F-18 Hornet

F/A-18 Hornet

The F/A-18 "Hornet" is a supersonic, single seat (A and C models) or tandem seat (B and D models), twin engine, all weather, night, combined fighter and attack aircraft and can be refueled in flight. The F/A-18 multi-mission aircraft can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases. The F/A-18 fills a variety of roles: air superiority, fighter escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance, forward air control, close and deep air support, and day and night strike missions. The F/A-18 Hornet replaced the F-4 Phantom II fighter and A-7 Corsair II light attack jet, and also replaced the A-6 Intruder as these aircraft were retired during the 1990s.

The combat-proven F/A-18 Hornet is the first tactical aircraft designed from its inception to carry out both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions. The F/A-18, (models A, B, C and D), can deliver conventional air-to-air, air-to-ground decoy expendables, and can carry airborne control pods for various missions. The combination of excellent thrust-to-weight ratio, and maneuverability an unmatched combat capability.

The A and C models have AN/APG-65 radars and the B and D models have AN/APG-73 radars. The AN/APG-65 and AN/APG-73 airborne radars provide excellent long-range, all-weather, lookup and lookdown capability over land or over sea. Communications for all four models include dual UHF/VHF radios, one KY-58 secure radio, and a two-way Link 4 capability. These F/A-18 aircraft also have Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) capabilities for passive detection and ranging. Later model aircraft can actively and specifically interrogate other aircraft identification beacons.

The F/A-18 is in service with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and the air forces of Canada, Australia, Spain, Kuwait, Finland, Switzerland, and Malaysia. As of May 1999 Hornet pilots had accumulated more than 3.7 million flight hours and, in the process, are establishing new records daily in safety, reliability, maintainability and mission performance.

A key aspect of the Hornet's popularity with pilots is the ease with which the aircraft can be converted from fighter to strike mode and back again; it's as easy as flipping a switch. During Operation Desert Storm, F/A-18s routinely performed fighter and strike missions on the same sortie. Fulfilling a variety of roles-air superiority, fighter escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance, forward air control, close air support, and day and night strike missions-the F/A-18 has proven to be the most versatile combat aircraft in service.

The Hornet was designed to be reliable and easily maintainable. These factors result in significantly lower operating and maintenance costs for the F/A-18 compared to other U.S. Navy fighter and attack aircraft; and life cycle costs comparable to other modern multi-role aircraft. Survivability is another key feature of the Hornet. The F/A-18 uses a variety of systems and technologies to increase its likelihood of reaching a target undetected, of escaping unhurt if detected, and of returning its crew safely if it is hit. The F/A-18 has a digital control-by-wire flight control system which provides excellent handling qualities, and allows pilots to learn to fly the airplane with relative ease. At the same time, this system provides exceptional maneuverability and allows the pilot to concentrate on operating the weapons system. A solid thrust-to-weight ratio and superior turn characteristics combined with energy sustainability, enable the F/A-18 to hold its own against any adversary. The power to maintain evasive action is what many pilots consider the Hornet's finest trait. In addition, the F/A-18 was also the Navy's first tactical jet aircraft to incorporate a digital, MUX bus architecture for the entire system's avionics suite. The benefit of this design feature is that the F/A-18 has been relatively easy to upgrade on a regular, affordable basis.

The F/A-18 has proven to be an ideal component of the carrier based tactical aviation equation over nearly two decades of operational experience. The only F/A-18 characteristic found to be marginally adequate by battle group commanders, outside experts, and even the men who fly the Hornet, is its range when flown on certain strike mission profiles. However, the inadequacy is managed well with organic and joint tanking assets.

During the initial hours of Desert Storm, 89 Navy and 72 Marine Corps F/A-18C’s conducted both defense suppression and strike missions against Iraqi targets. the Navy Hornets flew 4,449 sorties and the Marine Corps’ F/A-18C’s flew 4,936 sorties resulting in a combined total of 4,551 strikes against targets during Operation Desert Storm. A total of 174 American Hornets (90 Navy; 84 Marines) participated in the war; 26 Canadian models, known as the CF-18, also participated in Desert Storm. Only three Hornets were lost during the war, one of them in a noncombat accident.

