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Mordecai_Ender

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    Ender Aerospace Craft Repository

    in KSP1 The Spacecraft Exchange

    Posted

    Welcome to the official Ender Inc. Craft and Replica repository!!

    Here you will find every craft and replica I made

    Replica

    Spoiler

    Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow

    Spoiler

    The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow was a delta-Edwidge interceptor aircraft designed and built by Avro Canada. The Arrow is considered to have been an advanced technical and aerodynamic achievement for the Canadian aviation industry. The CF-105 (Mark 2) held the promise of near-Mach 2 speeds at altitudes of 50,000 feet (15,000 m) and was intended to serve as the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) primary interceptor in the 1960s and beyond.

    Cancellation

    The Arrow's cancellation was announced on 20 February 1959. The day became known as "black Friday" in the Canadian aviation industry. Diefenbaker claimed the decision was based on "a thorough examination" of threats and defensive measures, and the cost of defensive systems.

    The decision immediately put 14,528 Avro employees, as well as nearly 15,000 other employees in the Avro supply chain of outside suppliers, out of work. Declassified records show Avro management was caught unprepared by the suddenness of the announcement by the government; while executives were aware that the program was in jeopardy, they expected it to continue until the March review. It was widely believed during this lead-up to the review, the first Arrow Mk II, RL-206, would be prepared for an attempt at both world speed and altitude records.

    An attempt was made to provide the completed Arrows to the National Resaerch Council of Canada as high-speed test aircraft. The NRC refused, noting that without sufficient spare parts and maintenance, as well as qualified pilots, the NRC could make no use of them. A similar project initiated by the Royal Aircraft Establishment (Boscombe Down) had resulted in Avro vice-president (engineering) Jim Floyd's preparing a transatlantic ferry operation. This proposal, like others from the United States, was never realized.

    Full Album

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    Textron Airland Scorpion

    Spoiler

    The Scorpion demonstrator completed pre-flight taxi trials on 25 November 2013 in preparation for its first flight. The Scorpion first flew on 12 December 2013 for 1.4 hours. The aircraft has the civilian registration N531TA and is designated as a Cessna E530. The flight occurred 23 months after the aircraft's conception, and the flight certification program will last two years. Textron AirLand aimed to complete 500 flight hours and verify basic performance features by the end of 2014. Initial flight tests showed positive results in evaluations of performance and mechanical and electronic systems. On 9 April 2014, Textron AirLand announced that the Scorpion had reached 50 flight hours over 26 flights. It was flown as high as 30,000 ft (9,100 m), at speeds up to 310 kn (360 mph; 570 km/h) and 430 kn (490 mph; 800 km/h), and subjected to accelerations ranging from 3.7 to −0.5 g. Stall speed was identified at slower than 90 kn (100 mph; 170 km/h). Other tests performed included single-engine climbs and in-flight engine shutdown and restart. Pilots reported that the Scorpion was nimble, agile, and powerful even when flown on one engine, with good low speed characteristics. It also demonstrated an intercept of a Cessna 182. Few issues were encountered, attributed to the use of mature, non-developmental systems.

    The Scorpion had flown 76.4 hours in 41 test flights by 19 May 2014; no planned flights were cancelled due to mechanical or maintenance issues. Incremental improvements were to be made to the aircraft over the course of testing. Participation in the Farnborough International Airshow in 2014 accelerated changes; modifications included an engine inlet ice protection system and a metal inlet leading edge in place of the composite one for flying in a broader range of weather conditions, a cockpit ladder so the pilot does not need a ground crew ladder, an onboard oxygen-generating system in place of oxygen bottles, and other non-urgent items. The modified Scorpion resumed flights on 1 June 2014. In July 2014, the Scorpion made its first public appearance at Farnborough Airshow.

    In August 2014, the Scorpion participated in a scenario which involved a mock large chemical spill, requiring cleanup and search-and-rescue operations. A Textron test pilot flew the Scorpion, which circled the area for a few hours while transmitting full motion video to U.S. Air National Guard members. The purpose was to demonstrate the aircraft's intelligence and reconnaissance capabilities to fill a niche for Air National Guard missions, and be a promotional exercise. The Scorpion achieved 100 percent mission availability, providing color HD full motion video and communications with other aircraft and ground stations.

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    Ilyushin IL-40 Brawny

    Link to the post

    Spoiler

    History

    The Ilyushin Il-40 (NATO reporting name: Brawny) was a two-seat Soviet jet-engined armored ground-attack aircraft. The first prototype flew in 1953 and was very successful except when it fired its guns, as their combustion gasses disturbed the airflow into the engines and caused them to flameout or hiccup. Remedying this problem took over a year and involved the radical change of moving the engine air intakes all the way to the very front of the aircraft and repositioning the guns from the tip of the nose to the bottom of the fuselage, just behind the nosewheel. The aircraft, now resembling a double-barreled shotgun from the front, was ordered into production in 1955. Only five production aircraft had been completed before the entire program was canceled in early 1956 when the VVS discarded its close air-support doctrine in favor of tactical nuclear weapons on the battlefield.

