Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0

George Bush SR or the one who is president now? NIed how do you feel about a dedicated WSo in a 2 seat F-22 with the avionics you mentioned? I think it would be GREAT for a mud hen replacement. Especially if it is just a stretched raptor body WITHOUT delta wing. TAW is the best F-22 sim and you can see it decked out with all kinds of external weaponry. Pretty intimidating.

Hmmm Gues this is new!! Found this over at ARC., Hard to believe at first, but then I typed in "F-14 in Poland" in google as instructed, and voila!! Tomcat Traveler Posted: Dec 31 2004, 04:02 AM Quote Post Newbie * Group: Members Posts: 2 Member No.: 3,903 Joined: 30-December 04 I spoke to a mate of mine that had the pleasure of attending a brief being given by the F-14 Program Manager for this effort just before Christmas and it appears that the US Department of Defense and the USN are in fact in the process of establishing a manufacturing effort to build specific Tomcat parts in Poland. These parts are earmarked for F-14B and F-14D aircraft. VF-213 is scheduled to receive the first Polish built hardware for deployment to the Gulf in the Sept/Oct 05 time frame. It also appears that the DoD boys are attempting to resurrect the ICBM busting capabilities that the F-14D put to practical use during the first Gulf War. Apparently the F-14D and IRST (infrared search and track) systems destroyed at least two and possibly three silkworm missiles that were earmarked to target the CVS battle groups during the first Gulf War. Only the F-14D has this sophisticated system on-board to this day. To find out more about the manufacturing effort in Poland, go to Google and type F-14 in Poland. NEver heard much of the tomcat's IRST use. Are silkworm's like SCUD's? I wonder what missle was used to nab those in the gulf. I have NEVER heard of missle destructions by tomcats during the gulf!~! Very interesting. Nice to know the B/D cats still have some roles to take up before retirement. BTW anyone pick up the 1/18 P-51 or F-16 over break?

Speaking of eagles..... F-15E vs F-15S vs F-15I vs F-15K Overall capabiliy. undoubtedly some have got to be better than the others, but which overall constitutes the best dual role eagle variant? We know the K model is great in A2A and the israeli's work their Ra'am pretty well, but how do they compare?

AWEEESSOOOMMMMEEE!!!!!! Wooohooo!!! Surely VF-84 is next, but i am ITCHING for VF-1 Wolfpack!!!! David is the FOV tomcat really all that horrible? I have a desire to buy one for 35.99...at the hobby store....Hear any bad reports about quality and diecast messups inherint with the FOV tomcat?

I know the USAF does not intend to replace every raptor with an eagle, even on a 1 on 1 basis, For years now numbers of raptor orders have decreased time and time again. WHat I DO wonder is if the USAF will keep a lot of eagles for a while rather than retirement to make up for the lack of raptors. Anyone here know about the "golden eagle" david just brought up? Could the PE F1119 engines on the F-22 or the GE F120 engines be placed onto an F-15?> That would add a massive thrust increase and thrust vectoring on an already in production? engine. We know horizontal stabs on hornets could be modded onto eagles just like the ACTIV and S/TMD. Is this a cheap mod? I imagine the massive amounts of legacy hornets over at the AMARC could be stripped of horizontal stabs for mods on eagles. Heck even try horizontal stabs off a super bug, bigger and perhaps more roll authority? COuld the golden eagle be more than what is listed in the article David just linked? An eagle with canards, F-22 TV engines, AESA radar, other imrpoved avionics, and perhaps dual palettes for AMRAAM,s on ALL 4 sidewinder launch rails could provide for a deadly combination on an old airframe. Breathing new life into it if you will. Heck ADD the CFT's onto the F-15C with all the other snazziness I just listed, and the engine thrust could probably compensate for the increased weight! IS thjis possible and could it be cheaper than a F-22 and JSF? Also. JSf........is it possible in the future to upgrade it to the point where it is a deadly interceptor and knife fighter? I ask this since so many nations plan to eventually procure some and it is a role that the F-16 has fulfilled on seperate occasions many times. I know the JSF was not intended to dogfight much, my question is could possible future upgrades GIVE the JSF the ability to do so....

Wouldnt the need for another next gen fighter not be put in place for another 10-20 years? The raptor is just entering service, I imagine it would be good enough for a while(with however many actually get produced.) Any news on sukhois new fighter? I know they are building Russia's next gen fighter for appearance either next year or 2006.

So in the place that the raptor DOES get canned, could the eagle be upgraded and stay in service for more years than originallyl planned? I do not know the planned retirement date for the mud hen and regular AA eagle, does anyone know the dates? The eagle is an awesome fighter, and I know the USAF has tons of them, if the raptor gets canned perhaps it will be upgraded and put into as much roles as its predecessor, the phantom.

LOLthe question is when. THe diecast bug has bit me hard. And I want some 2 SEATERS. BUt so far the only one available is the topgun bug, which you need those points to get. 2 seat fighters rock. So far I am on the lockout for a langley TFW 1 C eagle over at the BX, well hopefully my lil bro finds it for me.

Well if its like that then the Navy and Air force will not have top of the line fighters. not saying that the super bug and eagle and falcon arent top of the line, what I am talking about is next gen super fighters. The F-22 is a giant leap of capability over the F-15. Sine the mid 80s the USAF has always been talking about how much the ATF was needed and tons of money was spent, I do not doubt its importance but what do you all think? Will rummy really can that project? I imagine if he did, he would met much more resistance from the USAF than cheney and the USN when he canned the super tomcat and other advanced upgrades. I can't picture the JSF as the air forces most advancd plane. YUCK. The eagles are getting old, and they are not stealth, which is what the airforce certainly wants being that as of now they are the only branch to even have stealth aircraft(aside from UAV's)>

If I were in a position to make a decision, I would can the JSF program entirely, order up to 400 F-22's, give it a strike capability(much like LANTIRN to tomcats), and order more advanced falcons, as well as turn some F-15C's into SEAD aircraft. I think the F-22 is a far more valuable fighter and has a lot of potential in comparison to the F-35. F-1117's can take care of the day 1 bombings. F-22 can be armed with extenal pylons on days afterwards and carry a vast multitude of bombs while having 8 A/A weapons internally. Id say that would make a very nice bomber. Heck add in a second seat for a dedicated WSO. The F-22 is a BIG fighter after all, and it's got a lot of room for weaponry externally for A/G. Although I would also look into the YF-23 RFB and see how that turns out. But can the FB-22. Anyone think the F-22 story is sounding a LOT like the F-14D situation 14 years ago? Next thing you know we get a F-16 falcon block 70 with legnthenewd fueselage and more drag and politicians saying "it's an adequate fighter and does the job well unlike the raptor who's cold war era mission is long gone....". LOL Ewilen, you bring up a goodpoint. I wonder what has more priority for lockheed though, the top air dominance fighter in the western hemisphere, or the limited payload internationally suppported JSF?

COBRA NIGHT RAVEN!! LOL. IF its for a new series thats pretty sweet looking. IN france there is a new movie or series being filmed based ona comic strip of 2 french air force pilots who flie mirages. Sounds interesting.

Looks like an SR-71 with canopy covering applied, and a M-21 drone mounted on the spine. Must be from a NASA display or museum. In regards to the tomcat IRIAF kills, I think most of them are pretty much credible, I am not surprised. It was the best that the IRIAF had during that time and if I were at war I would sure use the best of my forces and not hold back. The tomcat was a big boost in performance in comparison to the IRIAF's F-5's, F-4D/E's. Though they did outnumber a lot of the tomcats. The tomcats were the best of the IRIAF. While I do not think they truly got up to 150+ kills, I think the number is rather close and is stil over 100. THe losses seem about right. All of those pilots WERE US trained you know, and they were taught how to dogfight. THe IRIAF, when it was the IIAF was the 5th most largest AF in the world and arguably one of the best in the mid east. And the Ayatollah knew he would need the pilots he inevtiably set off to kill, so I am sure a lot of the frontline pilots sent to die were eventually sent back to the frontline instead of to their deathbeds. Iran needed all the help they could get and ended realizing they were killing off valuable assets, if not their own people. David, does it say if ANY tomcats remain at all in flight service with the IRIAF? like usable service?

