What if Schemes

[spejic]

I would love to get that magazine and have someone who speaks Japaneses translate it.

It wouldn't be easy to find. It's about 15 years old.

[Aggressor Supporter]

That F-15 Kai in the magazine is awesome!

[Julien (UK)]

My WIP, hopefully a 2 seater #7 to follow. All comments and suggestion welcome

Now that I really like.

Julien

[JasonB]

Now that I really like.

Julien

Holy resurrecting the dead!

I had actually thought about building that one using the Trump kit with the Fisher F-8C conversion (after first considering the Hasegawa 1/48th kit with CE conversion) and even have the Blue Angels decals to use on it that are meant for the BA F-4. Just never got "a round tuit". And yes, in my former life I was Jburch.

Thanks!

[ChernayaAkula]

<...> And yes, in my former life I was Jburch.

Reminds me of the Simpsons:

Skinner: Good morning class. A certain...agitator...for privacy's sake let's call her...Lisa S. No, that's too obvious...uuuh, let's say L. Simpson.... has raised questions about certain school policies.

:)

[GreyGhost]

<....> And yes, in my former life I was Jburch.

Thanks!

I was just wondering what happened to JBurch, I thought he was a cool guy ...

Oh well ...

:)

Gregg

[JasonB]

I was just wondering what happened to JBurch, I thought he was a cool guy ...

Oh well ...

:D

Gregg

ARC wore him down.Then came the drinking, the general discussion area flare ups, the mental collapse...You know how it goes from there. Now I sit on my porch wearing my tin foil hat, taking pot shots at black UN helicopters as hover over my bunker. Typical story...

[GreyGhost]

ARC wore him down.Then came the drinking, the general discussion area flare ups, the mental collapse...You know how it goes from there. Now I sit on my porch wearing my tin foil hat, taking pot shots at black UN helicopters as hover over my bunker. Typical story...

Ah yes, a story we've seen a thousand times ...

I'm stocking up on tin foil myself ...

Gregg

[Vesper]

I prefer sittin' in my beanbag chair naked eatin cheetos . . .

Ves B)

[Sauragnmon]

I avoid the tinfoil hat - the voices don't like it, and they give me so much of my material.

I've got a few new concepts coming up, the Naval Viper I'm building, a Harrier to get some new markings and cammies, and then maybe a Tomcat or three.

I'll settle for sitting at my computer, in my busted armchair, with my feet up, keyboard on my lap, and my workspace right to my right, where everything I have is right in quick reach.

[Julien (UK)]

Holy resurrecting the dead!

I had actually thought about building that one using the Trump kit with the Fisher F-8C conversion (after first considering the Hasegawa 1/48th kit with CE conversion) and even have the Blue Angels decals to use on it that are meant for the BA F-4. Just never got "a round tuit". And yes, in my former life I was Jburch.

Thanks!

Hi,

the Aerobatic Special Interest Group of IPMS(UK) which I am a member are doing Aerobatic What If as our theme next year.

My current project is an F-8J in the Blue angel Markings, being done as part of the F-8/A-7 GB. Any chance you can re-jig its as an F-8J? I think I will paint the ventral fins Yellow to add a bit more contrast.

If you want to do an F-8 in 1.48 then get the cobra set. The CE set is hard to find and expensive. Both the CE and cobra set have the wrong nose anyway.

If anyone feel like doing anymore Aerobatic Whiffs then please feel free.

Julien

[JasonB]

Hi,

the Aerobatic Special Interest Group of IPMS(UK) which I am a member are doing Aerobatic What If as our theme next year.

My current project is an F-8J in the Blue angel Markings, being done as part of the F-8/A-7 GB. Any chance you can re-jig its as an F-8J? I think I will paint the ventral fins Yellow to add a bit more contrast.

If you want to do an F-8 in 1.48 then get the cobra set. The CE set is hard to find and expensive. Both the CE and cobra set have the wrong nose anyway.

If anyone feel like doing anymore Aerobatic Whiffs then please feel free.

Julien

Originally I did it with the hump and nose of the E/J, so here is that one. Not a 100 percent to my liking , but its OK. I added the yellow ventral fins, plus a swish along the bottom centerline running back from the intake. When I was planning on using the Hasegawa kit, I had all the CE F-8 items in hand, but ended up selling them all.

[Julien (UK)]

Nice,

I was thinking of doing the hump yellow, however on seeing this having the yellow go each side might work, I will see.

I think I will stick with the normal arrow underneath as I have the decal for it.

Thanks for that.

Julien

[JasonB]

Nice,

I was thinking of doing the hump yellow, however on seeing this having the yellow go each side might work, I will see.

I think I will stick with the normal arrow underneath as I have the decal for it.

Thanks for that.

Julien

It would probably make more sense for the hump to be yellow. To tell you the truth, I don't recall why I left it blue. Probably something to do with using the same line drawings for the C and the D and forgetting to change it.

[FAR148]

Here's a Michigan Air National Guard Hawker Hunter

Steven L

[Vesper]

The latest off my bench:

yet another 318th Aggressor Eagle based on a profile done by a very helpful ARcer:

Ves

[GreyGhost]

Nice profile, Steven ...

Any idea what the what-if designation would be on US Hawker Hunters ?