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    PZL TS-11 Iskra

    Spoiler

    History

    In 1964, the TS-11 prototype beat four world records in its class, among others the speed record of 839 km/h (524 mph). The Iskra competed as the standard jet trainer for theWarsaw Pact, but lost out to the Czechoslovak plane Aero L-29 Delfín. Poland became the only Warsaw pact country to use the Iskra. A total of 424 aircraft were built by 1987, when production ceased. A total of 50 aircraft Iskra bis D were exported to India in 1975, then further 26 in the 1990s.

    In 2002, Poland still had 110 TS-11s, including 5 TS-11Rs. The Iskra became Polish first and only jet trainer so far - the programme for a successor, the PZL I-22 Iryda (later designated M-93 Iryda), failed for several reasons and few were built. In Indian service, Iskra was withdrawn by 16 December 2004. During service, seven were lost, killing four crew.

    In 2013, Poland had 30 (total number of school aircraft: TS-11, PZL-130) operational Iskras'

    From 1969 TS-11s have been used by the Polish aerobatics team, initially called "Rombik", and currently "Biało-Czerwone Iskry" ("White-and-Red Sparks").

    The UK has one fully operational ground running TS-11 Iskra (1018) which is part of the Cold War Jets Collection a museum based at Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, Leicestershire.

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    Mcdonnel Douglas F-15 Eagle

    Spoiler

    History

    The largest operator of the F-15 is the United States Air Force. The first Eagle, an F-15B, was delivered on 13 November 1974. In January 1976, the first Eagle destined for a combat squadron, the 555th TFS, was delivered. These initial aircraft carried the Hughes Aircraft (now Raytheon) APG-63 radar.

    The first kill by an F-15 was scored by Israeli Air Force (IAF) ace Moshe Melnik in 1979. In 1979–81, during Israeli raids against Palestinian factions in Lebanon, F-15As reportedly downed 13 Syrian MiG-21 "Fishbeds" and two Syrian MiG-25 "Foxbats". Israeli F-15As and Bs participated as escorts in Operation Opera, an air strike on an Iraqi nuclear reactor. In the 1982 Lebanon War, Israeli F-15s were credited with 41 Syrian aircraft destroyed (23 MiG-21 "Fishbeds", 17 MiG-23 "Floggers", and one Aérospatiale SA.342L Gazelle helicopter).

    Israel was the only operator to use and develop the air-to-ground abilities of the air-superiority F-15 variants, doing so because the fighter's range was well beyond other combat aircraft in the Israeli inventory in the 1980s. The first known use of F-15s for a strike mission was during Operation Wooden Leg on 1 October 1985, with six F-15Ds attacking PLO Headquarters in Tunis with two GBU-15 guided bombs per aircraft and two F-15Cs re-striking the ruins with six Mk-82 unguided bombs each. This was one of the few times air superiority F-15s (A/B/C/D models) were used in tactical strike missions. Israeli air superiority F-15 variants have since been extensively upgraded to carry a wider range of air to ground armaments including JDAM GPS-guided bombs and Popeye missile.

    Royal Saudi Air Force F-15C pilots reportedly shot down two Iranian Air Force F-4E Phantom IIs in a skirmish on 5 June 1984.

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    North American XB-70 Valkyrie

    Spoiler

    History

    The XB-70's maiden flight was on 21 September 1964. In the first flight test, between Palmdale and Edwards AFB, one engine had to be shut down shortly after take-off, and an undercarriage malfunction warning meant that the flight was flown with the undercarriage down as a precaution, limiting speed to 390 mph - about half that planned. On landing, the rear wheels of the port side main gear locked, the tires ruptured, and a fire started.

    The Valkyrie first became supersonic (Mach 1.1) on the third test flight on 12 October 1964, and flew above Mach 1 for 40 minutes during the following flight on 24 October. The wing tips were also lowered partially in this flight. XB-70 No. 1 surpassed Mach 3 on 14 October 1965 by reaching Mach 3.02 at 70,000 ft (21,300 m). The first aircraft was found to suffer from weaknesses in the honeycomb panels, primarily due to inexperience with fabrication and quality control of this new material. On two occasions, honeycomb panels failed and were torn off during supersonic flight, necessitating a Mach 2.5 limit being placed on the aircraft.

    The deficiencies discovered on AV-1 were almost completely solved on the second XB-70, which first flew on 17 July 1965. On 3 January 1966, XB-70 No. 2 attained a speed of Mach 3.05 while flying at 72,000 ft (21,900 m). AV-2 reached a top speed of Mach 3.08 and maintained it for 20 minutes on 12 April 1966. On 19 May 1966, AV-2 reached Mach 3.06 and flew at Mach 3 for 32 minutes, covering 2,400 mi (3,840 km) in 91 minutes of total flight.

    The second flight research program (NASA NAS4-1174) investigated "control of structural dynamics" from 25 April 1967 through the XB-70's last flight in 1969. At high altitude and high speed, the XB-70A experienced unwanted changes in altitude. NASA testing from June 1968 included two small vanes on the nose of AV-1 for measuring the response of the aircraft's stability augmentation system. AV-1 flew a total of 83 flights. A joint NASA/USAF research program was conducted from 3 November 1966 to 31 January 1967 for measuring the intensity and signature of sonic booms for the National Sonic Boom Program (NSBP). Testing was planned to cover a range of sonic boom overpressures on the ground similar to but higher than the proposed American SST. In 1966, AV-2 was selected for the program and was outfitted with test sensors. It flew the first sonic boom test on 6 June 1966, attaining a speed of Mach 3.05 at 72,000 ft (21,900 m). Two days later, AV-2 crashed following a mid-air collision with an F-104 while flying in a multi-aircraft formation. Sonic boom and later testing continued with XB-70A #1.