Specification:

Data from U.S. Navy fact file, Aerospaceweb

General characteristics

• Crew: F/A-18C: 1, F/A-18D: 2 (pilot and weapons system officer)
• Length: 56 ft (17.1 m)
• Wingspan: 40 ft (12.3 m)
• Height: 15 ft 4 in (4.7 m)
• Wing area: 400 ft² (38 m²)
• Airfoil: NACA 65A005 mod root, 65A003.5 mod tip
• Empty weight: 24,700 lb (11,200 kg)
• Loaded weight: 37,150 lb (16,850 kg)
• Max Takoff Weight: 51,550 lb (23,400 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× General Electric F404-GE-402 turbufans
  • Dry thrust: 11,000 lbf (48.9 kN) each
  • Thrust with afterburnner: 17,750 lbf (79.2 kN) each

Performance

• Maximum Speed: Mach 1.8 (1,190 mph, 1,915 km/h) at 40,000 ft (12,190 m)
• Combat radius: 330 mi (290 NM, 537 km) on hi-lo-lo-hi mission
• Ferry range: 2,070 mi (1,800 NM, 3,330 km)
• Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
• Rate of climb: 50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
• Wing loading: 93 lb/ft² (450 kg/m²)
• Thrust/weight: >0.95

Armament

• Guns: 1x 20 mm M61 Vulcan internal gatling gun with 578 rounds
• Hardpoints: 9: 2 wingtip, 4 underwing, and 3 fuselage, carrying up to 13,700 lb (6,215 kg) of missiles, rockets, bombs, fuel tanks, and pods
  • Missiles:
    • Air-to-air: AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-132 ASRAAM, AIM-120 AMRAAM, AIM-7 Sparrow, IRIS-T
    • Air-to-ground: AGM-45 Shrike, AGM-65 Maverick, AGM-88 HARM, SLAM-ER, JSOW, Taurus missile
    • Anti-ship: AGM-84 Harpoon
  • Bombs: CBU-87 cluster, CBU-89 gator mine, CBU-97 CEM, Paveway, JDAM, Mk 80 series, nuclear bombs,^[34] Mk 20 Rockeye II cluster, mines

Avionics

• APG-73 radar
• LITENING targeting pod (USMC only)

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F-16 Falcon

F-16 Fighter Falcon

The Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American multirole jet fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics (GD) for the United States Air Force. Designed as a lightweight fighter, it evolved into a successful multirole aircraft. The Falcon's versatility is a paramount reason it was a success on the export market, serving 24 countries. The F-16 is the largest Western fighter program with over 4,000 aircraft built since production started in 1976. Though no longer produced for the US Air Force, it is still produced for export. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation, which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta.

The Fighting Falcon is a dogfighter with numerous innovations including a frameless, bubble canopy for better visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while under high g-forces, and reclined seat to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot. It was also the first fighter aircraft deliberately built to sustain 9-g turns. It has a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one, providing enough power to climb and accelerate vertically - if necessary. Although the F-16's official name is "Fighting Falcon", it is known to its pilots as the "Viper", after the Battlestar Galactica starfighter.
The F-16 is scheduled to remain in service with the U.S. Air Force until 2025.[9] The planned replacement is the F-35 Lightning II, which is scheduled to enter service in 2011 and will gradually begin replacing a number of multirole aircraft among the air forces of the program's member nations.

The U.S. Air Force and Navy both concluded during the early 1960s that the future of air combat would be determined by increasingly sophisticated missiles. As was strongly affirmed by "Project Forecast", a 1963–1964 Air Force attempt to identify future weapons trends, future fighter aircraft would be designed primarily for long range, high speed, and equipped with extremely large radar systems in order to detect and engage opposing fighters at beyond visual range (BVR). This made them much more like interceptors than classic fighter designs, and led to increasingly heavier and more technologically sophisticated designs – and thus costlier. In the early 1960s, both the Air Force and Navy expected to use the F-111 (then still in development as the TFX) and F-4 Phantom II for their long- and medium-range needs. The perception of a declining need for close-in “dogfighting” capabilities resulted in the original decision to not install internal cannons in the Phantom.

