). The current Fulcrum now being marketed is the MiG-29M. The current upgrade kits being marketed, these makes the Fulcrum-A’s into MiG-S, exports are known as MiG-SE (the ones in the Russia Air Force are known as MiG-SMT). With the fall of Russia and end of the Cold War, Mikoyan had been losing its export business to Sukhoi. This forced Mikoyan to merge with MAPO, a helicopter company, this formed MAPO-MiG (should be MIG-MAPO, but that’s another story). The fall of Russia also allowed Germany to be unified. Within the East German Luftwaffe was Fulcrum-A’s. Well its time for Western pilots to learn more about these crafts and how to face off against them. According to what was heard at the 1994 Farnborough Air Show was the MiG-29 had won BVR duels. There is question of the accuracy of these claims. The duels being fought were more for educating pilots then dogfight scenarios. So in an actual dogfight the results may be very different. As with any plane, it’s only as good as the one behind the stick. You can design the greatest plane ever, but if you have an average pilot flying it, it does the plane a grave injustice. That seems to be the problem with the Fulcrum, its combat record. In its service span it has no confirmed victories in combat. Possibly the only confirmed kill was during the Gulf War, but that confirmed kill was the MiG-23 that was the Fulcrum’s wingman. It is believed they were flying with the IFF off and when the missile had locked on to the MiG-23 instead of the F-15E’s that the Fulcrum pilot launched the missile and it hit the MiG-23. The estimated number of Fulcrums lost to enemy fire is at least 22. But since these combat records are from countries of Fulcrum exports, many argue these countries cannot afford to keep the Fulcrum in top condition and properly train pilots to take on enemy forces. The FAS (Federation of American Scientists) maintain that in a one to one battle the Fulcrum would be able to outdo the Eagles (F-15) and Falcons (F-16). With its less then stellar record, MAPO-MiG denies any craft lost in combat. As in the case of the Gulf War, they claim the planes were destroyed on the ground and never had a chance to engage. However Fulcrums were seen in several combat engagements, including one were it destroyed his wingman then flew into the ground. Since its introduction into the Russian Air Force, the US has been interested in attaining one, even more wanting one, with the introduction of the humpbacks. Well finally the US got its wish. In 1998 the Republic of Moldova put their Fulcrums (capable of carrying nuclear weapons) for auction. When Iran expressed interest the US stepped in. While Iran already had Fulcrums, they only had the Fulcrum-A. Of the Fulcrums up for sale 14 of the 21 were Fulcrum-C’s. Included in this purchase was spare parts and 507 missiles. Today the future of the Fulcrum is in doubt, many countries using the Fulcrum has given up on them, moving to earlier MiG planes, Sukhoi and American fighters. With the current Russian economy no new Fulcrums have been commissioned and export sales have dried up. MAPO-MiG is hoping when the next gen fighter sales are allowed they can pick up some sales. The Fulcrum came into existence during the last part of the Cold War. She was much like a part of a dying breed of planes, planes designed with the purpose of destroying a belief, a way of life and an entire culture. Macross Zero The Fulcrum makes an appearance in Macross Zero in the first and last episode. In the first episode we get the best looks at the Fulcrum. In the last episode they zip by in the dogfight scenes and there are hardly any good looks. As with the Tomcat, it’s not a real world Fulcrum. According the experts on MacrossWorld, its missing several features that makes it a Fulcrum other then its look. But the closest it resembles is a Fulcrum-A, the first generation Fulcrum. Rather strange that it would be a first gen. Fulcrum and not a later variant. Maybe they thought all Fulcrums are the same or this was the only model they could get. Who knows, until Kawamori is asked we’ll never know. So the Fulcrum in this write-up was going according the info that could be attained for the Fulcrum-A: MiG-29B (Variant 1, Model 9-12). About the only thing that can be wrong is the addition of the R-77 (NATO code AA-12, ADDERS) which probably could not be used by the first gen. Fulcrum, but I’m not even sure about that, so they were added for a sense of completeness and since the Tomcat got the Slammer and the 9X Sidewinders, might as well level the playing field. Weapons Like any fighter, the Fulcrum carries a myriad of weapons. For this write-up the Fulcrum was engaged in dogfighting, so we shall focus on the missile loads it would’ve been carrying. I’m unsure of Russian brevity codes so they are not included. When the world moved on the jet age, the question of whether or not the dogfight would still be around. With guided missiles and BVR radar would engaging in close range combat be possible. Well the US said no and soon had to eat those words. Your radar can’t look everywhere, so an enemy can sneak up behind you and blow you up without having to use missiles. These lessons were taught to the