People would think before that there was no way to do a PV VF-1 without some big ass hinge on the sides of the cockpit for toys as well. Never say never. I am sure there IS a way to make a perfect variable SV-51 toy. Yamato does not necesarily stick to "canon line art transformations". Look at the 1./48. That explains it all. There IS a way. They can figure it out. Noone ever thought the 1/48 VF-1 would transform the way it did and it did.

Neova is Dragon scaling up their airplanes? I know their warbirds line is very popular, and I myself love the falcon I bought. If the PVC VF-0 was instead made in DIECAST and was more streamlined, and more accurate, people would buy them. Especially in a sized up scale...even 1/72 scale. PVC and a small size(no matter how big the optimists like to think it is for its scale) is a BAD combination for a near 40$ range toy. My dragon F-16 is 1/72 scale, about the size of a 1/100 Vf-0 and yet it was only 14$. Sure it was discounted but if it wasn't it would have been 18$. And it has MINIMAL part swapping aside from the missles. Sure yamato could be catering to the display fans or casual fans, but either way the PVC VF-0 was flawed from the start. It is OBVIOUS that they do not care for it and everything they have strived to achieve these past 3 years is NOT showing with this product. The appeal of diecast aircraft or small precision scale aircraft is the accuracy, streamlined feel and looks, and details in proportions and aesthetic details. Most of these qualities are lacking on the VF-0. 1/100 toy. I really couldn't care less if it came out or not. If there was a 1/60 diecast VF-0 with minimal swapping, or a 1/48 scale PV( I really could care less what the pessimists think of its size, most of you are going ape crazy over the monster and yet I hear noone saying "its TOO big!") I would certainly bite but not this time. 1/60 won people over since it was a dedicated diecast model, NOT a model kit, a diecast aircraft model. I truly understand why it was made to part swap and all that. It was made mainly for aesthetics. This while still classified as a toy, was still a very well done one, and had immense detail, and could certainly hold it's own in a beauty match, and also MORE durable than a hasegawa styrene kit. I truly believe it was made for casual play and high accuracy and detail without the toyetic exposed hinges and alll that. Basically the grown man's diecast HCM, for he who lacks the time to build a hasegawa. 1/48 won a bunch over since unlike the 1/60, it was certainly more toylike BUT went farther in being more "functional" with gimmicks usually associated with large 1/32 or 1.48 scale styrene kits like opening cockpit, radar, stuff like that. Flaps etc. It was also fairly easy to transform and above all perfect variable. The VF-1 toyt for the boy who grew up on 1/55s. BUT the 1/60 seems more appealing to the diecast aircraft junkie since it is more sleek and streamlined(arms tucked in better than 1/48). But for the 1/48 it is certainly MORE than good enough for us macross fans who want something incredibly detailed, PV, and bigger and more modern than the bandais. Now the PVC 1/100 VF-0? More like overpriced gashapon. In fact, I have seen variable gashapon toys , considerably cheaper, look better, AND have less part swapping. truly a slap in the face to yamato. Yamato has wooed macross fans alll over to some extent one way or another. They haven't pleased anyone, in fact I tend to think their marketing needs some work. IMHO the 1/60 was more for the diecast aircraft market. It feels that way,. From the minmal part swap to the add on accesory kits, to the metal content and precision, it is certainly more diecast model than it is toy. THe diecast air craft market was boomin at the time and in fact is still booming. Dragon warbirds was starting during the time of the 1/60 release and their models are similar in size. Corgi also makes 1/72 and most 1/72 aircraft are close in size to yamato's 1/60 VF-1s. It just makes sense that the diecast air market was the intended target. Oh yea and its HUGE in japan. And I think the 1/48 was intended to please those who wanted a toy VF-1 rather than a diecast model. I say FORGET the 1/100, and make a perfect variable!!! Noel and those going to wonderfest please bug the hell out of yamato to make this happen~!

