F-35C Joint Strike Fighter Traps Aboard A Carrier For The First Time

[Nypsy]

http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/f-35c-joint-strike-fighter-traps-aboard-a-carrier-for-t-1654272981/+damon

Baby steps, baby steps...

[Wolfala]

God that thing is ugly

[GScholz]

It's beautiful.

[DaveBB]

The carrier landings have to be magnitudes easier because the pilot is able to look through the cockpit (and airframe) with the F-35s helmet.

[Nefarious]

The carrier landings have to be magnitudes easier because the pilot is able to look through the cockpit (and airframe) with the F-35s helmet.

Not to mention the A-6 Intruder Landing Gear it uses...  (Sorry, had to sneak that in there... Intruders Forever!)

[Nath[BDP]]

man... the good old days sure were good

http://youtu.be/0tFUoaIVfW0

[Nefarious]

man... the good old days sure were good

http://youtu.be/0tFUoaIVfW0

Great video, I love the old Paint Schemes, Back before Low-Vis Gray. Now, entire Airwings of Hornets... blech.

[-ammo-]

man... the good old days sure were good

http://youtu.be/0tFUoaIVfW0

Great vid

[Gman]

The Carrier air wings sure were a diverse bunch of planes until recently.  Through the cold war until the retirement of the F14, a whole pile of planes.  A mid 80s group could have F14s, F18s, A7s, A6s, S3s, EA6Bs, E2Cs, Helos, the COD, and the various aircraft used for recon before the F14 got that job as well later.  Vietnam era groups were pretty much the same, with the A4, F8 Crusader, A1 for CAS/ResCap, and others along with the F4s and A7 and A6. 

It must be a lot easier with logistics now with only 6 or 7 types instead of close to a dozen, that's for sure. 


Plus one on the good vid.

[Rich46yo]

Eventually, within 10 years, this will be whittled down to "a few". F-18 and F-35 mostly. Right? With E2Ds? as far as fixed wing goes? I think the plan for refueling is buddy refueling, I may be wrong.

So all this makes things a lot easier which translates into sortie rates your grandpapy on His Essex class could only dream of. Most of all with the remarkable rates that will be sustained for the 18 and 35. The future of CV strike, between the launch platforms and the weapons, is about to take one huge leap forward.

[Nath[BDP]]

this one's great too (probably been seen before), love the clips of the tomcat being stress tested before flight

http://youtu.be/xJG4R3bJNEM

also was reading about how steam catapults on the new Ford Class carriers are being replaced with an electric system

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_Aircraft_Launch_System

[Serenity]

Eventually, within 10 years, this will be whittled down to "a few". F-18 and F-35 mostly. Right? With E2Ds? as far as fixed wing goes? I think the plan for refueling is buddy refueling, I may be wrong.

Still gonna have the COD too.

[Gman]

Still gonna have the COD too.

Yup. With all the turmoil around the "Common Support Aircraft" projects over the years, it seems pretty evident, at least to me, that nobody has created an a/c better suited to the COD tasks than the current plane being used.  The fleet of 35 will time out in 2028, and there are efforts underway to modernize them and extend even that date quite a bit (new avionics, engines, etc).  The V22 was thought to be a good alternative, but gives up about 20% in range, and has a much higher useful load. It would allow the fleet to deliver cargo to various ships point to point, and remove helos from the distribution equation, but at a cost in range and expense of the a/c.  Pros - V22 is pretty much as fast, a little less legs, but has way more flexibility along with the point-point ship supply issue, and more cargo capacity in terms of weight of load, vs cons of  a more complicated and expensive aircraft to maintain.  Who knows, maybe the V22 will end up being not a bad option, having a few on a CVN wouldn't hurt for SAR extra duties, or all manner of other stuff the V22 can do that a COD cannot.  Close call IMO.

Good article about it:

http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2013/July/Pages/NavytoConsiderNewWaystoShuttlePassengers,SuppliestoAircraftCarriers.aspx

I've read conflicting things about the V22s actual range and payload stats.  A lot of Marines have posted stuff online saying it really can only lift around 8000lb internally for around 200nm radius, NOT 20,000lbs like the company always says.  I don't know what the actual factual figures are for cargo for the V22, but so long as it was the same as the COD, it would make it at least something to consider IMO so far as a replacement.  

Interesting Navy Eval stuff - http://www.nps.edu/Academics/Institutes/Meyer/docs/V22%20Easterly%20presentation%20Oct%2014%202004.pdf

[-ammo-]

this one's great too (probably been seen before), love the clips of the tomcat being stress tested before flight

http://youtu.be/xJG4R3bJNEM

also was reading about how steam catapults on the new Ford Class carriers are being replaced with an electric system

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_Aircraft_Launch_System

Thanks for sharing bro

[GScholz]

Yup. With all the turmoil around the "Common Support Aircraft" projects over the years, it seems pretty evident, at least to me, that nobody has created an a/c better suited to the COD tasks than the current plane being used.  The fleet of 35 will time out in 2028, and there are efforts underway to modernize them and extend even that date quite a bit (new avionics, engines, etc).  The V22 was thought to be a good alternative, but gives up about 20% in range, and has a much higher useful load. It would allow the fleet to deliver cargo to various ships point to point, and remove helos from the distribution equation, but at a cost in range and expense of the a/c.  Pros - V22 is pretty much as fast, a little less legs, but has way more flexibility along with the point-point ship supply issue, and more cargo capacity in terms of weight of load, vs cons of  a more complicated and expensive aircraft to maintain.  Who knows, maybe the V22 will end up being not a bad option, having a few on a CVN wouldn't hurt for SAR extra duties, or all manner of other stuff the V22 can do that a COD cannot.  Close call IMO.

Good article about it:

http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2013/July/Pages/NavytoConsiderNewWaystoShuttlePassengers,SuppliestoAircraftCarriers.aspx

I've read conflicting things about the V22s actual range and payload stats.  A lot of Marines have posted stuff online saying it really can only lift around 8000lb internally for around 200nm radius, NOT 20,000lbs like the company always says.  I don't know what the actual factual figures are for cargo for the V22, but so long as it was the same as the COD, it would make it at least something to consider IMO so far as a replacement.  

Interesting Navy Eval stuff - http://www.nps.edu/Academics/Institutes/Meyer/docs/V22%20Easterly%20presentation%20Oct%2014%202004.pdf

They should do both then. Modernize the Greyhounds and use them for the supply runs where runways are available, and a small Osprey fleet for the point to point runs.