Specifications (F-16C Block 30)

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 49 ft 5 in (14.8 m)
• Wingspan: 32 ft 8 in (9.8 m)
• Height: 16 ft (4.8 m)
• Wing area: 300 ft² (27.87 m²)
• Airfoil: NACA 64A204 root and tip
• Empty weight: 18,200 lb (8,270 kg)
• Loaded weight: 26,500 lb (12,000 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 42,300 lb (19,200 kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-220 afterburning turbofan
  • Dry thrust: 14,590 lbf (64.9 kN)
  • Thrust with afterburner: 23,770 lbf (105.7 kN)
• Alternate powerplant: 1× General Electric F110-GE-100 afterburning turbofan
  • Dry thrust: 17,155 lbf (76.3 kN)
  • Thrust with afterburner: 28,600 lbf (128.9 kN)

Performance

• Maximum speed:
  
  • At sea level: Mach 1.2 (915 mph, 1,460 km/h)
  • At altitude: Mach 2+ (1,500 mph, 2,414 km/h)
• Combat radius: 340 NM (295 mi, 550 km) on a hi-lo-hi mission with six 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs
• Ferry range: >2,100 NM (2,420 NM, 3,900 km)
• Service ceiling >50,000 ft (15,239 m)
• Rate of climb: 50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
• Wing loading: 88.2 lb/ft² (431 kg/m²)
• Thrust/weight: For F100 engine: 0.898, For F110: 1.095

Armament

• Guns: 1× 20 mm (0.787 in) M61 Vulcan gatling gun, 511 rounds
• Rockets: 2¾ in (70 mm) CRV7
• Missiles:
  
  • Air-to-air missiles:
    • 2× AIM-7 Sparrow or
    • 6× AIM-9 Sidewinder or
    • 6× IRIS-T or
    • 6× AIM-120 AMRAAM or
    • 6× Python-4
  • Air-to-ground missiles:
    • 6× AGM-45 Shrike or
    • 6× AGM-65 Maverick or
    • 4× AGM-88 HARM
  • Anti-ship missiles:
    • 2× AGM-84 Harpoon or
    • 4× AGM-119 Penguin
• Bombs:
  
  • 2× CBU-87 Combined Effects Munition
  • 2× CBU-89 Gator mine
  • 2× CBU-97 Sensor Fuzed Weapon
  • Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser capable
  • 4× GBU-10 Paveway II
  • 6× GBU-12 Paveway II
  • 6× Paveway-series laser-guided bombs
  • 4× JDAM
  • 4× Mark 84 general-purpose bombs
  • 8× Mark 83 GP bombs
  • 12× Mark 82 GP bombs
  • B61 nuclear bomb

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F-15 Eagle

F-15 Eagle

The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle is an all-weather tactical fighter designed to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It was developed for the U.S. Air Force, and first flew in July 1972. The F-15E Strike Eagle derivative is an all-weather strike fighter that entered service in 1989. The U.S. Air Force plans to keep the F-15 in service until 2025.During the mid-1960s U.S. Air Force intelligence was surprised to find that the Soviet Union was building a large fighter aircraft, known as the MiG-25 'Foxbat'. It was not known in the West at the time that the MiG-25 was designed as a high-speed interceptor, not an air superiority fighter; as such, its primary asset was speed, not maneuverability. The MiG-25's huge tailplanes and vertical stabilizers (tail fins) hinted at a very maneuverable aircraft, which worried the Air Force that its performance might be higher than its American counterparts. In reality, the MiG's large fins and stabilators were necessary to prevent the aircraft from encountering inertia coupling in high-speed, high-altitude flight.


The F-4 Phantom II of the USAF and U.S. Navy was the only fighter with enough power, range and maneuverability to be given the primary task of dealing with the threat of Soviet fighters while flying with visual engagement rules. As a matter of policy, the Phantoms could not engage targets without positive visual identification, so they could not engage targets at long ranges, as designed. Medium-range AIM-7 Sparrow missiles, and to a lesser degree even the AIM-9 Sidewinder, were often unreliable and ineffective at close ranges where it was found that guns were often the only effective weapon.

The Phantom did not originally have a gun, as it was intended that only missiles would be used to engage slowly moving and maneuvering Warsaw Pact bombers and fighters at longer ranges. Experience in Vietnam showed this not to be the case and led to the addition of a gun. At first an external gun pod was tried but that proved inaccurate and increased drag. Later, the 20 mm M61 Vulcan was integrated internally on the F-4E.

