Originally Posted by
SLXOwft
Anone know if the story that the evaluation report of the Jaguar M v the (single engined) Super Etendard marked the Jag down because of it's handling characteristics with one engine is true?
It does seem that throttle response and poor single-engine performance (thrust was never a strong suite) was cited as a reason for not proceeding with the M, but my understanding the higher cost of the Jaguar M was a larger driver, meaning they could not afford the desired 100 airframes. The Super Entendard was pitched as a cheaper alternative so they could buy more airframes, quietly ignoring any single-engine worries. As it turned out, the SuE costs crept up and it was never bought in the numbers originally desired either. I also understand there was a desire to spread some work to Dassault (jobs). So sounds like a bit of politics, favoritism, under bidding and cost creep- a typical cycle!