US in Vietnam. The Russian fighters kept guns and showed the US the folly of thinking the dogfight was gone (the F-4 Phantom had no gun). Even as BVR is stressed in the East and in the West you never know when you might need that gun, after all what’s to protect you when you run out of missiles? The gun of the Fulcrum is the GSh-30-1. The 30 means its using a 30mm cannon. The 1 probably designates it has one barrel. In early testing of the Fulcrum it was a GSh-30 with 2 barrels, but decided on just the one. With the Fulcrum built for air-to-air engagements, what’s the ammo? Well the only source I found stated HE, but in most air-to-air engagements HEI gives you a better success ratio, after all lighting up the fuel is always fun. I used HEI, if you want to go with the published source its HE. The GSh-30 does have one little secret however. In the front of the Fulcrum offset to the right (left if you were facing it) is a small eye looking thing. That’s the Fulcrum IRST unit. While it does not have the range of the Tomcats, it does have one special function. It also works like a range finder. This gives the Fulcrum the power of autocannon fire. When the GSh-30 is set to auto, when the IRST gets a target into range and determines the best shot, it fires a 5-10 round burst, it has 80% probability of destruction of target. While the strategy of a dogfight missile wasn’t as clear to Russian pilots as they are with US pilots, there are dogfight missiles for Soviets pilots. The first is the R-60M. Known with the NATO code AA-8 (air-to-air) APHID. It is a rather small missile, compared to Western missiles, it’s a pint sized package, but with the right plane it can do a neat little trick In air-to-air missile engagements you need to line up with the target, that is determined by the sensing range of the your radar, its usually a cone that gives you a good area, but the Soviets went a set forward with their planes. While the West was just starting to get the idea of a helmet targeting system, the Russians already had it. The APHID can use this system. In game terms the APHID has a 180 degree firing area (well probably not in real life, but this is anime were talking about), rather then the old line up and fire. Speed: Mach 2+ The medium range missile for the Fulcrum arsenal is the R-27 (NATO code: AA-10 ALAMO). The Alamo is interesting missile. The Soviets were fond of making modular missiles in a sense, so semi-active radar homing (R-27R) and infared homing (R-27T) variants exist. However in 1990 the ALAMO received and upgrade in range to 130 km, giving it long range capabilities (R-27ER and R-27ET respectively for the warhead selection). The write-up can support both variants. This missile also can use the helmet sighting system as well. Speed: Mach 4 The R-60 was destined to be replaced. But with stockpiles, might as well use them with its successor. The R-73M, now the R-74EM (NATO code: AA-11 ARCHER) is that successor. This dogfight missile seems to scare the West. It is viewed as a Sidewinder on steroids. Being linked to the helmet targeting system and its ability to be installed on older fighters made it a missile to be feared. It was this missile that led to the development of the AIM-9X and the AIM-132 ASRAAM. With ECCM and an ability to engage almost any target including cruise missiles with a 12g+ maneuverability to boot, the missile has shown itself to be a pilots nightmare. A interesting note to point out is while the missile uses fire and forget, it’s a heat seeker. What makes this interesting is most fire and forget missiles are radar guided and with it being a heat seeker means it can probably lock onto the exhaust of missiles and destroy them. Speed: Mach 2.5 The Cold War represented an arms race. We had a new fighter, they had a new fighter, we had new missiles and they would follow. Well once again we were matched, with the advent of the Slammer, the Russians countered. They created the R-77RVV-AE (NATO code: AA-12 ADDER). It is very similar to the Slammer and has a nickname the AMRAAMski. However is not up to the Slammer all the way. It may have a longer range (no longer now according to the work done on the AIM-120C-7) and a bigger warhead, it suffers from drag due to its larger load and fins. The Russians could not make hydraulic actuators small and reliable enough, so they used ‘potatoe masher’ fins to get the missile to move in the direction it needs to go into. However the missile designers believe the benefits outweigh the drawbacks (they spend 3 years to come up with this system). The density of the grid allows for it to fly in relative wind and have better maneuverability due to less weight and size. It can be used for a myriad of purposes including the shooting down of missiles, in fact it was developed to if need be the shoot down medium and long range missiles, like the Slammer, the Phoenix and the Patriot. Like the Slammer it does use HOJ in its design as well as fire and forget principle. It however does not seem to use the helmet targeting system. Unlike the R-74EM, it cannot be used on older aircraft due to its requirements in radar and avionics. In fact most planes in the Russian Air Force cannot use the R-77. Speed: Mach 4+ Other Stuff The Fulcrum also has a IRST unit like the F-14 however it is not as powerful as the Tomcat’s unit. It’s good to 14km, but is accepted to be accurate to 8km in VMC conditions. If tracking with the laser range finder (part of the IRST) and it lost due to environmental factors (i.e. clouds), it will auto switch to radar tracking. The IRST is also hooked up to the helmet, which explains the shape of the IRST, so it can pivot with the turning of the helmet. Its usually used within 10km for range estimate and use of missiles, so they don’t need to use the radar. On that note, the radar is not hooked up to the helmet; it would interfere with the data hook-up. It too is desgined the same as the Tomcat’s since it is independent to the radar system. The Fulcrum has also at its disposal chaff and flares, 30 of each is loaded or 60 of one. They are located in line with the vertical tail surfaces above the wing surfaces. The Fulcrum is truly one of more interesting aircraft out there today. With her host of upgrades despite its failure and lack of market, she has shown how a plane can go from riches to rags. Hopefully her successor the MiG 1.44 will be able to move on to better things and show the world Russia can still produce fighters to always give the Americans a run for their money. Cruel Angel’s Thesis Sources WEBSITES Fighter Aircraft, MiG-29 http://www.sci.fi/~fta/MiG-29.htm MacrossWorld http://www.macrossworld.com/macross/_main_menu.htm Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page FAS http://www.fas.org/main/home.jsp BOOKS The Encyclopedia of Modern Military Aircraft PEOPLE Several Members of MacrossWorld Special Thanks to: David Hingtgen Knight26 Cruel Angel's Thesis Edit: ECM in Archer entry should be ECCM

Well after finally getting my computer back and having moved (still in the Free State of Northern California), I have sat down and started write-ups for the F-14 and MiG-29. Before i release these unto the MZML, i want the resident gearheads and editors to look at the write-ups and give editing and corrections so the write-ups look proper when i post them on the MZML, These will not have the game stats, i will add those at later dates. This is for the F-14, please only reply if you have editing or correcting. I want to avoid adding more to these write-ups then what is needed, these are long enough as they stand. I tried to be accurate as i could, but with what i have at my disposal, its hard to make sure i get accurate results. Arigato for those that can help. Grumman F-14 Tomcat The Tomcat is an aircraft like no other. She belongs to 2 special brotherhoods in aviation. The first is the Brotherhood of the Cold War. She was created with a purpose during the Cold War, she was meant to do a certain duty and with it gone, she has no purpose and so she will be retired. The second brotherhood is the Brotherhood of Variable Geometry. She has a swing wing. Her wings can move forward and back based on the data from several sensors on her fuselage allowing her to have perfect agility every time. The name Tomcat has been attributed to 2 sources. One was the late Vice Admiral Thomas Connolly, he helped the Navy lose the F-111, his callsign was Tomcat. The second is the Navy assigns feline names to Grumman aircrafts, it’s a tradition thing. Interesting to note about the F-14 is she was created because of a mistake. When Kennedy became president, his Sec. of Defense was a guy called McNamara. Well when he came in, the Air Force was looking for a tactical fighter to do nuclear strike missions. One of the requirements was the plane have a swing wing. The Air Force was interested in this concept and decided to bypass the whole long process of during research, let the companies do it for you. The Navy was looking for its next fighter, the Phantom needed to be replaced soon. Well McNamara had a brilliant idea, take these two requests and combine them into one. Well things pretty much went downhill and with one mistake after another from McNamara, the end product was the F-111. The Navy was able to get out of this citing several things wrong with this plane, weight and size being primary. The F-111 did go on to serve in the Air Force, but not in her intended role. Now the Navy lost some big money in this fiasco and they still needed a plane to replace the Phantom. Well Grumman the company that build the F-111, came to Navy with a idea for a the Phantom successor. The Navy liked the idea. Kelly Johnson creator of the Skunks Works for Lockheed Martin had a list of rules for running Skunk Works, the last one was an unwritten one, but it went like this, “Starve before doing business with the damned Navy. They don’t know what in hell they want and will drive you up a wall before they break either your heart or a more exposed part of your anatomy.