Specifications (F-15C Eagle)

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 63 ft 9 in (19.43 m)
• Wingspan: 42 ft 10 in (13.05 m)
• Height: 18 ft 6 in (5.63 m)
• Wing area: 608 ft² (56.5 m²)
• Airfoil: NACA 64A006.6 root, NACA 64A203 tip
• Empty weight: 28,000 lb (12,700 kg)
• Loaded weight: 44,500 lb (20,200 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 68,000 lb (30,845 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× Pratt & Whitney F100-100,-220 or -229 afterburning turbofans
  • Dry thrust: 17,450 lbf (77.62 kN) each
  • Thrust with afterburner: 25,000 lbf for -220; 29,000 lbf (130 kN) for -229 (111.2 kN for -220; 129.0 kN for -229) each

Performance

• Maximum speed:
  
  • High altitude: Mach 2.5+ (1,650 mph, 2,660 km/h)
  • Low altitude: Mach 1.2 (900 mph, 1,450 km/h)
• Combat radius: 1,061 nmi (1,222 mi, 1,967 km) for interdiction mission
• Ferry range: 3,450 mi (3,000 nmi, 5,550 km) with external conformal fuel tanks
• Service ceiling 65,000 ft (20,000 m)
• Rate of climb: >50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
• Wing loading: 73.1 lb/ft² (358 kg/m²)
• Thrust/weight: 1.12 (-220), 1.30 (-229)

Armament

• Guns: 1× internally mounted 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 gatling gun, 940 rounds
• Hardpoints: four wing, four fuselage, two wing stations, centerline station, optional fuselage pylons with a capacity of 16,000 lb (7,300 kg),
• Missiles:
  
  • AIM-7F Sparrow
  • AIM-120 AMRAAM
  • AIM-9 Sidewinders

Avionics

• Radar:
  • Raytheon AN/APG-63 or AN/APG-70 or
    • Although several F-15C aircraft were produced with APG-70 radar, all have been retrofitted to the AN/APG-63(V)1 configuration
  • Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)1 or
  • Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)2 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) or
  • Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)3 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA)
    • Both active AF and ANG F-15Cs will receive another (up to) 48 V3 units between 2009-2015, over the existing 19 aircraft.^[67]

• Countermeasures:
  • AN/APX-76 or AN/APX-119 Identify Friend/Foe (IFF) interrogator
  • Magnavox AN/ALQ-128 Electronic Warfare Warning Set (EWWS) -part of Tactical Electronic Warfare Systems (TEWS)
  • Loral AN/ALR-56 Radar Warning Receiver (RWR)-part of Tactical Electronic Warfare Systems (TEWS)
  • Northrop ALQ-135 Internal Countermeasures System (ICS) - part of Tactical Electronic Warfare Systems (TEWS)
  • AN/ALE-45 chaff/flare dispensers

• Others:
  • Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System^[67]
  • MXU-648 Cargo/Travel Pod - to carry personal belongings, and small pieces of maintenance equipment.^[45]

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F-14 Tomcat

F-14 Tomcat

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable geometry wing aircraft. The F-14 was the United States Navy's primary maritime air superiority fighter, fleet defense interceptor and tactical reconnaissance platform from 1974 to 2006. It later performed precision strike missions once it was integrated with the Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night LANTIRN system.The F-14 was developed after the collapse of the F-111B project, and was the first of the American teen-series fighters which were designed incorporating the experience of air combat in Vietnam against MiGs.

It entered service in 1972 with the U.S. Navy, replacing the F-4 Phantom II. It was later exported to the former Imperial Iranian Air Force in 1976, during a time when the US still had good relations with Iran. It was retired from the active U.S. Navy fleet on 22 September 2006, having been replaced by the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. As of 2007, it remains in service only with the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force.The F-14 Tomcat program was initiated when it became obvious that the weight and maneuverability issues plaguing the U.S. Navy variant of the Tactical Fighter Experimental (TFX) (F-111B) would not be resolved to the Navy's satisfaction. The Navy requirement was for a fleet air defense fighter (FADF) with the primary role of intercepting Soviet bombers before they could launch missiles against the carrier group. The Navy also wanted the aircraft to possess inherent air superiority characteristics. The Navy strenuously opposed the TFX, which incorporated the Air Force's requirements for a low-level attack aircraft, fearing the compromises would cripple the aircraft, but were forced to participate in the program at direction of then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara who wanted "joint" solutions to the service aircraft needs to reduce developmental costs. The prior example of the F-4 Phantom which was a Navy and Marine Corps program later adopted by the Air Force (under similar direction) was the order of the day. Vice Admiral Thomas Connolly, DCNO for Air Warfare took the developmental F-111A variant for a flight and discovered it had difficulty going supersonic and had poor landing characteristics. He later testified to Congress about his concerns against the official Department of the Navy position and in May 1968, Congress killed funding for the F-111B allowing the Navy to pursue an answer tailored to their requirements.