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    Northrop B-2 Spirit

    History

    Spoiler

    The first operational aircraft, christened Spirit of Missouri, was delivered to Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, where the fleet is based, on 17 December 1993. The B-2 reached initial operational capability (IOC) on 1 January 1997. Depot maintenance for the B-2 is accomplished by U.S. Air Force contractor support and managed at Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base. Originally designed to deliver nuclear weapons, modern usage has shifted towards a flexible role with conventional and nuclear capability.

    The B-2's combat debut was in 1999, during the Kosovo War. It was responsible for destroying 33% of selected Serbian bombing targets in the first eight weeks of U.S. involvement in the War. During this war, six B-2s flew non-stop to Kosovo from their home base in Missouri and back, totalling 30 hours. Although the bombers accounted 50 sorties out of a total of 34,000 NATO sorties, they dropped 11 percent of all bombs. The B-2 was the first aircraft to deploy GPS satellite-guided JDAM "smart bombs" in combat use in Kosovo. The use of JDAMs and precision-guided munitions effectively replaced the controversial tactic of carpet-bombing, which had been harshly criticized due to it causing indiscriminate civilian casualties in prior conflicts, such as the 1991 Gulf War. On 7 May 1999, a B-2 dropped five JDAMs on a target building that was actually the Chinese Embassy, killing several staff. By then, the B-2 had dropped 500 bombs in Kosovo.

    The B-2 saw service in Afghanistan, striking ground targets in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. With aerial refueling support, the B-2 flew one of its longest missions to date from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri to Afghanistan and back. B-2s would be stationed in the Middle East as a part of a US military buildup in the region from 2003.

    The B-2's combat use preceded a U.S. Air Force declaration of "full operational capability" in December 2003. The Pentagon's Operational Test and Evaluation 2003 Annual Report noted that the B-2's serviceability for Fiscal Year 2003 was still inadequate, mainly due to the maintainability of the B-2's low observable coatings. The evaluation also noted that the Defensive Avionics suite had shortcomings with "pop-up threats".

    During the Iraq War (Operation Iraqi Freedom), B-2s operated from Diego Garcia and an undisclosed "forward operating location". Other sorties in Iraq have launched from Whiteman AFB. As of September 2013the longest combat mission has been 44.3 hours. "Forward operating locations" have been previously designated as Andersen Air Force Base in Guam and RAF Fairford in the United Kingdom, where new climate controlled hangars have been constructed. B-2s have conducted 27 sorties from Whiteman AFB and 22 sorties from a forward operating location, releasing more than 1,500,000 pounds (680,000 kg) of munitions,including 583 JDAM "smart bombs" in 2003.

    In response to organizational issues and high-profile mistakes made within the Air Force, all of the B-2s, along with the nuclear-capable B-52s and the Air Force's intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), were transferred to the newly formed Air Force Global Strike Command on 1 February 2010.

    In March 2011, B-2s were the first U.S. aircraft into action in Operation Odyssey Dawn, the UN mandated enforcement of the Libyan no-fly zone. Three B-2s dropped 40 bombs on a Libyan airfield in support of the UN no-fly zone. The B-2s flew directly from the U.S. mainland across the Atlantic Ocean to Libya; a B-2 was refueled by allied tanker aircraft four times during each round trip mission.

    In August 2011, The New Yorker reported that prior to the May 2011 U.S. Special Operations raid into Abbottabad, Pakistan that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden, U.S. officials had considered an airstrike by one or more B-2s as an alternative; an airstrike was rejected because of damage to civilian buildings in the area from using a bunker busting bomb. There were also concerns an airstrike would make it difficult to positively identify Bin Laden's remains and so concluding he was in fact dead would be problematic.

    On 28 March 2013, two B-2s flew a round trip of 13,000 miles (21,000 km) from Whiteman Air Force base in Missouri to South Korea, dropping dummy ordnance on the Jik Do target range. The mission, part of the annual South Korean–United States military exercises, was the first time that B-2s overflew the Korean peninsula. Tensions between North and South Korea were high during and after the exercise, North Korea protested against the participation of the B-2s and made threats of retaliatory nuclear strikes against South Korea and the United States.

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    Lockheed F-104 Starfighter

    History

    The F-104A initially served briefly with the USAF Air Defense Command / Aerospace Defense Command (ADC) as an interceptor, although neither its range nor armament were well-suited for that role. The first unit to become operational with the F-104A was the 83rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron on 20 February 1958, at Hamilton AFB, California. After just three months of service, the unit was grounded after a series of engine-related accidents. The aircraft were then fitted with the J79-3B engine and another three ADC units equipped with the F-104A. The USAF reduced their orders from 722 Starfighters to 155. After only one year of service these aircraft were handed over to ADC-gained units of the Air National Guard, although it should be noted that the F-104 was intended as an interim solution while the ADC waited for delivery of the Convair F-106 Delta Dart.