†Well the Navy was still sore over the F-111, so to avoid the same mistake they did something that would make Kelly Johnson proud. They took what Grumman said they would do and made them stick to it. If the prototype and the production fighter failed to meet the standards they promised there would be heavy fines based on what was lost. Grumman had no choice but to deliver. Grumman went into overdrive; they were given a short time to get an aircraft, designed, tested, built and delivered. After many days of tests, models, and ideas, they had what they wanted. Test Model 303E was the winning design using the swing wing. Time to refine her, they finished a flyable model, close to the end of 1970, but they needed to have a flight before the end of the year due to the contract with the Navy. As the end of December approached, they had to do something; most of the staff had saved vacation time to extend the holiday vacation. On December 21 the prototype took a short flight. Nine days later she took a real test flight and had a problem. Due to some vibrations in the airframe a hydraulic line developed a leak, the plane crashed, but they fixed the problem by clamping the line. After that was all the testing and fine tuning for the final product. Fourteen prototypes were used. In then end the F-14 was delivered to the Navy 51 months after contract signature. Due to a contract obligation the Tomcats were fitted with the TF30 engines. It’s a good engine for afterburning, but in a dogfight environment they were a pain. Turbine blade cracking and compressor stalls were common resulting in several loss of aircraft incidents. Grumman was on top of it. The F-14 entered service in 1972, in ’73 they were looking at new engines. The F401-400 engines were tested and they weren’t good enough for replacement. The F-14B prototype went into torpor. Early in 1981 she was reawaken with F101DFE, they were good, too good, the kitten had claws. For some reason the Navy wasn’t up with it and by September the F-14B was back in torpor. July 1984 was her last trip out. Equipped with the F110-GE-400 engines she generated results that gave Grumman the OK to build the new aircraft, during these tests additional upgrades were done was well. Rather then call the plane the F-14B she was called the F-14A+. The planes were built in 1987; in May of 1991 the Navy changed the designation from F-14A+ to F-14B. As the F-14B was being built Grumman was already making more upgrades for the F-14D (the F-14C never really came about, but upgrades planned for it, they were included with the D). However it was an uphill for Grumman to get the Navy to accept the F-14D. In aircraft building there are bigger companies with the cash to persuade the mover and shakers. The light fighter lobby was winning. But the Navy allowed Grumman to make F-14D’s but for a short time. Starting in 1990, the F-14D was laid to rest in 1992. The replacement to this amazing aircraft was the smaller, lighter fighter, the F/A-18 Hornet. Like many aircraft Grumman tied to garner export sales. They were several attempts, but they fell though at the last minute. Then the Shah of Iran however was in US at one point needed a plane to help defend his country from Soviet flyovers in their Mach 3 plane. The decision came to a fly-off. The F-14 versus the F-15 Eagle. The F-14 won. All but one of the F-14’s ordered (the last one wasn’t delivered since the revolution happened before shipping) were sent to Iran and several workers for Grumman went as well to provide training for flight and maintenance. Shortly after, the Islamic revolution happened. With Iran becoming an enemy, the Navy had to do some changes to the AWG-9 and the Phoenix so if the secrets were leaked (read Soviets) they would be useless. It is believed that a few of the Phoenix missiles in Iran’s possession were sent to the Soviet Union (the rumor has never been proved nor disproved). Another rumor was the sabotage of certain parts of the F-14 by Grumman engineers (again no proof has ever been presented). But the Iranian Tomcats fly still, however with nearly 30+ years on those airframes they won’t be flying much longer. It is believed that about maybe 20 still fly while the rest are used as parts planes, since there is no way to get replacement parts for the Iranian F-14. Also it is believed that the Soviets have been upgrading these F-14’s. Stats to be posted The F-14 came into its creation during the Cold War. The Cold War was the tense stance between the West and East, mainly the USA and the USSR. Both pushed tech to its limits in a bid to be on top if they decided to make the Cold War a hot war. The battle on the seas was turning against the US. The Russians were getting better in missile tech then we were (that changed later) and carrier groups might not be protected as well against these. The main role of the F-14 was to intercept bomber groups with these missiles and in some cases intercept the missiles. The F-14 weapon for this, the Phoenix with the AWG-9. The AWG-9 gave the F-14 the longest radar detection range of any aircraft to date, later it was upgraded to the digital version and not even the F-14 could use the extended range, the boom on the front of the airframe wasn’t long enough (it got half the range). It also allowed the F-14 the ability to lock on and fire at 6 separate targets (again only plane to have this ability). Along with the Phoenix, the Tomcat had its choice of Sidewinders or Sparrows. The only built-in weapon was the M61A1 20mm gatling gun (also known as the GAU-4 20mm Vulcan). Later as the tech curve progressed the