Specifications (F-14D Super Tomcat)

General characteristics

• Crew: 2 (Pilot and Radar Intercept Officer)
• Length: 62 ft 9 in (19.1 m)
• Wingspan:
  
• Spread: 64 ft (19.5 m)
• Swept: 38 ft (11.58 m)
• Height: 16 ft (4.88 m)
• Wing area: 565 ft² (54.5 m²)
• Airfoil: NACA 64A209.65 mod root, 64A208.91 mod tip
• Empty weight: 43,735 lb (19,838 kg)
• Loaded weight: 61,000 lb (27,700 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 74,350 lb (33,720 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× General Electric F110-GE-400 afterburning turbofans
  • Dry thrust: 13,810 lbf (61.4 kN) each
  • Thrust with afterburner: 27,800 lbf (124.7 kN) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: Mach 2.34 (1,544 mph, 2,485 km/h) at high altitude
• Combat radius: 500 nmi (575 mi, 926 km)
• Ferry range: 1,600 nmi (1,840 mi, 2,960 km)
• Rate of climb: >45,000 ft/min (229 m/s)
• Wing loading: 113.4 lb/ft² (553.9 kg/m²)
• Thrust/weight: 0.91

Armament 13,000 lb (5,900 kg) of ordnance including:

• Guns: 1× M61 Vulcan 20 mm Gatling Gun
• Missiles: AIM-54 Phoenix, AIM-7 Sparrow, AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air
• Loading configurations:
  • 2× AIM-9 + 6× AIM-54
  • 2× AIM-9 + 2× AIM-54 + 3× AIM-7 (Most common loadout)
  • 2× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-54 + 2× AIM-7
  • 2× AIM-9 + 6× AIM-7
  • 4× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-54
  • 4× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-7
• Bombs: GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-16, GBU-24, GBU-24E Paveway I/II/III LGB, GBU-31, GBU-38 JDAM, Mk-20 Rockeye II, Mk-82, Mk-83 and Mk-84 series iron bombs

Avionics

• Hughes AN/APG-71 radar
• AN/ASN-130 INS, IRST, TCS

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Attack Aircraft

Attack Aircraft

Attack aircraft, delivering air-to-ground munitions, are deployed in force application and air control roles.

The force application role accomplished by attack air forces includes three missions differentiated by the intended goal of the mission. If the objective in striking a target is to destroy or neutralize the enemy's ability to produce or sustain military forces or his will to use those forces, the mission is a strategic attack. If the purpose of force application is to destroy, delay, or disrupt existing enemy surface forces while they are far enough from friendly surface forces that detailed coordination of aerospace and surface activities is not needed, the operation is an interdiction mission. If force is applied in support of offensive or defensive surface operations against enemy forces whose proximity to friendly surface forces is such that detailed coordination is needed, the operation is a close-air-support mission.

Strategic attack capabilities embody the essence of independent air power: the ability to strike directly at the will and warmaking capacity of the enemy unencumbered by surface military operations. Strategic attacks often comprise the most direct means available to force an enemy to cease fighting or to otherwise make decisions or concessions in line with friendly objectives. Since strategic strikes are theoretically unstoppable, their intended result--the capitulation of the enemy--has been viewed by some as inevitable. The reality has proven to be somewhat more complex. Technology has made possible aerial bombardment of strategic targets across the globe, but historical results have rarely fulfilled early theoretical assertions. It has often been proposed, for example, that aerospace power can "win" a war by itself, but strategic attacks cannot be guaranteed to directly compel a desired enemy response.

Air interdiction is defined as air operations conducted to destroy, neutralize, or delay the enemy's potential before it can be brought to bear effectively against friendly forces and at such a distance from friendly ground forces that detailed coordination is not required. Typical AI targets might include enemy surface forces in the follow-on echelons, road and rail networks, C3 nodes, and supply depots.

Battlefield Air Interdiction [BAI] is an Air Force task within the framework of the AI mission. The AI attacks conducted against hostile land forces that are not in close proximity to friendly forces are referred to as battlefield air interdiction if the hostile forces could have a near-term effect on the operation support or scheme of maneuver of friendly forces. Prior coordination is required between the Army and the Air Force for attack of BAI targets. BAI has a direct or near-term effect on surface operations.

Close Air Support [CAS] is air action in operations against hostile targets of ground that are in close proximity to friendly forces and that require detailed integration of each air mission with the fire and movement of these forces. Close proximity means that friendly forces and/or noncombatants are close enough to the target that care must be taken to avoid casualties from air-delivered weapons effects.