The Hornet's problem is that the DOD wanted a jack of all trades, but got a master of none. It was done with economy in mind, but the Hornet's shortcomings were an inevitable result of asking the question "where can we save some money?" and applying the result liberally and systemically. The Super is an improvement, to be sure, but it really only got the Hornet program to where the A-models should've been when they were delivered way back in the day. Moral of the story: every penny saved in weapons development will cost us a dollar when crunch time comes. That isn't to say it is a bad aircraft, but the Navy/Marine Corps could have done a lot better with dedicated air superiority/fleet defense and strike aircraft to replace the F-14 and A-6. Also, the Intruder never should have been retired when it was. It was a crying fucking shame that they weren't around to rain iron over Afghanistan during the early days of OEF before we got the in-country airfields secured for land-based CAS aircraft to operate from. The bombcat performed admirably for what it was - an Aston Martin with a bucket loader attachment - but it never should have been necessary to begin with.
i get the notion that the navy is getting the shorter end of the stick for some time now. i think they ,might think of scrapping it within the next 50y. :bawl:
i am refering to the Airforce VS navy Carrier Air Wing. the AF wants a new air superiority fighter, they got it. they want a new tactical aircraft, they got it. the navy got stuck in the 70s. first they cut down the f-14 upgrade program, then they retired the plane alltogether. they retired the A-6 wthout a disent replacement. and what they got? an average transitional plane F/A-18 E. and possibly another cost-eficient alternative, a carrier based F-35???? that plane is makes no sence at all. just pray to what ever God you belive in, the navy does not get threatened. their carriers are sitting ducks right now.
The fleet is getting pretty bad, and I think a lot of it has to do with myopic leaders who are convinced that War on Terror = war of the millenium and that the only enemy we'll ever square off with again will be ragtag hajjis with beat up AKs. They're down to less ships than under Carter. The Zumwalt DDG is still mostly up in the air, with only one hull authorized for construction. As is the Littoral Combat Ship and the next gen cruiser. Thankfully the Ford class CVN is still a go.
CBO Study Next-generation warships won't need such large crews- which is a good thing, since they will require a lot more taxpayers. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Entirely unmanned UAVs/USVs will be the fearless leading force/profit-multipliers. Onboard human "Top Guns" will soon become obsolete, and it will of course change naval warfare.
The Hornet is the newer plane so is probably more superior. But the Tomcat is the better looking plane by a long shot.
And that's all we need in this capitalist country. Which one is cheaper and would save more money.[forget about quality] Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
F14 vs F18 with average pilots is F14 the victor with no contest. F-18 is nice but it general multi-role fighter. The design mantra of F-18 "Make it cheaper." F-14 is optimized for heavy combat. The design mantra of the F-14 "Make it right, I don't care about the cost."
To an extent, that is a good thing, because more airframes in the inventory and reduced maintenance costs over the aircraft's operational lifetime translates into a higher number of operational aircraft at any given time, and therefore increased readiness of the entire fleet. The F/A-18 isn't deficient in quality, it is just schizophrenic in its design.
allthough i'm not a fan of the SuperHornet, what worries me more is its replacemet F-35C: Armament * Guns: 1 × GAU-22/A 25 mm cannon — slated to be mounted internally with 180 rounds in the F-35A and fitted as an external pod with 220 rounds in the F-35B and F-35C.[65] * Hardpoints: 6 with a capacity of 15,000 lb (6,800 kg)[65], * Missiles: Internal: 4 air-air missiles or 2 air-air missiles and 2 air-surface weapons; External: 2 missiles and 4 missiles/bombs don't get me wrong, this bird seams agile enough and with suficient range, but it's ordinance.... i dunno, it's too light for a fleet defence OR strike missions.
six hard points, low payload. i just don't know mate Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! if you put anything on those external points, you can kiss your stelth good-bye. if you don't, you end up with a MiG-21 payload. it's ok for a light fihter, but fleet defence? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