HMmmm. WEIRD!!!! Considering that IRan and Israel diplomatically don't get along well at all. (Ron Arad story for further reference). A TON of Iran's tomcat pilots were killed. Really sad. And if the pilot lacking situation is bad the lack of dedicated RIO's is far worse. From what I heard even during the Shah times there were not a lot of people who knew aboout radar operating in the cat.,

well iran revolutionaries killed off a majority of the IIAF before the IRIAF was established SO that short time were shi* wasn't hitting the fan as much as when the engineers sabotaged stuff and tried fleeing.. A vast number of those they thought were still loyalists to the shah were killed but since the iran iraq war started they realized they were killing off valuable pilots so I think they stopped so they could put the top of the line they still had left into the aircraft to fight off iraq. THe F-16A pilot who scored the gun kill was just a pilot who began transitioning to the F-16. If I am not mistaken, he also became an ace less than a year later with 7 kills.

David please post more info!~ Or scans. Would be nice. VERY INTERESTING to know the high alpha characteristics of the cat. I read in one of the old 70s era books that it CAN be flown to 90 degrees AOA and is relatively stall free as long as a engine flameout on one side does not occur. Relatively stable but hell to fly when in a spin. And GUN kills? wow. Last gun kill on a teen fighter I heard was the wolfpack kill of a MI-8 in desert storm and a F-16A kill on a syrian copter in the early 80s. BTW where did you get that book? Every hungates I go to does not have it and I checked at BNN and they do not have it either. I will look for that and the iranian F-4 book after x mas. Does it say the condition of the few remaining today? I imagine close to 30 are probably still in working condition. I do not think the iranians got very far in reengineering spares for the cats and somehow I think the AA9 was the only thing they made with knowledge compromised with the tomcat. was a russian glasscockpit and AL31F tomcat ever made or is that still a rumor? Funny. they got more success with the cat than we do. BUt then again we haven't been in a war as long, to be fair, and by the time our guys got there, most of the air force was already obliterated.

hikaru is that an old pic or a new one? It would be interesting to see boeings "chin ugly" reemerge. more debate fodder. F/A-22 vs F-15E striker and long range strike. Whos the better striker? F-2 vs whichever block F-16C is the most ground capable whos better at striking? Mitsubishi F-1 vs F-104S which is the better fighter? F-16XL vs F-16A knife fight We alll know the XL was a better multiroler, but could it best the legendary falcon's sustained turns? Sea Vixen vs A-4. strike battle. A-1 vs F4U1 Corsair. prop knife fight. F-16XL vs F-16F total capability. Which is the better plane in general?

Oh that sucks. Dragon should make ALL pylons available for weapons use. But a little variety is okay. I would rather have ALL stations enabled for every weapon though..... a fully loaded dragon mudhen would so rock. Do you guys have problems with the falcon canopies like me? BTW a little on and OT but, the latest tf rumor is that 1/72 alternators at the 30$ price point will be jets and helicopters. Small for an F-16, but GREAT for F-22's, sukhois, eagles and of course TOMCATS. A 3d vectoring cobra with the 18K engines and aileron mods would surely rock. It is sad that we never saw it's full potential. At one of the recent airshows, it LOOKED like it could still fly~~ !! Just a blurry canopy but man it was beautiful. I even saw a 70s era janes book with a cobra pic, at farnborough I believe, decked out with TONS of A/G ordinance, comparable to the YF-16. I know it was a day fighter, or meant to be, but could the cobra have succeeded the phantom II as a fighter replacement? It's got similar speed, and tons better manueverability......

