RAAF Super Hornet Acquisition on Four Corners
Anyone else see this?
Looked like the same bunch of disgruntled ex-RAAFies bleating on about how the F-111 is (easily) the world's greatest aircraft. According to the journalist, the Pig can even do air-superiority.
I liked the "hypotheticals":
Hypothetical 1. Four Pigs get to Jakarta, hit targets and egress for tea and medals before the Indons even realise what's going on.
Hypothetical 2: Sixteen Super Hornets struggle against Indon Su-30s, get smacked on the run-in, miss most of their targets, get smacked on egress and then have to ditch because the AAR gets schwacked as well.
The Pig is a great aircraft, but it is soaking up a fair wad of the Defence budget. Can the Super Hornet carry the same payload the same distance? No, but it shouldn't be as labour intensive to keep airborne.
The best bit was Carlo Kopp looking like a German sex-tourist, sweatily telling us we need the Pig and the F-22.
He's probably right on the F-22, but the Yanks won't sell 'em to us.
On the Pig, good old Carlo has said we can keep it in service until 2040...if we put PW119s in it, re-skin it in carbon fibre, make the cockpit glass, whack in some new radar, new datalink and on and on and on. Sounds easy.
Actually, doesn't sound easy.