F-14 got a nickname, the Bombcats. With the use of the LATRIN pod, the Tomcat can drop laser guided smart bombs with the best of them. As technology got better, the F-14 improved as well. Additional ECM ports, camera system, IR seeker and numerous improvements keep the F-14 at the top of navy fighter aircraft. With the implement of the Hornet however the F-14 has run out of her nine lives. However she still does prove she can still hang in there. Following the attacks of Sept.11, the F-14 still proved she had claws. Before the US could get an airfield close enough to have the Air Force hit Taliban strongholds and Al Qaeda hideouts (till then it was long range bombers), the Navy was given the chance. The Tomcat was one of the first aircraft to start dropping bombs. With her long distance and ability to carry so much munitions, the F-14 can take off, drop bombs and come back to the carrier without needing to refuel, even with targets as far as a 1,000 miles (one run was 1,7000 miles). During this bombing the F-14 gave the Taliban a special present for the 6 month anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, the first combat drop of JDAMs. Today the Tomcat waits for its eventual death. Its successor will be a smaller plane, the F/A-18 Hornet. The debate rages why the F-14 is being replaced by a less capable plane. There is no clear answer, there are many reasons, there is no Cold War, carrier defense can be done with automatic gun emplacements, the small fighter lobby winning are just a few. As the Hornet is being delivered, the F-14 is being retired, the current date for F-14 to be fully retired is 2006. After that most of the F-14D’s will be stored at the Navy boneyard in the 72 turnaround section, meaning if they are needed they can be made flyable in 72 hours. Macross Zero The F-14 has made many appearances in movies; its most recent appearance was in a Japanese anime, Macross Zero. However the F-14 in Macross Zero wasn’t a real F-14. Many things were wrong, improper ECM fairings, the wrong ECM fairings, the cans were too short, the chinpod was the wrong kind and other things. On Macrossworld, it started with the resident avian gearhead explaining what was wrong. After a while it was traced to one model. It was a perfect match. The thread for that can be found here, http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?...shin's+f-14 In Macross Zero there is also a interesting set-up, the F-14 is packing the AIM-120. Yes boy and girls, the Tomcat packs the AMRAAM. There was once a test for that, but the Tomcat never got the go-ahead for AMRAAM. Now on to stats for the F-14, or more precisely the stats for the F-14 in Macross Zero. Since it’s a combo of a B and D, you can use it to represent an F-14B or D model, just remember if you want to be accurate don’t use AMRAAMs. Weapons The F-14 can carry a myriad of weapons, but we shall focus on the most commonly used weapons. The onboard weapon is the M61A1 20mm Vulcan cannon. In the modern air to air engagement armor is no longer part of jets, so the common ballistic style of choice is HEI (High Explosive Incendiary). However with modern tactics dictating BVR with missiles, the cannon on jet aircraft is used for strafing runs. So a new round was introduced for this. The PGU-28 is known as a SAPHEI (Semi-armor piercing high explosive incendiary). For game purposes the semi-AP is treated as full AP. The missiles carried on the F-14 are all AIM types. According the US standard for missile naming, the AIM can be broken to; A= Air, I= Intercept, Aerial, M= Guided Missile. The first letter stands for the launch environment, the second stands for mission and the last is the type of vehicle it is. The missiles also have a brevity code, it is alert other craft in the attack area that a certain type of missile (referring to its guidance system) has been launched and you might want to watch out, so it doesn’t lock on to you. The brevity code will be added at the end of each description of the missile. In Macross Zero Shin should’ve done that, but he probably would’ve used the NATO brevity codes. Also the missiles known speed will be included as well. The AIM-7 is known as the Sparrow. The Sparrow is a radar guided missile. It has been designed for all weather, all altitude use. However the aircraft firing the Sparrow must keep a keep painting the enemy with its radar, to ensure a hit. The Sparrow is currently being phased out in favor of the AIM-120. But the Sparrow will not be phased out until the current inventory of Sparrows has been depleted, so the Sparrow will be around for at least another couple decades at least. The Sparrow version in current use (AIM-7P) uses semi-active radar homing so it should be able to avoid chaff. That is up to the GM, an option is to give a 50 percent chance. Brevity Code: Fox One. Speed: Mach 4. The AIM-9 is known as the Sidewinder. It uses an infrared tracking system. It is oldest missile smart missile used by the US. It’s been around for over 50 years and has a very good combat record. The current version the AIM-M is an all-aspect meaning unlike early IR missiles, it’s not limited to rear firing lock-on. The newest version is coming into service right