    During the Berlin Crisis of 1961 President John F. Kennedy ordered 148,000 United States National Guard and reserve personnel to active duty on 30 August 1961, in response to Soviet moves to cut off allied access to Berlin. 21,067 individuals were from the Air National Guard (ANG), forming 18 fighter squadrons, four reconnaissance squadrons, six transport squadrons, and a tactical control group. On 1 November 1961, the USAF mobilized three more ANG fighter interceptor squadrons. In late October and early November, eight of the tactical fighter units flew to Europe with their 216 aircraft in "Operation Stair Step". Because of their short range, 60 F-104As were airlifted to Europe in late November, among them the151st FIS and 157th FIS. The crisis ended in the summer of 1962 and the personnel returned to the United States.

    The subsequent F-104C entered service with USAF Tactical Air Command as a multi-role fighter and fighter-bomber. The 479th Tactical Fighter Wing at George AFB, California, was the first unit to equip with the type in September 1958. Although not an optimum platform for the theater, the F-104 did see limited service in the Vietnam War. Again, in 1967, these TAC aircraft were transferred to the Air National Guard.

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    Lockheed F-117 NightHawk

    History

    Spoiler

    During the program's early years, from 1984 to mid-1992, the F-117A fleet was based at Tonopah Test Range Airport, Nevada where it served under the 4450th Tactical Group. Because the F-117 was classified during this time, the unit was officially located at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada and equipped with A-7 Corsair II aircraft. All military personnel were permanently assigned to Nellis AFB, but most personnel and their families lived in Las Vegas. This required commercial air and trucking to transport personnel between Las Vegas and Tonopah each week. The 4450th was absorbed by the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing in 1989. In 1992, the entire fleet was transferred to Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, where it was placed under the command of the 49th Fighter Wing. This move also eliminated the Key Air and American Trans Aircontract flights to Tonopah, which flew 22,000 passenger trips on 300 flights from Nellis to Tonopah per month.

    F-117 pilots called themselves "Bandits". Each of the 558 Air Force pilots who have flown the F-117 have a Bandit number, such as "Bandit 52", that indicates the sequential order of their first flight in the F-117. The F-117 has been used several times in war. Its first mission was during the United States invasion of Panama in 1989. During that invasion two F-117A Nighthawks dropped two bombs on Rio Hato airfield.

    During the Gulf War in 1991, the F-117A flew approximately 1,300 sorties and scored direct hits on 1,600 high-value targets in Iraq over 6,905 flight hours. Leaflet drops on Iraqi forces displayed the F-117 destroying ground targets and warned "Escape now and save yourselves". Initial claims of its effectiveness were later found to be overstated. For instance it was claimed that the F-117 made up 2.5% of Coalitiontactical aircraft in Iraq and they attacked more than 40% of the strategic targets; this ignored the fact that only 229 Coalition aircraft could drop and designate laser-guided bombs of which 36 F-117 represented 15.7%, and only the USAF had the I-2000 bombs intended for hardened targets, so the F-117 represented 32% of all coalition aircraft that could deliver such bombs. Initial reports of them hitting 80% of their targets were later scaled back to "41-60%". On the first night they failed to hit 40% of the air-defense targets they were assigned, including the Air Defense Operations Center in Baghdad, and 8 such targets remained functional out of 10 that could be assessed. In their Desert Storm white paper the USAF claimed that "the F-117 was the only airplane that the planners dared risk over downtown Baghdad" and that this area was particularly well defended. In fact most of the air defenses were on the outskirts of the city and many other aircraft hit targets in the downtown area, with minimal casualties when they attacked at night like the F-117. This meant they avoided the optically aimed AAA and infra-red SAMs which were the biggest threat to Coalition aircraft.

    The aircraft was operated in secret from Tonopah for almost a decade, but after the Gulf War the aircraft moved to Holloman in 1992. Its integration with the USAF's non-stealth "iron jets" occurred slowly, however; because of ongoing secrecy, others continued to see the aircraft, one senior F-117A pilot later said, as "none of their business, a stand-alone system". The F-117A and the men and women of the 49th Fighter Wing were deployed to Southwest Asia on multiple occasions. On their first deployment, with the aid of aerial refueling, pilots flew non-stop from Holloman to Kuwait, a flight of approximately 18.5 hours – a record for single-seat fighters that stands today.

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    Crafts

    Fighter

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    Ender Inc. XF-99A Warwolf

    Comment : Very stable and quite fun to fly, The XF-99A combine a couple of my favourite planes like the A-10, F-22, F14 and also have the characteristic cockpit design of Ender Aerospace's planes

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    Stock Planets and Moons Screenshots

    in KSP Fan Works

    Posted · Edited by Mordecai_Ender

    Here is a list of the stock planets and moons in ksp

    Besides them is one of my station used to get a view on the planets

     

    Moho

    zBVOk4o.jpg

    Eve

    wsA8wO0.jpg

    Gilly

    SfRoREK.jpg

    Kerbin

    84p5JGi.jpg

    Mun

    rioFynx.jpg

    Minmus

    BjRSrTV.jpg

    Duna

    NLSkPBc.jpg

    Ike

    3HyovRd.jpg

    Dres

    sca3sv5.jpg

    Jool

    OgCkt7n.jpg

    Laythe

    Gupn9KX.jpg

    Vall

    nuHsaTu.jpg

    Tylo

    Nb1i0UB.jpg

    Bop

    rYsWp49.jpg

    Pol

    721Gspv.jpg

    Eeloo

    alzQgPa.jpg

    Don't hesitate to correct me on the list of the moons i'm pretty sure some of them are not good 

    Ender Inc. Craft And Replica Repository

    in KSP1 The Spacecraft Exchange

    Posted · Edited by Mordecai_Ender
    New Plane

    Welcome to the official Ender Inc. Craft and Replica repository!!