aweso0me answers. Never knew the cobra had inferior sustained turns in comparison to the hornet. Could the cobra still best the hornet though? does it hold more advantages or is sustained turn more important?I imagine acceleration is better. Also. Guys just came back shopping with my family over at the AAFES BX. Lo and behold as my brother foound a dragon figure I myself, found a dragon F-16 in a 5 star collectables box. The back had the dragon labels. Its basically the slipcase around that says 5 star collectables and the box is really a dragon box. I got F-16C from the 57th FW figthter weapons school 50th anniversary. VERY nice. No wonder they give you a tool to remove the weapons!! they are styrene!! Or light ABS. Anyways. canopy does not stay closed well. I mean it "does" but its not a locked position not always aligned. The open position is kind of funky I am not sure If I have done it right. I think the forward part of the canopy is supposed to be above the rear canopy piece, not merely in front of it. When open. AWESOMe detail and finish. Some parts like the nose gear door in closed position are prone to fall off. Other than that EXCELLENT toy and best 14$ diecast toy my parents have ever bought me (20% off sale). List price over at the BX is 17.95. THey have eagles in as well but they were not at the BX. Supposedly they are in another series and mine is labled series 1 and consists of 3 previously released dragon falcons. I think the reason the eagles do not have AMRAAM and sparrow pylons on the fueselage of the eagles is because the clip on portion would have to be on the missle itself and since the missles are attached in a "straight" not angled position, thjis would mean specially made missles would be used and the mounting clip would get in the way of the fins. Not sure how dragon could solve this problem. I envision diagonal pegs from the fueselage plugging into holes at a 45 degree angle of the missle. Either way des[pite the inaccuracies and irritating non BVR fueselage missle armnament capaility, I shall buy a dragon F-15 if I can find one. BTW the smaller scale "cando" pl;anes with no removable gear are at the BX too for 2.99 BUT. The F-15D they have in the "cando" series HAS fueselage engine nacelle missles!! HMMMM in the warbird series defense of the eagle though. a manufacturing solution to that for the 1/72 is a lot harder to do. But my idea of diagonal pegs into holes placed 45 degrees in between the fins of the missle would work in mounting a BVR onto the engine nacelles of the eagle model. Dragon you listening? BTW are the issues listed common with you guys like loose canopies? I think I cracked an AMRAAM mounting clip but not sure nad it still stays so who cares. And david any news on the warbirds F-14"? And does the hornet have nacelle attachement points for BVR or nitehawk pods? Dragon models RULE but man I just wish they had every imaginable weapon configuration not a limited one.

Hey guys, some more debate fodder. Obscure is the key word. MIrage 2000/IVP vs F-106 knife fight. Both deltas, old influence/history, similar profiles. F-104 vs SU-15. Intercept and knife fight. F-105 vs super etendard. Knife and strike. A-4F vs F-16A ADF., Knife fight. Keep hearing about the mongooses awesome manueveraibility. F/A-18E vs F-16E block 60. Knife fight. Both the supposed "super" versions of the hornet and falcon. HOw do they stack up? YF-17 vs super bug. knife fight. Oldie vs newbie. Cobra is faster. And did the YF-17 hold any advantages at all over the YF-16 besides 2 engines? I keep wondering if it was politically motivated but by all accounts I hear this was a "Straight" win. F-100 vs F-86. Super vs oldie. F-106 vs MIG-21. knife, same with above. And was the A-1 skyraider originally concieved to be a fighter or was it always for attack? i know it is korean war era.

HARM and future SEAD missles are using passive guidance. So I kind of doubt you would need a active radar source to aim those things. Just as long as you know where they are or a JSTARs links you up. And money is what the buerecrats bring up not the actual pilots. I keep remembering how everyone says the super bug is so much cheaper than retrofitting tomcats when it was the exact opposite. What is mandated as official is not always "true" per se boys.