now the AIM-9X (the Tomcat does not carry these, but included since the Tomcat can technically fire them). It has better lock-on and targeting, but uses most of the design of the 9M. It also is configured for the JHeMoCS (Joint Helmet Mounted Cuing System), meaning that the helmet can used to aim the missile, rather having the jet/missile line up with the target. Like the Sparrow it has the ability to avoid being fooled by flares (9X only), once again up to GM, but more then likely a 50 percent chance. Brevity Code: Fox Two. Speed: Mach 2.5 The AIM-54 is known as the Phoenix. Like the bird reborn from ashes, this missile was reborn into the Navy inventory when the Tomcat took the AWG-9 radar from the ill-fated F-111. The Phoenix is the only long range missile in the Navy inventory. The Phoenix was developed to help with the shooting down of Soviet bombers that might be endangering the carrier fleet and to counter the cruise missiles Soviets might use on the carrier fleet. The Tomcat has the ability to lock on 6 separate targets and fire on them with a full load of Phoenix missiles. This was only done once, according the History Channel special on the F-14, 5 hit dead-on; the 6th was considered a lethal hit. There was one combat firing of 2 Phoenix missiles, but one failed to hit and the other followed the target (a MiG-25) as it went into the ground. The current version of the Phoenix is known as the AIM-54C ECCM/Sealed. With it being sealed meaning it doesn’t need to have coolant run through it, which means the Tomcat has its speed reduced because of that. The Phoenix was retired by the Navy on Sept. 30 2004. The Tomcat shall carry out the service remaining with Sparrows and Sidewinders. Interesting fact, the Tomcats were rarely loaded up with 6 Phoenix missiles. They hit the carrier deck rather hard. Another fun fact with the Phoenix, if doing a max range launch they act like an ICBM, they fly up then come slamming down into the target. Brevity Code: Fox Three. Speed: Mach 3+ approx. The AIM-120 is known as the AMRAAM. AMRAAM stands for Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile. It is known to crews as the Slammer. The Slammer can be considered the first true smart missile using fire and forget. It uses an active radar system to lock on and pursue the target. Unlike other missiles which use ECCM to prevent jamming, it actually lets itself get jammed. When it is jammed it locks unto what is causing the jamming and pursues it. It’s called Home-On Jam. The Slammer is currently also the replacement for the Sparrow. The Tomcat is not able to use the Slammer. It was tested once with the Slammer, but it was rejected by the Navy for carry, due the fact the Tomcat was going to be retired soon. In Macross Zero it seems this is reversed and the Tomcat can use the Slammer, so it is included. The current versions of the Slammer are the AIM-120B and AIM-120C. The difference between the B and C is the C has clipped surfaces to allow it to fit in the Raptor missile bays. There have been upgrades to the AIM-120C models, with the current being AIM-120C-7, but no hard data is being released to the public (one known is increased range, but no idea of how much is known). Right now work is on the way for the AIM-120D. Brevity Code: Fox Three. Speed: Mach 4 Approx. Other stuff This section covers other stuff for the game, mostly just explaining some stuff about the F-14. The AN/AXX TCS, is a camera mounted in the chinpod along with the IRST. The camera has a range of 10 miles, allowing the F-14 to visually ID enemy targets, no other aircraft in US service has this ability. The IRST is a type of FLIR unit. It picks up the heat emitted by objects (thermal radiation). This allows it to pick up even stealth planes, like the F/A-22 Raptor. This unit however doesn’t have the range of its radar system, but it allows the F-14 to use it to look for enemy targets passively. The IRST cannot be picked up like the powerful AWG-9 or APG-71 can. It was built in Mekton Z as nightlights. This was done to show that is independent of the sensor system, despite the fact the radar is in the same location. Not listed, but of importance they F-14 also can transmit images taken with the TCS and IRST to other Tomcats and back the HQ. The ECM is a bit fuzzy, the ECM placements was a tough one to figure out since there is hardly any info I could find on them, but it was also what the F-14 had in Macross Zero since it had a ECM placement that did not exist. This is what was revealed when I asked about it on the forums, David Hingtgen is the aircraft god and here is what he said about it. I'll start with a list of every ECM "bump" possible on an F-14. Front to back: 1. On the left nosegear door. Rather flat, but large. 2. Directly ahead of the glove vanes themselves (or where they'd be), on each side. 3. Underneath the gloves, but still near the vane itself. On each side of the plane. 4. Similar to above, but a bit more inboard, a bit more aft, and a bit larger, again on each side. #3 and #4 always go together, thus an F-14 either has all 4, or none. 5. Starboard v.stab, very tiny, on the very rear tip of the top of the fin--just below the red light. 