If I had to go low level, I'd choose a.....

fighter controller to give me a picture and advice, thus enabling me to defeat whatever the enemy put in front of me.

Thanx for your trade G'day.

gotta be happy with that marconiboy, forewarned is forearmed, if you're flying LOW keep your SA HIGH!

F4J, saw 800 one day whilst chasing a Raven.

Nothing matters very much, most things don't matter at all.

No doubt the F15E is the duck's guts these days, but I can't believe that there isn't more support here for the mighty F-111 AardVark!
This is an aircraft that was dropping bridges in North Vietnam when the current crop of plastic fantastics were a gleam in the designer's eye! Throw in Operation El Dorado Canyon (the Libya strike), Desert Storm and so on, aand then consider that nearly 40 years later, in it's present manifestation with the RAAF, it is still delivering the latest PGM's with the same pinpoint accuracy.
As far as low level performance goes, it is just about without peer as far as I can see. I haven't been privileged to fly in Beagles or Vulcans et al, but an F-111 is quite capable of Mach 1.2 (750KIAS +) on the deck, with the fuel to sustain it for a realistic time. Do it in cloud on TFR if necessary, armed with GBU24 and AIM 9, and it would have to be hard to beat, in the comfort stakes if nothing else! They don't call her the Cadillac of the skies for nothing - it's like sitting in your armchair at home. That's only one end of the performance spectrum though. Consider that the same aircraft will also do Mach 2.5 at 60 000 feet and you get some idea of the awesome performance of the beast. Hornet and Viper drivers will criticise it for it's turn rate, sure, but at 6.5g in full blower, you're still talking about a pretty respectable number of degrees per second.

So, taking into account it's sheer longevity, the fact that in many performance departments it still equals or beats today's platforms, and it's proven combat record, I respectfully submit the mighty F-111 as the finest interdictor of the jet age.

Cheers,

Swingwing

I agree with BEagle that it was a tragedy that the TSR2 (best looker ever!) was 'murdered' by the Labour Government, but I feel that it was a bigger tragedy that the F-111 went the same way a little while later. The TSR2's tiny wing would have rendered it virtually useless for anything other than straight-line strike work, whereas the F-111 would at least have got round some corners and so would have a been a reasonable attack aircraft as well. So I concur with Swingwing's comments above, but do so from a position of having flown neither of these machines, sadly.

SwingWing - an excellent reasoned argument and I'm inclined to agree with you for aircraft that are still operational today. Nevertheless, I think that if one was to take all aircraft over the history of aerial warfare and choose the type that at any time outstripped all others in the low-flying department, my choice would have to be the various bomber variants of the ubiquitous De Havilland Mosquito. The aircraft was very clearly streets ahead of any similarly conceived aircraft of its era, was faster than almost anything else around, delivered dumb bombs with the precision of a JDAM and had no defensive armament. In short, it rocked. The Mosquito, and the many roles it carried out in its different guises, can be viewed as the direct ancestor of all the multi-role combat aircraft that were conceived during the Cold War (and nearly all those nominated above). It is perhaps the only aicraft that was conceived as a bomber that made a successful transformation into a fighter, thus confirming it as a true great (Tornado mates take note). And to cap it all, it was made from wood! In its era, it would have been the clear choice of anyone wanting to bomb from low-level. The choice is not so clear today. Vote Mosquito!

Your talking about a plane that was only built because they couldnt find enough aluminium to build the proper ones :)

Why hasn't anyone yet mentioned the Islander?

Can this be multichoice?

For 'general poling around at 50' like a wildman'; Douglas A4K.
For 'going super at 100' burning sh!tloads of gas'; F-111C
For 'dreams are free' F-15E
For 'when I am a rich airline pilot/win powerball'; P-51D

Kmag

I'd let Guy Gibson and his crew fly me, I think.....when you look at the terrain around the Mohne and (particularly) the Ehde Dams...hmmm, pretty skillful crew, really - 60ft at night under fire on someone's wing to deliberately draw rounds....
Think what those chaps could have done with a Strike Eagle.
The retiring first generation of Vietnam boys I fly with really liked the "scooter" A-4 for low-level chuck-about-ness, and weapons flexibility. Took a real pasting though - just flew with a guest of the Hanoi Hilton.
Personally, I really like a stretch limo with 3 blonde babes...:D
Skol.

Ps. RotorHead - that Mirage incident wouldn't be the Screaming Skull at CX now, would it?

SWB Land Rover turbo diesel!!!! But do put a decent stereo system in, please!

Id choose one of these (the top picture) :eek:

http://www.aleniadifesa.finmeccanica.it/A4c_co1.htm

Rraamjet,

Have to disagree slightly.

Remember that most of those guys didn't come back. - lest not forget.


I would say that the F111F was a good ride - and no one seemed to care about G limits - yes it did 7G at 700 KIAS [briefly I might add!]. The F111C can do it for longer and the GR-4 whilst comparatively slow and uncomfortable to sit in [compared to 'Vaark] has more toys for the pilot to play with during its relatively brief time at low level. Like Swingwing states, I cannot comment about the Beagle on its actual capability should it require to go Low, but the idea of a nice Radar and some big sticks would at least make the ride less stressful should some gomer elect to give you a go from the front.





:p

Try a herc.....great fun, out turns everything except hills!! I'd put a great picture here if I knew how!

Gazelle AH1

The slick version no stores boom or sight, 130 knts no problem,

Watching the ground rush between your feet, you know when you are too low you can hear the skid shoes scraping on the ground.:cool:

Blind Pue - couldn't you just leave the groundhandling wheels on and save replacing said skid shoes!

;) ;) ;)

Mutley

The name 'blind pue' was given to me for a reason, I think the sound from the Skid shoes was louder than the wheels.

But thanks for the idea if I fly the Gazelle again I will keep it in mind. :cool:

Got to be the Bucc. In what else could you carry a hefty load of Martels/paveways/iron bombs etc at 560 kt+, in ride comfort, and also stuff a huge load of Marsovin (sp?), prawns, hams and other such goodies in the bomb bay. Provided, of course, that you didn't roll the bomb bay ay Wainfleet on the way home? I remember one such OC that Pitched a valuable load of F1369's doing just that!

UncleFester

Try right mouse button, select all, copy.

Then, in your post, right button again, and paste.

Look forward to it.

Hawg with lantirn pod :yuk: