Soon to appear in RAF colours at a hot and dusty airport near you.........

It was I think in the late 70's at Farnborough I first saw the 146 conversion but there it was being pushed as a tactical aircraft and had a Landrover posed on a ramp on the outside, asking the BAe bod at the show where the scaffolding looking ramp came from, he told me they carried it onboard, they land, get out assemble the ramp, jiggle the rover out of the side door and down the ramp, strip it down, throw the ramp back inside the Aircraft shut the door and depart......:p
One thought, Herc it's not.


Though to be in all fairness what the RAF are going to probably use it for, the support vehicles will be available to unload it.

If the chinese show a new aircraft, first flight is close.

http://www.flightglobal.com/Assets/G...x?ItemID=49356

PICTURES: China

"Why does the [?] ADD[?] probe have a flipping dayglo background?"

Might be to show the RVSM protected airflow area?
Might be just to show that there's something sticking out?
Might be because RJ's have that as a mandated Placard? (I don't think the original 146-100/200/300's did)

Not sure what all the guff about 146 similarities is.

YC-15 however...

Looks like johnny chinaman has been hanging out around 'Century Circle'.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...90429-02-8.jpg

Figures are between YC-15 and the C-17, though a little closer to the '15 overall.

Nutty, I remember that 146 came to YMML in the mid-late 80's & I grabbed a truckload of promo material. I recall thinking that even the flight crew looked embarrassed standing next to it.

Looks better than the last "big" airlifter built in the UK - The Belslow...

The chinese have had il-76 for a long time.

I think the amount of Chinese design's that can't be dismissed as copies is growing..

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps68950d67.jpg

That picture makes interesting viewing.

I am sure the US, UK et al would do the same if
the situation was reversed.

They might want to check out aeroelastic stability of that tail at .34

Chinese Y-20 transport aircraft made its maiden flight on Jan 26, 2013 - YouTube

Its been 49 years since the Belfast first flew, plenty of time for a country whose top technical capabilities seem to be in industrial espionage to steal designs from, well just about everwhere.

Frankly, if the RAF had a Tornado IDS replacement like this entering production, most wouldn't mind. Second seat maybe, room enough, its a biggy.

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...ps950fe42f.jpg

And it is not even on the horizon for Europe..

You need a rich fantasy to say it's a copy of something.

Always ironic to hear people from my country that basically just makes a subsonic jet trainer, mocking the industrial capabilities of a country that has a space program and the ability to seemingly knock out stealth aircraft at will.

If that is directed at me, swing and a miss. I'm not from England, I'm from a country that still has a space program and is the only country with an operational manned stealth capability.

Try Googling "Joe Louis Arena", as mentioned in my location, might give you a clue as to which country I originally hail from.

Well done to the Chinese for advancing so rapidly, the speed at which they do things is amazing.

As for the comments about space exploration.
Even the US is now taking a back seat in space, its really the Russians who are running the show now with China rapidly advancing and the Indians also making progress. Since the end of the space shuttle and all the financial problems it makes me wonder what future there is for American space exploration, maybe a limited future but taking a back seat to other nations. I never thought it would be the case but it is. Maybe the withdrawl from space exploration is the start of the big decline in other areas to (I hope not).

Unless the first manned mission to Mars is an international type of thing I could see China getting there first, maybe also the first back to the moon. They have the money and time is on their side. By working more closely with the Russians they can gain more and more experience, Chinese money and enterprise combined with Russian space experience/knowledge sound like a match made in heaven!

Well I guess in Europe we all took a backseat on defense. Dramatic cuts in the UK, Netherlands and most other countries. Our newest program A400M seems a good fit for many environments and its seems to perform as specified.

The US, spending a ridiculous percentage of the national income on defense, (4.7% ! List of countries by military expenditures - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ) finally gets in trouble with its population demanding investments in other areas.

The Chinese have 1.3 billion people, a long history, a long term agenda, lots of money and ambitions. India seem lagging behind. The Japanese, Korea, Indonesia are quietly moving along.

There's a clear shift of power going on in the world, we might not like it, but no-one is asking our approval. This Y-20 is important for China. They easily need hundreds.

the Chinese also spend bugger all on pensions, social security and their health service

keesje, I would have thought 4.7% is a very low percentage. I wonder where the biggest shares of the spending is going!
I think the US will decline in a big way, right now they are by far the most powerful nation on Earth and I think will stay that way for a while. But give it maybe 20 years, possibly less and I can see a China that is stronger. The trouble for the USA is that they cannot afford to keep the military at its current size, the Chinese however can afford to expand, so as one side shrinks the other will grow. Maybe they will pass each other along the way! Even after this though unless the US falls apart they will still be a major power, they may not be the strongest but I don't think many would wish to take them on. On the other hand they will have to accept no longer being number one.
India to will be important but not in my opinion as strong as China. Russia will be very powerful to, with so many resources and her military power she should be able to dominate Europe fairly well, I think Russia will be a major global power again, more important than she is now, probably in the top two or three.
Europe is the continent which will be totally out of it, in economic decline and in military terms only a paper tiger, no match for Russia or China even now.

Curious on the news clip that only reversers on 1 and 4 deployed. Wonder how the TR system works compared to its look a like the C17.

Take a look at the video clip, is it me or does the fin/elevators move around a lot during the landing roll... I think I need to go to Spec Savers again or have another glass of wine.