f-22? Will it be out there, and will it be Naval?

Judge Seamus

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Jun 13, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/13/96

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I have heard from a friend of mine that the Navy is currently cutting
down bigtime on its numbers of Tomcats per carrier due to the age and
wear and tear on the aircraft. My questions are this:

A) This seems kind of silly, when the Navy is just now getting around to
retiring intruders

B) Is the Tomcat still capable of defending itself well against the highest
tech of our world's enemies?

C) Is there any news on the F-22, and will it be carrier based?

I am always concerned that Congress will keep our Carriers around, but so
nueter their strikeforces as to make them very weak in terms of
projecting power, and even defending themselves. WHich leads to one more
idea. I remember reading somewhere that the Russians had successfully
tested a *very* fast antishipping missile which went partially into the
stratosphere, then straight down to its target. Due to its speed, it was
deemed as almost indefensible. Has anyone heard anything on this? And
Could this spell the end of large task forces like a Carrier Battle Group?

Seamus
************************************************
-The weather is here, wish you were beautiful...
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Michael Ellis Chaffin

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Jun 15, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/15/96

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Judge Seamus <jwh...@umich.edu> wrote:>
>C) Is there any news on the F-22, and will it be carrier based?
>

The F22 wil not be carrier based......

Mike

Chris Douglas

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Jun 17, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/17/96

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Judge Seamus wrote:
>
> I have heard from a friend of mine that the Navy is currently cutting
> down bigtime on its numbers of Tomcats per carrier due to the age and
> wear and tear on the aircraft. My questions are this:
>
> A) This seems kind of silly, when the Navy is just now getting around to
> retiring intruders

Technically speaking, this isn't a question. However, the Tomcats are very old
themselves and are very expensive to maintain, which is why you're seeing their
numbers declining. Still, investments are being made in ensuring the viability
for at least the next 10 and in some cases the next 20 years. For instance,
the first squadron of F-14's (VF-103, who are now the Jolly Rogers flying
F-14B's) equipped with LANTIRN targetting pods will embark on the system's
first fleet deployment shortly.

>
> B) Is the Tomcat still capable of defending itself well against the highest
> tech of our world's enemies?

Absolutely! In fact, the newest F-14D Tomcats are arguably the most lethal
fighters in the world today (pity there's only about 49 of them left). By all
accounts they remain expensive to maintain, however.

>
> C) Is there any news on the F-22, and will it be carrier based?
>

Components for the first EMD F-22A are well underway, with the wings under
construction at Boeing and major parts of the fuselage structure near or at
completion at Lockheed. It will not be carrier based. I think first flight is
scheduled for either late 1997 or sometime in 1998.

> I am always concerned that Congress will keep our Carriers around, but so
> nueter their strikeforces as to make them very weak in terms of
> projecting power, and even defending themselves. WHich leads to one more
> idea. I remember reading somewhere that the Russians had successfully
> tested a *very* fast antishipping missile which went partially into the
> stratosphere, then straight down to its target. Due to its speed, it was
> deemed as almost indefensible. Has anyone heard anything on this? And
> Could this spell the end of large task forces like a Carrier Battle Group?

...

I'm not particularly concerned that a Republican Congress would keep the
carriers and weaken them, but I'm quite worried a Democratic Clinton
administration would (and has). As for the missile, one has to bear in mind
that firing a weapon is one of the last problems an attacker has to solve. The
first would be finding the carrier itself, and that's no easy job. The second
would be staying alive until within range to launch, and that could be tricky
too.

Plus, defenses tend to evolve to meet threats as they emerge, and the Russians
having a missile "in development" means that it might be fielding sometime
within the next 10 years (if at all).

--
-----------------------------------------------------
Chris Douglas - cdou...@origin.ea.com
Production Designer/Animator - Origin Systems, Inc.
-----------------------------------------------------
Opinions expressed are my own.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
You have escaped from it, but it is there, always following you.
It is there, in your heart and your mind, in the very depths and
recesses of your being. You have covered it up, escaped, run
away; but it is there. And the mind must experience it like a
purgation by fire. --Krishnamurti.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

W. ROLLINS

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Jun 19, 1996, 3:00:00 AM6/19/96

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Chris Douglas (cdou...@origin.ea.com) wrote:
For instance,
: the first squadron of F-14's (VF-103, who are now the Jolly Rogers flying
: F-14B's) equipped with LANTIRN targetting pods will embark on the system's
: first fleet deployment shortly.

Excuse me? Did you ever here of VF-124 or VF-1 or VF-2?
i

BiNM