What is it like to fly a Jet Fighter?
But then after the initial thrill has worn off, as all thrills must, you will find yourself in the dark hours of the soul questioning yourself.
Is it really more fun than flying a chinook/apache/seaking/Lynx at 5ft around afghanistan? I mean, really?
What must it be like to have a really useful role?
Do I really look as stupid in a pink flying suit in the DFAC as I believe?
Is it really more fun than flying a chinook/apache/seaking/Lynx at 5ft around afghanistan? I mean, really?
What must it be like to have a really useful role?
Do I really look as stupid in a pink flying suit in the DFAC as I believe?
Happy to agree Beagle. The Hunter was a joy to fly and the top of the range was the FR Mk 10. I could never quite get my head round being paid for having so much fun !
X767
X767
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Do a Hover - it avoids G
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The simple questions are always the hardest to answer.
What is like like to fly a jet fighter?
If you mean to ride in one that you are steering yourself on a nice clear day with no particular objective that you must achieve then it is about as exciting and enjoyable as life gets.
If you mean what is it like to fly a jetfighter AND be a pilot on a jet fighter squadron then the answer is not so simple.
In peacetime you could just find yourself operating in one of the most competitive occupations you can imagine where everybody else is trying to prove they are better than you. If your unit happens to be fighting a war then you will have to accept that the enemy wants to kill you.
If on the other hand you are trying to decide whether you want to try and become a jet fighter pilot the simple answer is this:- if you have to ask the question I am afraid you do not want to be one enough to overcome the obstacles that will be put in your way.
What is like like to fly a jet fighter?
If you mean to ride in one that you are steering yourself on a nice clear day with no particular objective that you must achieve then it is about as exciting and enjoyable as life gets.
If you mean what is it like to fly a jetfighter AND be a pilot on a jet fighter squadron then the answer is not so simple.
In peacetime you could just find yourself operating in one of the most competitive occupations you can imagine where everybody else is trying to prove they are better than you. If your unit happens to be fighting a war then you will have to accept that the enemy wants to kill you.
If on the other hand you are trying to decide whether you want to try and become a jet fighter pilot the simple answer is this:- if you have to ask the question I am afraid you do not want to be one enough to overcome the obstacles that will be put in your way.
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Correct Rosain, spent 1750hrs of my miss spent youth in the CF, am on the road today on a charity flight, will try to get one of the kids to scan the picture and post, dont have that ability on the farm, Regards, Clunck.
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Not nearly as nice as flying a Spitfire.
The jets are great and their weapons systems make achieving 'kills' easy in comparison with the gun-armed aircraft. The old piston-engined fighters are a greater challenge to fly well and a whole lot more satisfying; their kills were down to pilot achievement not technology.
Rather fly a fighter than anything else, though.
The jets are great and their weapons systems make achieving 'kills' easy in comparison with the gun-armed aircraft. The old piston-engined fighters are a greater challenge to fly well and a whole lot more satisfying; their kills were down to pilot achievement not technology.
Rather fly a fighter than anything else, though.
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soddim
Your entire post is total bollocks.
"The jets are great and their weapons systems make achieving 'kills' easy in comparison with the gun-armed aircraft"
Unless the other guy is flying an equally advanced aircraft, then it is all down to skill again. Duh
"The old piston-engined fighters are a greater challenge to fly well and a whole lot more satisfying; their kills were down to pilot achievement not technology."
No. They fought their aircraft with a tiny number of training hours, therefore were nowhere near the equivalent in terms of skill to todays pilots. Todays aircraft may be easy to fly, but it's not about flying, it's about operating, and todays aircraft require vastly greater capacity and training to operate well. And the idea that technology was unimportant in the old days is simply delusional. ME109 vs Fairey Battle, anyone?
Your entire post is total bollocks.
"The jets are great and their weapons systems make achieving 'kills' easy in comparison with the gun-armed aircraft"
Unless the other guy is flying an equally advanced aircraft, then it is all down to skill again. Duh
"The old piston-engined fighters are a greater challenge to fly well and a whole lot more satisfying; their kills were down to pilot achievement not technology."