    Here you will find every craft and replica I made

    Replica

    Spoiler

    Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow

    Spoiler

    The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow was a delta-Edwidge interceptor aircraft designed and built by Avro Canada. The Arrow is considered to have been an advanced technical and aerodynamic achievement for the Canadian aviation industry. The CF-105 (Mark 2) held the promise of near-Mach 2 speeds at altitudes of 50,000 feet (15,000 m) and was intended to serve as the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) primary interceptor in the 1960s and beyond.

    Cancellation

    The Arrow's cancellation was announced on 20 February 1959. The day became known as "black Friday" in the Canadian aviation industry. Diefenbaker claimed the decision was based on "a thorough examination" of threats and defensive measures, and the cost of defensive systems.

    The decision immediately put 14,528 Avro employees, as well as nearly 15,000 other employees in the Avro supply chain of outside suppliers, out of work. Declassified records show Avro management was caught unprepared by the suddenness of the announcement by the government; while executives were aware that the program was in jeopardy, they expected it to continue until the March review. It was widely believed during this lead-up to the review, the first Arrow Mk II, RL-206, would be prepared for an attempt at both world speed and altitude records.

    An attempt was made to provide the completed Arrows to the National Resaerch Council of Canada as high-speed test aircraft. The NRC refused, noting that without sufficient spare parts and maintenance, as well as qualified pilots, the NRC could make no use of them. A similar project initiated by the Royal Aircraft Establishment (Boscombe Down) had resulted in Avro vice-president (engineering) Jim Floyd's preparing a transatlantic ferry operation. This proposal, like others from the United States, was never realized.

    Full Album

    yOcw6QQ.png

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    tyUtwMe.png

    ucHDR81.png

    FS3sT3c.png

    Y0f3xYP.png

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    Spoiler

    Textron Airland Scorpion

    Spoiler

    The Scorpion demonstrator completed pre-flight taxi trials on 25 November 2013 in preparation for its first flight. The Scorpion first flew on 12 December 2013 for 1.4 hours. The aircraft has the civilian registration N531TA and is designated as a Cessna E530. The flight occurred 23 months after the aircraft's conception, and the flight certification program will last two years. Textron AirLand aimed to complete 500 flight hours and verify basic performance features by the end of 2014. Initial flight tests showed positive results in evaluations of performance and mechanical and electronic systems. On 9 April 2014, Textron AirLand announced that the Scorpion had reached 50 flight hours over 26 flights. It was flown as high as 30,000 ft (9,100 m), at speeds up to 310 kn (360 mph; 570 km/h) and 430 kn (490 mph; 800 km/h), and subjected to accelerations ranging from 3.7 to −0.5 g. Stall speed was identified at slower than 90 kn (100 mph; 170 km/h). Other tests performed included single-engine climbs and in-flight engine shutdown and restart. Pilots reported that the Scorpion was nimble, agile, and powerful even when flown on one engine, with good low speed characteristics. It also demonstrated an intercept of a Cessna 182. Few issues were encountered, attributed to the use of mature, non-developmental systems.

    The Scorpion had flown 76.4 hours in 41 test flights by 19 May 2014; no planned flights were cancelled due to mechanical or maintenance issues. Incremental improvements were to be made to the aircraft over the course of testing. Participation in the Farnborough International Airshow in 2014 accelerated changes; modifications included an engine inlet ice protection system and a metal inlet leading edge in place of the composite one for flying in a broader range of weather conditions, a cockpit ladder so the pilot does not need a ground crew ladder, an onboard oxygen-generating system in place of oxygen bottles, and other non-urgent items. The modified Scorpion resumed flights on 1 June 2014. In July 2014, the Scorpion made its first public appearance at Farnborough Airshow.

    In August 2014, the Scorpion participated in a scenario which involved a mock large chemical spill, requiring cleanup and search-and-rescue operations. A Textron test pilot flew the Scorpion, which circled the area for a few hours while transmitting full motion video to U.S. Air National Guard members. The purpose was to demonstrate the aircraft's intelligence and reconnaissance capabilities to fill a niche for Air National Guard missions, and be a promotional exercise. The Scorpion achieved 100 percent mission availability, providing color HD full motion video and communications with other aircraft and ground stations.