6. Very extreme rear of the boattail/beavertail, next to the fuel dump pipe. Now, a late F-14A and all F-14B's have all of these except #5. An F-14D has all except 3 and 4. Early A's have none, mid A's have 2 and 6 or: 2,3,4, and 6. 2 and 6 are the most common, anything from 1980+ will have them. Shin however, has only 4 and 6. 2 ALWAYS occurs with 6, in every one I've ever found. He has an impossible mix, but it matches what Fujimi would have you do to their F-14D kits (asides from #2, which Shin also doesn't have). Edit to this, ECM bumps #1 and #2 are always together. As for the actual ECM themselves, according to David, they are mostly jams for radar and missiles. Given the age of the F-14, despite tech upgrades the ECM has been left for the most part the same, it only has a level 2. One thing on the F-14 that can’t be covered by the game is the RWR. That is the Radar Warning Receiver, but if any aircraft is using its radar on the F-14 the crew will know since the RWR will let them know. Additionally the Tomcat has chaff and flares. Located in the ‘beavertail’ they are in 30 pack bundles totaling 60 (30 of each). Guess that takes care of it for the F-14. Questions will be answered if asked. Cruel Angel’s Thesis Sources WEBSITES Home of MATS http://www.anft.net/f-14/ MacrossWorld http://www.macrossworld.com/macross/_main_menu.htm Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page FAS http://www.fas.org/main/home.jsp BOOKS The Encyclopedia of Modern Military Aircraft TELEVISION The History Channel Modern Marvel’s: The F-14 PEOPLE Several Members of MacrossWorld (too many to mention) Special Thinks to: David Hingtgen Cruel Angel's Thesis Edited Edited again

Well after looking around, i have found a site that has the 70 Meg avi version that several members state they have. Its on a bittorrent site with several other anime and the nightmare inducing american concept of a live action sailormoon, so if you haven't and want to see what the fuss is, its there. So for the site you need Bittorrent or a similiar program. DaiCon download Hopefully the link works, this board has given me problems, so I'll add it here just to make sure http://torrents.hikarinokiseki.com.rut.org:6969/ There is a mini DaiCon clip near the top, the full 70 meg version is the second from the bottom and the SailorMoon frightfest is below it. Enjoy Cruel Angel's Thesis

<Digs out Miss Macross 7> Okay here we go, the Bridge Bunnies of M7 Miho Miho Sally S. Ford Kim Saintlaurent Ho Sidok Lora Continental Shine and Fine Brockenglitts (twin sisters) Rivi Donen Ella Fitzgerald Miho and Sally get most of the screen time. That should be a good poll, the most popular Bridge Bunny Cruel Angel's Thesis

I have it somewhere. Had a long running challenge with a friend for the fasest time record. My mom asked me to explain an message on the answering machine when he called to brag about beating me, but i finally won. I think your in the YF-19 and its facing several fighters and in the end you face the Ghost X-9. There were 2 diff. settings the second one gave you 2 VF-11's as boss challenges before the Ghost, in regular its one. I got quite good and could fly between the Itano Cirus the other fighters lauched at you. Why bothered shooting them down. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Its not your skin, its the shadows, your two steps short of sinister and scary. Right now you have the scary clown thing going, you want to laugh but just can't. Wes, accident-prone lies more with the owner then the weapon. Two examples, one with a gun and another with a sword. Over on snopes.com is a link to vid of DEA agnet shooting himself with his Glock. The accident was the agnet's fault, Glock has a good reputation (despite being the most fugly gun ever made). He did not removed the magazine, when he was showing the gun, he had the slide back and locked, but had tripped the slide release loading a bullet, upon bringing the gun in line with his hip the gun discharged. Since Glock does not use external safeties you have to be careful, he neglected the first law of guns "Treat every gun as it was loaded" Luckily the bullet missed him, but it could've been worse. Now the sword one involving me I have a Katana and was praticing with it. 4 hours later at work, i was washing up and saw a thin red line below my eyebrow behind my glasses. I examined it and it was blood. I had somehow incured a one inch cut, below my eyebrow, 2 inches away from my eye behind my glasses without damaging the glasses (still haven't figured this out, but there is a chip that could've come from it, but haven't been able to verify cause of where it is) and not realize it. Given the blade is about 29 inches long, its quite a feat that could've ended with me short a eye. So its the not the weapon you have to worry about, its the person on the other end you have to worry about more. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Nice Blade, is it combat worthy? Might want to get the first pic retaken, you don't look good in it. Cruel Angel's Thesis

In the past couple days when i show up at your website AVG throws up Trojan warnings, there seems to be 2-3 Trojan virus's on your site. Figure you might want to know. Great site, can't wait to see it fixed, when do you plan to change the AIM-200 description to reflect the AIM-200 shown in Macross Zero. Cruel Angel's Thesis

