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British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

thedrive.com

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Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#91

Post by worrycue »

gostsamo wrote: post #76
lumost wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the pilot isn't the expensive kit, although the flight-hours to train them may be. Even an unmanned NGAD will probably cost ~500MM.

People can withstand only certain G-s of acceleration. Remove them, and you have a much more manueverable craft.

Manoeuvrability probably isn’t as useful as it used to be. Fighter jets used to need to keep their radar, in the nose of the aircraft, pointed at their target to keep the target lit up for the missile to find. At close enough range if you can out turn your opponent and get out of its radar, you can “break radar lock-on”.

Today though, missiles have their own radar that works at close ranges but, if I’m right, still need guidance at long ranges. At close range, good luck out turning the much smaller faster missile. At long ranges you can’t really out turn anything.

Not to mention that with modern jets like the F-35, I heard the pilots can track you with their helmets, with the aircraft having sensors all over the airframe effectively allowing the pilot to “see-through” the aircraft, and transmit your location via data link to an in-flight missile.

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#92

Post by buster »

Sharlin wrote: post #74
madaxe_again wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can’t help but think it must be about protecting the aircraft rather than protecting the surface, as in ukraine roads are commonly built out of reinforced concrete slabs, and somewhat less commonly, but still frequently, they are built to take the weight of tanks, and are wide and straight enough to accommodate even large aircraft - there’s a strip of highway north of Mariupol that was originally built to accommoda…

Is concrete used much in Europe? I’d think asphalt is a much more common highway surface material.

It was used a lot in the GDR (and i suppose a lot in eastern europe a few decades ago).

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#93

Post by KineticLensman »

jacquesm wrote: post #80
dumpsterdiver wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

An aside thought: the days of soldiers riding horses into battle is currently considered to be an outdated mode of warfare. It seems quaint to even consider that one day warriors on horseback may again be the prominent warring force on our planet. And yet here we're are packed with nukes, as if we couldn't make it all happen.

It will be a long while before you have enough horses.

The British army has more horses than operational Challenger tanks

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#94

Post by Shrezzing »

tomaytotomato wrote: post #89

Has the RAF actually surveyed some of the motorways in the north of England recently? I nearly broke a spring from a dipped pothole on the M6 south. Not to forget all the smart motorway signs every 100 meters and signboards overhead, will make a landing "interesting".

Vertical landing drops staight in from the sky, and comes to an immediate halt. These planes just need a strip of concrete wider & longer than the plane itself. Realistically you could comfortably put one down on a motorway service station carpark, and then lay a short portable runway along its off-ramp for takeoff.

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#95

Post by jacquesm »

KineticLensman wrote: post #93
jacquesm wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It will be a long while before you have enough horses.

The British army has more horses than operational Challenger tanks

So what? So does the Dutch police. But that still doesn't mean you're about to ride your horses in quantity into war. Especially not as long as the opposition has (1) tanks and (2) operational machine guns.

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#96

Post by formerly_proven »

golergka wrote: post #88
gostsamo wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or you are part of a NATO operation against Serbia. Mentioning it, because the conflict in Kosovo is not resolved yet.

Last time Serbia attempted to commit literal genocide, for the second time in less than a decade, for NATO to get involved. Do you think they'll start mass murders again?

Well we did have WW2 only 20 years after WW1...

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#97

Post by p_l »

madaxe_again wrote: post #49
sillywalk wrote: post #18

"FTA: they would involve placing aluminum AM-2 mats along a strip of highway, up to 1,500 feet long. This will be sufficient for the stealth jets to carry out short takeoffs and vertical landings while protecting the road beneath them." "AM-2 matting consists of 1 1/2" x 2' steel rectangles coated with a epoxy nonskid material, available in both 6 and 12 foot lengths, and are assembled in a brickwork pattern to form…

I can’t help but think it must be about protecting the aircraft rather than protecting the surface, as in ukraine roads are commonly built out of reinforced concrete slabs, and somewhat less commonly, but still frequently, they are built to take the weight of tanks, and are wide and straight enough to accommodate even large aircraft - there’s a strip of highway north of Mariupol that was originally built to accommoda…

It's really about the surface, which would be quickly destroyed by jet exhaust.

One of the impulses for changing surfacing methods for runways in Soviet Union was early jets ripping asphalt off the surface, for example, though later planes had higher-mounted exhausts that caused less problems.

As for road landing in Ukraine (and other Warsaw Pact countries, and Sweden), it's a mix of special road segments and special aircraft design (for example, consider MiG-29 with its intake shields that close when it's on the ground, and sturdier landing gear on many aircraft)

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#98

Post by the_gipsy »

buster wrote: post #92
Sharlin wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is concrete used much in Europe? I’d think asphalt is a much more common highway surface material.

It was used a lot in the GDR (and i suppose a lot in eastern europe a few decades ago).

Ah yes, I remember the distinct sound and the rhythm from the joint lines that the concrete plaque roads made when driving through the GDR as a child.

Re: British F-35Bs to bring vertical landing abilities to highways

#100

Post by adolfojp »

fmajid wrote: post #66

Parking lots would make more sense than highways.

They're STOVL airplanes. Short Take Off Vertical Landing. They can only take off vertically on exhibitions, when they're carrying no weapons and little fuel. For normal operations they need a short runway.
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