    ncla02H.png

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    Spoiler

    Ilyushin IL-40 Brawny

    Link to the post

    Spoiler

    History

    The Ilyushin Il-40 (NATO reporting name: Brawny) was a two-seat Soviet jet-engined armored ground-attack aircraft. The first prototype flew in 1953 and was very successful except when it fired its guns, as their combustion gasses disturbed the airflow into the engines and caused them to flameout or hiccup. Remedying this problem took over a year and involved the radical change of moving the engine air intakes all the way to the very front of the aircraft and repositioning the guns from the tip of the nose to the bottom of the fuselage, just behind the nosewheel. The aircraft, now resembling a double-barreled shotgun from the front, was ordered into production in 1955. Only five production aircraft had been completed before the entire program was canceled in early 1956 when the VVS discarded its close air-support doctrine in favor of tactical nuclear weapons on the battlefield.

    cRmmXeH.png

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    Spoiler

    PZL TS-11 Iskra

    Spoiler

    History

    In 1964, the TS-11 prototype beat four world records in its class, among others the speed record of 839 km/h (524 mph). The Iskra competed as the standard jet trainer for theWarsaw Pact, but lost out to the Czechoslovak plane Aero L-29 Delfín. Poland became the only Warsaw pact country to use the Iskra. A total of 424 aircraft were built by 1987, when production ceased. A total of 50 aircraft Iskra bis D were exported to India in 1975, then further 26 in the 1990s.

    In 2002, Poland still had 110 TS-11s, including 5 TS-11Rs. The Iskra became Polish first and only jet trainer so far - the programme for a successor, the PZL I-22 Iryda (later designated M-93 Iryda), failed for several reasons and few were built. In Indian service, Iskra was withdrawn by 16 December 2004. During service, seven were lost, killing four crew.

    In 2013, Poland had 30 (total number of school aircraft: TS-11, PZL-130) operational Iskras'

    From 1969 TS-11s have been used by the Polish aerobatics team, initially called "Rombik", and currently "Biało-Czerwone Iskry" ("White-and-Red Sparks").

    The UK has one fully operational ground running TS-11 Iskra (1018) which is part of the Cold War Jets Collection a museum based at Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, Leicestershire.

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    Mcdonnel Douglas F-15 Eagle

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    History

    The largest operator of the F-15 is the United States Air Force. The first Eagle, an F-15B, was delivered on 13 November 1974. In January 1976, the first Eagle destined for a combat squadron, the 555th TFS, was delivered. These initial aircraft carried the Hughes Aircraft (now Raytheon) APG-63 radar.

    The first kill by an F-15 was scored by Israeli Air Force (IAF) ace Moshe Melnik in 1979. In 1979–81, during Israeli raids against Palestinian factions in Lebanon, F-15As reportedly downed 13 Syrian MiG-21 "Fishbeds" and two Syrian MiG-25 "Foxbats". Israeli F-15As and Bs participated as escorts in Operation Opera, an air strike on an Iraqi nuclear reactor. In the 1982 Lebanon War, Israeli F-15s were credited with 41 Syrian aircraft destroyed (23 MiG-21 "Fishbeds", 17 MiG-23 "Floggers", and one Aérospatiale SA.342L Gazelle helicopter).

    Israel was the only operator to use and develop the air-to-ground abilities of the air-superiority F-15 variants, doing so because the fighter's range was well beyond other combat aircraft in the Israeli inventory in the 1980s. The first known use of F-15s for a strike mission was during Operation Wooden Leg on 1 October 1985, with six F-15Ds attacking PLO Headquarters in Tunis with two GBU-15 guided bombs per aircraft and two F-15Cs re-striking the ruins with six Mk-82 unguided bombs each. This was one of the few times air superiority F-15s (A/B/C/D models) were used in tactical strike missions. Israeli air superiority F-15 variants have since been extensively upgraded to carry a wider range of air to ground armaments including JDAM GPS-guided bombs and Popeye missile.

    Royal Saudi Air Force F-15C pilots reportedly shot down two Iranian Air Force F-4E Phantom IIs in a skirmish on 5 June 1984.

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    North American XB-70 Valkyrie

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    History

    The XB-70's maiden flight was on 21 September 1964. In the first flight test, between Palmdale and Edwards AFB, one engine had to be shut down shortly after take-off, and an undercarriage malfunction warning meant that the flight was flown with the undercarriage down as a precaution, limiting speed to 390 mph - about half that planned. On landing, the rear wheels of the port side main gear locked, the tires ruptured, and a fire started.

    The Valkyrie first became supersonic (Mach 1.1) on the third test flight on 12 October 1964, and flew above Mach 1 for 40 minutes during the following flight on 24 October. The wing tips were also lowered partially in this flight. XB-70 No. 1 surpassed Mach 3 on 14 October 1965 by reaching Mach 3.02 at 70,000 ft (21,300 m). The first aircraft was found to suffer from weaknesses in the honeycomb panels, primarily due to inexperience with fabrication and quality control of this new material. On two occasions, honeycomb panels failed and were torn off during supersonic flight, necessitating a Mach 2.5 limit being placed on the aircraft.

    The deficiencies discovered on AV-1 were almost completely solved on the second XB-70, which first flew on 17 July 1965. On 3 January 1966, XB-70 No. 2 attained a speed of Mach 3.05 while flying at 72,000 ft (21,900 m). AV-2 reached a top speed of Mach 3.08 and maintained it for 20 minutes on 12 April 1966. On 19 May 1966, AV-2 reached Mach 3.06 and flew at Mach 3 for 32 minutes, covering 2,400 mi (3,840 km) in 91 minutes of total flight.