There put Milia back in the lead. Cruel Angel's Thesis

When i had purchased mine, i was lead to believe it had no filmstrip, it stated that there was no filmstrip, but while going through it, i found it. Its still in the little cover they provide for it. Now i have no scanner so you'll have to do with my explanation. <pulls out Gold Book, finds filmstrip and looks> Its Britai(sp?) reponse to the kiss. The fimstrips were included in the first printing of the books, the reprints did not include this, so there is probably a small faction of the MW population (the old thread had maybe 50 members that had the strip) that has the orginial Gold Books. Tried to use the search function to hunt down the old thread, but the search function was giving me errors messages. Cruel Angel's Thesis

I believe it does have images of USAFFTC Det. 3 (current name for Area 51), this has been discussed in other forums and places, since there are several places around the Nellis Gunnery Range that sate images have been taken of. Most have been bomb targets areas and places resembling airfields, showing how our boys with the bombs got so good. When i have some time, i'll dig up the place that has the images and send a link. Some are interesting to look at. Cruel Angel's Thesis

I'm currently in the Free State of Northren California. I'm in the Sac Area. Anyone in a position to help a MW Member in need here? As it stands I'm not sure if i can get the time off, but my boss at work said we shall play it be ear when i talked to her, so this is going to be fun. Due to limited funds (I'm a traditional otaku, i can barely support my habit), i can't do expensive stuff like fly, maybe bus, but i would like to save cash here. Well if anyone can help me great if not, well i can try other ways. Thanks for any help one can give. Cruel Angel's Thesis

I know the one your talking about, I have a bad copy of it, i got from a friend. The audio quality on mine sucks, but i have watched it. It is letterbox, it was dubbed to help Japanese kids learn English (its subbed in Japanese), Megazone 23 Part II got the same treatment, but the dubbing of Megazone was a lot better then this one. Some of what was translated was changed if you've seen a fansub, its quite interesting. Finding that is hard, any MW members in Japan or HK think you guys can find this or know some otaku who can? Cruel Angel's Thesis

I have always been and always shall be Cruel Angel's Thesis. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Yeah have to agree if you want the best in mecha bashing Mekton is the way to go. Right now Talsorian is sitting in hiatus right now. Pondsmith took a job at Microsoft for a while so company shifted into part time and didn't really put anything out, besdies Dragonball Z RPG (which was always funny, casue Bird Studio had to approve the book but they kept forgetting they had a RPG out in the US, so everytime the book was sent over it sat for several months till they noticed it and asked if anyone knew). Currently Pondsmith is working to get Cyberpunk V3 out. When that is out Gundam Senki (a Gundam RPG covering the UC storyline before Operation Stardust using Mekton's system with some tweaks) will finally be put out, then another Mekton supplement from Atomic Rocket Games and there has been talks (started by me) about maybe finally doing Mekton ZZ (and its probably going to be Fuzion). I have the Robotech RPG myself, but i only have for info when i was first starting to do the Valkyries for Mekton, now i have been using the Compendium and other Macross sites as well as my collection of Macross books to do the job now. The Palldium system was too much like a offshot of the old D&D (2dn ed.) and i hated that system my friends knew it. Well thats my 2 credits. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Well the current favorite of the USAF and US Navy, despite its tendecy to go off is the PGU-28, its described as at Semi-Armor Piercing Hi-Explosive Incendary (SAPHEI). This was to replace the old M56 or M53 for the 20mm (M61A1). However there has been 12 incendents (maybe more by now) of the rounds going off, possible cook-off from the temperature of the gun. The Warthog with its 30mm of depeleted uranium chain death cycles between incendary and AP rounds. Its a 4 to 1 ratio, but i can't remember which way it goes. Cruel Angel's Thesis

Damn, it seems like bunch of forums are getting hacked, the Legendary Leafpad and Real Life have been hit in the last 2-3 weeks as well. There was another forum hit in last week, but i don't know the name. Do we have some hacker who hate forums or something? Cruel Angel's Thesis

What i mean is the type of round, is it AP, HE, HEI, SAP? Cruel Angel's Thesis

As a perfectionist, i tend to go overboard when desigining mechs, and the MiG-29 from Macross Zero is no exception. After spending almost 3 hours on the net searching, i have found nothing about the ammo being fired from the GSh-30-1, the 30mm cannon. Anyone of the gun or aircraft guru's know this? Any help is appreciated. Arigato. Cruel Angel's Thesis