No. They fought their aircraft with a tiny number of training hours, therefore were nowhere near the equivalent in terms of skill to todays pilots. Todays aircraft may be easy to fly, but it's not about flying, it's about operating, and todays aircraft require vastly greater capacity and training to operate well. And the idea that technology was unimportant in the old days is simply delusional. ME109 vs Fairey Battle, anyone?
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Sodim, I beg to differ, having flown a fair cross section of piston fighters {we kept TBM, P51,Harvard, Sea Fury, } long after their "best before" date the stuff about the old pistons being harder to fly is total twaddle! At the time I started in the military many courses started on the Harvard, no Tiger Moths or Chipmunks, one fellow on my course soloed in six hours, never having sat in an aircraft before! the fact is they were "different", if you started on aircraft with restricted forward view, a swing on T/O and a tendecy to swap ends on landing, no warning of a stall, then this was the norm,the first time I flew a nose wheel aircraft I found it to be quite unerving seeing the runway end come up in full view, its all what you are used to. Mind you we have the new breed of self apointed aces over here who will regale you with how difficult it is to even taxi a Harvard, they can be seen at airshows in flying suits with more badges and stuff than a Banana Republic president sounding forth in great detail about the superior skills needed to handle such a beast.Its true that many WW2 aircraft had bloody terrible performance {Stirling ect} but thats another story .
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All I can say to both of you is that if you think flying fighters is all about take-off and landing - it's not. It's really about shooting other aircraft down. Try that in a Spitfire with almost sod all to aim with against a 'target' who knows you are trying to kill him then try it in a modern fighter with fire and forget missiles.
I think you'll both agree that aircraft designers have achieved something over the years in that they have made the aircraft easier to fly and operate and weapons systems have considerably increased the kill probability in air-to-air engagements.
I think you'll both agree that aircraft designers have achieved something over the years in that they have made the aircraft easier to fly and operate and weapons systems have considerably increased the kill probability in air-to-air engagements.
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soddim
"All I can say to both of you is that if you think flying fighters is all about take-off and landing - it's not"
Duh, read my post. You know, the bit where I say "but it's not about flying, it's about operating, and todays aircraft require vastly greater capacity and training to operate well. "
Unbelievably vacuous arguments you are putting forwards. If you put todays pilots up against their predecessors in equal aircraft there would only be one result.
Just like putting Fangio up against any modern F1 driver, or the 1966 England team up against the current England squad. Fantastic in their day, but only in their day. The standard has changed.
"All I can say to both of you is that if you think flying fighters is all about take-off and landing - it's not"
Duh, read my post. You know, the bit where I say "but it's not about flying, it's about operating, and todays aircraft require vastly greater capacity and training to operate well. "
Unbelievably vacuous arguments you are putting forwards. If you put todays pilots up against their predecessors in equal aircraft there would only be one result.
Just like putting Fangio up against any modern F1 driver, or the 1966 England team up against the current England squad. Fantastic in their day, but only in their day. The standard has changed.
Germans and the Eurofighter
Find out for yourself! Some of us will only ever be onlookers. Don't be like us - don't watch this and wish that you'd made something better of your life:
YouTube - 4 Ship Eurofighter
YouTube - 4 Ship Eurofighter
Tourist I think you are well off the mark with your comments about previous generations of fighter pilots. If you put todays fighter pilots up against their predecessors in equal aircraft the result would be the same. The best would win!!
Yes you are all young and up to speed with the latest technology but so were we! I think it very arrogant of you to suggest that you have vastly greater capacity these days! Might I suggest that modern systems provide far more information in a much more user friendly format giving greater tactical freedom especially in the single seat environment!
I shall now retire to the bunker to finish my wine!
Yes you are all young and up to speed with the latest technology but so were we! I think it very arrogant of you to suggest that you have vastly greater capacity these days! Might I suggest that modern systems provide far more information in a much more user friendly format giving greater tactical freedom especially in the single seat environment!
I shall now retire to the bunker to finish my wine!
Tourist I think you are well off the mark with your comments about previous generations of fighter pilots
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At the risk of encouraging Tourist, I will simply point out that I have flown Spitfires and also, unlike Tourist apparently, I have a wealth of experience in several modern fighters.
If you can't walk the walk don't post you numskull.
If you can't walk the walk don't post you numskull.