    The second flight research program (NASA NAS4-1174) investigated "control of structural dynamics" from 25 April 1967 through the XB-70's last flight in 1969. At high altitude and high speed, the XB-70A experienced unwanted changes in altitude. NASA testing from June 1968 included two small vanes on the nose of AV-1 for measuring the response of the aircraft's stability augmentation system. AV-1 flew a total of 83 flights. A joint NASA/USAF research program was conducted from 3 November 1966 to 31 January 1967 for measuring the intensity and signature of sonic booms for the National Sonic Boom Program (NSBP). Testing was planned to cover a range of sonic boom overpressures on the ground similar to but higher than the proposed American SST. In 1966, AV-2 was selected for the program and was outfitted with test sensors. It flew the first sonic boom test on 6 June 1966, attaining a speed of Mach 3.05 at 72,000 ft (21,900 m). Two days later, AV-2 crashed following a mid-air collision with an F-104 while flying in a multi-aircraft formation. Sonic boom and later testing continued with XB-70A #1.

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    Northrop B-2 Spirit

    History

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    The first operational aircraft, christened Spirit of Missouri, was delivered to Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, where the fleet is based, on 17 December 1993. The B-2 reached initial operational capability (IOC) on 1 January 1997. Depot maintenance for the B-2 is accomplished by U.S. Air Force contractor support and managed at Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base. Originally designed to deliver nuclear weapons, modern usage has shifted towards a flexible role with conventional and nuclear capability.

    The B-2's combat debut was in 1999, during the Kosovo War. It was responsible for destroying 33% of selected Serbian bombing targets in the first eight weeks of U.S. involvement in the War. During this war, six B-2s flew non-stop to Kosovo from their home base in Missouri and back, totalling 30 hours. Although the bombers accounted 50 sorties out of a total of 34,000 NATO sorties, they dropped 11 percent of all bombs. The B-2 was the first aircraft to deploy GPS satellite-guided JDAM "smart bombs" in combat use in Kosovo. The use of JDAMs and precision-guided munitions effectively replaced the controversial tactic of carpet-bombing, which had been harshly criticized due to it causing indiscriminate civilian casualties in prior conflicts, such as the 1991 Gulf War. On 7 May 1999, a B-2 dropped five JDAMs on a target building that was actually the Chinese Embassy, killing several staff. By then, the B-2 had dropped 500 bombs in Kosovo.

    The B-2 saw service in Afghanistan, striking ground targets in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. With aerial refueling support, the B-2 flew one of its longest missions to date from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri to Afghanistan and back. B-2s would be stationed in the Middle East as a part of a US military buildup in the region from 2003.

    The B-2's combat use preceded a U.S. Air Force declaration of "full operational capability" in December 2003. The Pentagon's Operational Test and Evaluation 2003 Annual Report noted that the B-2's serviceability for Fiscal Year 2003 was still inadequate, mainly due to the maintainability of the B-2's low observable coatings. The evaluation also noted that the Defensive Avionics suite had shortcomings with "pop-up threats".

    During the Iraq War (Operation Iraqi Freedom), B-2s operated from Diego Garcia and an undisclosed "forward operating location". Other sorties in Iraq have launched from Whiteman AFB. As of September 2013the longest combat mission has been 44.3 hours. "Forward operating locations" have been previously designated as Andersen Air Force Base in Guam and RAF Fairford in the United Kingdom, where new climate controlled hangars have been constructed. B-2s have conducted 27 sorties from Whiteman AFB and 22 sorties from a forward operating location, releasing more than 1,500,000 pounds (680,000 kg) of munitions,including 583 JDAM "smart bombs" in 2003.

    In response to organizational issues and high-profile mistakes made within the Air Force, all of the B-2s, along with the nuclear-capable B-52s and the Air Force's intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), were transferred to the newly formed Air Force Global Strike Command on 1 February 2010.

    In March 2011, B-2s were the first U.S. aircraft into action in Operation Odyssey Dawn, the UN mandated enforcement of the Libyan no-fly zone. Three B-2s dropped 40 bombs on a Libyan airfield in support of the UN no-fly zone. The B-2s flew directly from the U.S. mainland across the Atlantic Ocean to Libya; a B-2 was refueled by allied tanker aircraft four times during each round trip mission.

    In August 2011, The New Yorker reported that prior to the May 2011 U.S. Special Operations raid into Abbottabad, Pakistan that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden, U.S. officials had considered an airstrike by one or more B-2s as an alternative; an airstrike was rejected because of damage to civilian buildings in the area from using a bunker busting bomb. There were also concerns an airstrike would make it difficult to positively identify Bin Laden's remains and so concluding he was in fact dead would be problematic.

    On 28 March 2013, two B-2s flew a round trip of 13,000 miles (21,000 km) from Whiteman Air Force base in Missouri to South Korea, dropping dummy ordnance on the Jik Do target range. The mission, part of the annual South Korean–United States military exercises, was the first time that B-2s overflew the Korean peninsula. Tensions between North and South Korea were high during and after the exercise, North Korea protested against the participation of the B-2s and made threats of retaliatory nuclear strikes against South Korea and the United States.

