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Old 29th Sep 2008, 17:55
  #44 (permalink)  
Engines
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
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Tim,

I'm sorry to disagree openly, but the Typhoon is not a viable choice for the CVF. The studies BAE Systems did were thorough, but the solutions offered for getting to the deck were risky in the extreme.

CVF is designed to be adaptable - it can take a STOVL doing VLs, or be converted to take a CV aircraft doing cat and trap. (UK is doing additional work on SRVLs, as threaded elsewhere). What it can't do is take a Typhoon, because the sort of recovery envisaged needs a completely new landing aids system and deck layout, plus new arresting systems. But the biggest obstacle is the aircraft.

Designing combat aircraft for conventional carrier operations HAS to be done from the start. (T-45 is the only example I know of a move from land to sea and that was a 90% redesign - and it has no weapons payload to carry). Coming to the deck at around 135 kts with full controllability is hard, taking the wire is hard, and taking a cat launch is super hard.

Typhoon can't get there. Period. If a redesign were to be attempted, I'd bet that the only bit left unchanged would be the name.

JSF STOVL is in flight test and is doing ground tests on the hover pit at Fort Worth. It's a real programme, with real challenges and real firm backing from the USMC. If you want a hypothetical solution to aircraft for CVF, go Typhoon.

Happy to swap PMs with you on this if you want.

Best regards as ever,

Engines
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