HAH. Whatever. You joined this board for the sole purpose of getting notoriety by flaming us in defense of ol banky and of course in the hopes that he would one day, QUOTE you. Heh yea get a LIFE. and us yamato guys wouldn't understand? About what, wanting solid toys over floppy domesticated rip offs? YEA that's PRETTY hard to understand. MUh whatever I'll let the mods take care of this one. And oh yea those old robotech.com vs macrossworld.com thangs ended years ago. I think your still stuck in the past buddy.

Who's 40+? And Jem, at what age do you consider someone to be a "sad old man"? I think you know very little about who you're ranting about so loudly. I'd blame that on youthful ignorance, but then I'd be a hypocrite. To be honest, I know very little about the ops of Harmony Gold, and pricing. I do know a little about entertainment industry business practices, though, and short of contracting with a MAJOR distributor, the cost of Robotech products will always be a little high. That is, until the demand enters the mainstream, and the bulk production and shipping costs can reasonably be lowered. OR quality of the product is dropped. As a fan, it is indeed your right and duty to complain about this, and you probably know much more about their history than I could ever fathom, but compared to every other production, development, and distribution company in Hollywood, HG is far from the evil enterprise you make them out to be. I commend them for taking a great stride and bringing a diehard fan onto their staff, especially to help assemble a fan outreach effort like Robocon 20. Not only does BoK have a passion for this sort of thing, you should also know that he put together the most financially successful fund raiser in his high school's history... a sci-fi convention, and he was only a junior. Besides that, he was already a bad ass basket weaver. WOW someone KNOWS him that personally. Bad ass basket weaver and a big organizer during high school huh? gee how would YOU know that. Your statements reak of bias and it's obvious you only joined his board to "purge" of it of BOK comments. Yea he's a hardcore fan alright that downright insulted all of us just because many of us liked yamato over toynami. It's cool. Just because we like decently priced SOLID toys over overpriced floppy leg so called masterpieces dont mean hes gotta come here to flame us all for it. FUNNY. Robotech.com itself didn't evenm start until after the whole macross plus fiasco over at SDCC. YEA. I BET robotech was pushing for toys long before that right? RIGHT?

Well back previetnam people thought dogfighting was over and the phantom would take care of everything. With the good to god sparrow missle. Look what happened. Even if the air force guys meet the MIGs first it does not necesarily mean the requirement for a naval air superiority fighter should be diminished. Remember air force installations get first priority not naval. Meaning the raptors and eagles more than likely are busy trying to clear the skies for B-52's not some carriers out in the ocean. Or a naval strike package. ONe service cannot take care of everything and the capability of a air superiority fighter is still needed by the navy Because once it isn't one way or another shi* will hit the fan and then 10 years later a new naval air superiority big multiroler will be rectified to fix the mistakes. History repeats itself fellas. a lot of the high brass want a multiroler but not a SMALl multiroler. Most multirole planes have been big. F-4 and F-15E come to mind. Yes this is a JSF rant. And seriously not all politicians and beurecrats are right in these matters. SOmetimes even the navy high brass. The guy that wanted to eliminate the advanced gun targeting system in the F-14D was a submariner of all people. It's documented in the "TOMCAT!" book. Also the phoenix has done well against fighter craft and in the iranian war there were no huge bombers to hit, just fighters and strike craft. No B-52 siezed craft. I do not think the ability of the phoenix is tarnished at all. It worked well enough for the iranians that the iraqi's were scared to face the american cats during the war. THe super hornet is just a compromise fighter which will do good in terms of being reliable but actual function? DOn't get me wrong I do think the navy needs it but just not for a tomcat replaement. I seriously would hope that military pilots would be making the decisions for the next fighters rather than politicians. WE can't always buy into what they say. After all pilots are on the battlefield, not pencil pushers.