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    Lockheed F-104 Starfighter

    History

    The F-104A initially served briefly with the USAF Air Defense Command / Aerospace Defense Command (ADC) as an interceptor, although neither its range nor armament were well-suited for that role. The first unit to become operational with the F-104A was the 83rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron on 20 February 1958, at Hamilton AFB, California. After just three months of service, the unit was grounded after a series of engine-related accidents. The aircraft were then fitted with the J79-3B engine and another three ADC units equipped with the F-104A. The USAF reduced their orders from 722 Starfighters to 155. After only one year of service these aircraft were handed over to ADC-gained units of the Air National Guard, although it should be noted that the F-104 was intended as an interim solution while the ADC waited for delivery of the Convair F-106 Delta Dart.

    During the Berlin Crisis of 1961 President John F. Kennedy ordered 148,000 United States National Guard and reserve personnel to active duty on 30 August 1961, in response to Soviet moves to cut off allied access to Berlin. 21,067 individuals were from the Air National Guard (ANG), forming 18 fighter squadrons, four reconnaissance squadrons, six transport squadrons, and a tactical control group. On 1 November 1961, the USAF mobilized three more ANG fighter interceptor squadrons. In late October and early November, eight of the tactical fighter units flew to Europe with their 216 aircraft in "Operation Stair Step". Because of their short range, 60 F-104As were airlifted to Europe in late November, among them the151st FIS and 157th FIS. The crisis ended in the summer of 1962 and the personnel returned to the United States.

    The subsequent F-104C entered service with USAF Tactical Air Command as a multi-role fighter and fighter-bomber. The 479th Tactical Fighter Wing at George AFB, California, was the first unit to equip with the type in September 1958. Although not an optimum platform for the theater, the F-104 did see limited service in the Vietnam War. Again, in 1967, these TAC aircraft were transferred to the Air National Guard.

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    Lockheed F-117 NightHawk

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    During the program's early years, from 1984 to mid-1992, the F-117A fleet was based at Tonopah Test Range Airport, Nevada where it served under the 4450th Tactical Group. Because the F-117 was classified during this time, the unit was officially located at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada and equipped with A-7 Corsair II aircraft. All military personnel were permanently assigned to Nellis AFB, but most personnel and their families lived in Las Vegas. This required commercial air and trucking to transport personnel between Las Vegas and Tonopah each week. The 4450th was absorbed by the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing in 1989. In 1992, the entire fleet was transferred to Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, where it was placed under the command of the 49th Fighter Wing. This move also eliminated the Key Air and American Trans Aircontract flights to Tonopah, which flew 22,000 passenger trips on 300 flights from Nellis to Tonopah per month.

    F-117 pilots called themselves "Bandits". Each of the 558 Air Force pilots who have flown the F-117 have a Bandit number, such as "Bandit 52", that indicates the sequential order of their first flight in the F-117. The F-117 has been used several times in war. Its first mission was during the United States invasion of Panama in 1989. During that invasion two F-117A Nighthawks dropped two bombs on Rio Hato airfield.

    During the Gulf War in 1991, the F-117A flew approximately 1,300 sorties and scored direct hits on 1,600 high-value targets in Iraq over 6,905 flight hours. Leaflet drops on Iraqi forces displayed the F-117 destroying ground targets and warned "Escape now and save yourselves". Initial claims of its effectiveness were later found to be overstated. For instance it was claimed that the F-117 made up 2.5% of Coalitiontactical aircraft in Iraq and they attacked more than 40% of the strategic targets; this ignored the fact that only 229 Coalition aircraft could drop and designate laser-guided bombs of which 36 F-117 represented 15.7%, and only the USAF had the I-2000 bombs intended for hardened targets, so the F-117 represented 32% of all coalition aircraft that could deliver such bombs. Initial reports of them hitting 80% of their targets were later scaled back to "41-60%". On the first night they failed to hit 40% of the air-defense targets they were assigned, including the Air Defense Operations Center in Baghdad, and 8 such targets remained functional out of 10 that could be assessed. In their Desert Storm white paper the USAF claimed that "the F-117 was the only airplane that the planners dared risk over downtown Baghdad" and that this area was particularly well defended. In fact most of the air defenses were on the outskirts of the city and many other aircraft hit targets in the downtown area, with minimal casualties when they attacked at night like the F-117. This meant they avoided the optically aimed AAA and infra-red SAMs which were the biggest threat to Coalition aircraft.

    The aircraft was operated in secret from Tonopah for almost a decade, but after the Gulf War the aircraft moved to Holloman in 1992. Its integration with the USAF's non-stealth "iron jets" occurred slowly, however; because of ongoing secrecy, others continued to see the aircraft, one senior F-117A pilot later said, as "none of their business, a stand-alone system". The F-117A and the men and women of the 49th Fighter Wing were deployed to Southwest Asia on multiple occasions. On their first deployment, with the aid of aerial refueling, pilots flew non-stop from Holloman to Kuwait, a flight of approximately 18.5 hours – a record for single-seat fighters that stands today.

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    Ender Inc. XF-99A Warwolf

    Comment : Very stable and quite fun to fly, The XF-99A combine a couple of my favourite planes like the A-10, F-22, F14 and also have the characteristic cockpit design of Ender Inc's planes

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