Any aviation enthousiasts in the Coli?

[intruder]

Speaking of the FA-18 Superhornet...

I was surprised Brésil didnt pick it among all the airplanes that were competing for that contract. I must say looking at the specs on it I’m amazed how Boeing was able to turn an average 4th generation multi role fighter it into a legitimate 4++ fighter that can compete in the market with very little redesign. Closest 4g to 4g++ i can think of is the Russian SU-27 and the SU-35 but the SU-27 has been the world’s best fighter for the last 3 decades.

The Super Hornet had a legitimate shot at both the Canadian and Brazilian competitions until politics got in the way. Brazil dismissed all american-made planes after it was revealed the Americans were tapping the Brazilian governments phones. Canada killed the F35 and FA-18 deals after the dispute between Boeing and Bombadier. Not that it would have won the Brazilian competition anyway. The Rafale and Gripen are better airplanes which also better suited the need and in the Gripen’s case, even cheaper.

And now they are planning on adding CFTs (conformal tanks) to extend their range and effective combat radius due to the fear of China’s anti-ship missles. The CFTs are set to hit the field in 2019 and will make the above airplane look like the one Below

 

[BonafideDefacto]

Those who know me know I work in the aviation field in the civilian sector. I won't get into any specifics of what I do but I'm employed by a bunch of airlines. But I didn't start off here. If my brief story inspires any of you to chase ur adolescent dreams, then I have accomplished my mission.

As a pup, I loved everything aeronautics related. I understood the dynamics of aeronautical engineering by the time i was 12. I emersed myself into flight books, airline management books, and military literature. By the time i entered high school I had successfully completed a summer air corps academy and a space academy for the young and gifted at Cape Canaveral. I had 18hrs flight time and was well on my way to becoming a pilot of some sorts.

Then high school happened. I was also a gifted athlete whose father only cared about football. Couple that with girls and other factors...I completely lost my direction. I ended up getting a degree in psychology and was in the tech field in silicon valley as a consultant for years. But i was unhappy. The best part of my day was passing the airport. When ur making great money and aren't happy, you have 2 choices...deep depression or change. So before my 30th birthday i made a decision to honor my young self and make a career change. Thank God I was single with no kids. I made some connections and ended up here in the aviation field. 5 years later, I couldn't be more happy. Im actually 40k feet in the air enjoying the amenities of business class as i type this.

Cheers fellas, I'll post pictures in the near future

 

[intruder]

Those who know me know I work in the aviation field in the civilian sector. I won't get into any specifics of what I do but I'm employed by a bunch of airlines. But I didn't start off here. If my brief story inspires any of you to chase ur adolescent dreams, then I have accomplished my mission.

As a pup, I loved everything aeronautics related. I understood the dynamics of aeronautical engineering by the time i was 12. I emersed myself into flight books, airline management books, and military literature. By the time i entered high school I had successfully completed a summer air corps academy and a space academy for the young and gifted at Cape Canaveral. I had 18hrs flight time and was well on my way to becoming a pilot of some sorts.

Then high school happened. I was also a gifted athlete whose father only cared about football. Couple that with girls and other factors...I completely lost my direction. I ended up getting a degree in psychology and was in the tech field in silicon valley as a consultant for years. But i was unhappy. The best part of my day was passing the airport. When ur making great money and aren't happy, you have 2 choices...deep depression or change. So before my 30th birthday i made a decision to honor my young self and make a career change. Thank God I was single with no kids. I made some connections and ended up here in the aviation field. 5 years later, I couldn't be more happy. Im actually 40k feet in the air enjoying the amenities of business class as i type this.

Cheers fellas, I'll post pictures in the near future

NIce!

Ive been thinking about the same thing myself. I'm in the tech industry but Aviation is my true passion. Maybe i'll do this too and see. But what do you do in the aviation industry right now?

My homeboy who sits next to me at my current job has decided to go back to his old job at LockHeed because he misses it. He was a system engineer working on flight simulators. He said he's good with his former boss and could get me a position in there to at least get my foot in the door.

 

[intruder]

My current fascination love affair when it comes to 4++ generation fighters is the Sukhoi SU-35/37 Flanker

The SU-35 is the newest export derivative of the SU-27 which most experts consider to be the best fighter aircraft in the world (in terms of 4th Gen). They are single-seat, twin-engine, highly-maneuverable aircraft, designed by the Sukhoi.

The first variant (SU-27) was designed during the 1980s. This derivative has thrust vectoring and a multi-function radar that transformed the aircraft into a multi-role aircraft. Another variant incorporates canards and was structurally reinforced to cope with its greater weight. The SU-37 had thrust-vectoring engines was used as a technology demonstrator.

Put it this way the SU-27 is the reason why the other European nations decided to work together and build the Euro-fighter (AKA Typhone) to counter it. Despite the Typhon being a phenomenal aircraft in its own righ, it is still no match in a dog-fight against the SU-27 and its derivatives. The SU-27 is basically the reason the US eventually decided to revamp aircraft designs and completely change the game of air-combat from being WVR (within visual range) aerial dog-fights to mostly BVR (beyong visual range). The acrobatics the SU-27 could perform in the skies was beyond anything we had seen before when they were first deployed until the F-22 was introduced..

Now imagine a plane that can do the above maneuver while using regular afterburners like that of the F-15 Eagle... is now being equipped with 3-way thrust-vectoring afterburners on the SU-35/37 version

I need a minute...

So couple that with the rest of the upgrades required to be certified as 4G++ being added to the platform (AESA radar, supercruise capability and other advanced avionics) and you can understand why airforces around the world are raving about this thing.

The F-22, currently the world's most advanced fighter, by comparison only has 2-way thrust vectoring capability and cost $339M whereas an SU-35 can be had for under $70M (same as a FA-18). The outrageous cost of the F-22 is the reason why even the U.S. reduced their order and the manufacturers stopped making them since they were so expensive.

Current operators of the SU-35/37 Variant
Russia
China
United Arab Emirates
Malaysia
Indonesia

Current operators or SU-27/SU-30/SU-33 variants
Angola
Algeria
Belarus
China
Venezuela
India
Vietnam
Uganda
Myanmar
Malaysia
Eritrea
Ukraine
United States *** Yes the U.S. bought 2 SU-27s to study them and train pilots on how to fight them

 

[intruder]

EuroFighter Typhoon

The Typhoon is a twin-engine multirole fighter originally designed as an air superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of European nations working together (UK, France*, Spain, Italy). France later dropped out of the project in order to pursue its own aircraft (Rafale).

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a highly agile aircraft, designed to be a supremely effective dogfighter but later variants have been modified tobe better equipped to undertake air-to-surface strike missions. I dont think they reached the objective they initially set for it which was to be a fighter just as agile and powerful as the SU-27 variants. However it more than made up for it in its comparable performance and combat avionics making it a formidable adversary.



Current operators
Autria
Italy
Germany
Kuwait
Qatar
Spain
Saudi Arabia
United Kingdom