Nice scheme, Ves, I like that Eagle ...

Gregg

[FAR148]

Nice profile, Steven

Any idea what the what-if designation would be on US Hawker Hunters ?

Nice scheme, Ves, I like that Eagle ...

Gregg

Thanks Gregg,

How about F-48 ?

Steven L

[GreyGhost]

F-4B ? :huh:

Ohhhh...

F-48 !

Gotcha, good choice ...

Gregg

[dragan_mig31]

i would appriciate if someone makes this a profile

[Aggressor Supporter]

Nice work Jason and Steven.

[JP Vieira]

Great Job!

[Remington Box]

MA/W-10 Isen Gris

Norways naval bourne close strike aircraft

In October of 2013, after many months of dead ends, dashed hopes and more dead ends, the American company, Halliburton, working closely with the Royal Norwegian government, discovered a massive (about 6.5 million barrels a day) oilfield. This behemoth oilfield stretched about 25 miles east to west, about 75 miles north to south and no one knew how deep, early estimates pinned the depth at about 90-150 miles. The oilfield was located 190 miles east off the coast of Svalbard Island, Norway in the northern Arctic Ocean.

The Norwegian dynasty, having paid for the mission to find the oil, was ecstatic and quickly claimed the field and all of the money it was destined to make. Many different oil companies from Norway’s leading oil city, Stavanger, had contracts over night to quickly set up the infrastructure to move the oil as quickly as possible. Little, tiny Svalbard Island was about to become a super busy place.

As far as the media portrayed the situation, Norway was financially set for the foreseeable future, but there was one quandary that was not released to the Norwegian people; a section of the oilfield was occupying Russian territory. This would make an already logistically tough oil find even tougher.

A patrolling formation of Russian Su-27 Flankers noticed this discrepancy and the lead pilot Capt. Eduard Umlaut reported to Moscow the Norwegian oversight. This angered the Russians who knew their portion of the oilfield and its profits could help jump start a badly needed new, positive economy. The Russian Federal Assembly was understandably irate and called an emergency meeting with President Dmitriy Anatolyevich. Anatolyevich shared the Assembly’s concerns and put in a call to Norwegian King Harald V. King Harald did not answer the Russian leaders call; after all, it was his money, people and equipment that discovered the field of liquid gold. Relations between the formerly close countries were unraveling…

Anatolyevich decided that if diplomatic talks would not work, he would in the words of President Roosevelt, “Walk softly and carry a big stick.†Making the most of this new motivational quote, he put the majority of the Russian naval forces on high alert. Nordic reconnaissance photos showed a number of Severodvinsk class nuclear submarines getting loaded at the port of Severomorsk for what seemed like bear. Anatolyevich also commanded the Flanker squadron that first reported the oil field to fly much more aggressive routes designed to scare the Norwegian contractors. The Russians hoped the contractors would go to the government and try to negotiate. The strategy was not successful; the Norwegians had visions of dollar signs in their heads and were going to stop at nothing to make top dollar on their new discovery. The Russian Assembly did not take this lightly.

To the Norwegians, it seemed like the Kremlin had its war planners working overtime. This scared the Kingdom to their core. Since the Nordic military had only in the past protected its borders and fought little diplomatic border skirmishes, they knew they needed a formidable ally and quickly. The European Union, which Norway had neglected to join several times, looked like a viable alternative. The governing body of the EU was thinking the same thing, as some of the Scandinavian leaders realize what a firefight in which they could get involved. They approach the EU with this awful news and the EU decided to extend a membership invitation once more. They offered King Harald the option of being a temporary member and he readily accepted. He now had the EU as an ally, but Russia was also a permanent member; King Harald was in a difficult situation, how could he have 100% confidence in an organization that his “enemy†belonged to? King Harald had to look elsewhere. He figured the U.S., Canada or any of the other South or Central American countries might be sympathetic to his dilemma.

The King went to the United States of America first and proposed that if President Barack Obama and the U.S. as a nation would come to the Norwegian peoples rescue, they would wind up with a tidy share of the oilfield profits. President Obama and his cabinet went directly to the Pentagon to see what was available. The Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet (CINCANT) of the Navy thought this would be an excellent place to try out their latest top-secret project. He informed President Obama that during the last 18 months at NAS San Diego, the U.S. Navy and the Marines had been converting A-10 and NA/W-10 Thunderbolt IIs to land on a carrier and fulfill an anti-shipping role.

These Tsunamis, as they would be renamed, were upgraded in many places. In order for the airframe to withstand a carrier landing repeatedly, F/A-18 landing gear has been fitted. As far as radar, LANTRIN pods have been fitted and the pylons have undergone modifications to be able to fire both torpedoes and depth charges. The jets also have a wing-fold mechanism in place and the front gun has been lightened in order to save wear and tear on the front landing gear. In-air refueling capabilities were deleted as it was felt there was no need for the added weight and the airframes had flotation devices installed. Since the planes had to get into the air on a much shorter runway, the engines were replaced with General Electric F110 Turbofan motors, the airframes were going to get STOL capabilities in the form of rockets strapped to the jet but the necessary research had not been done in time to deploy. It was decided that this capability would be tried enroute to Svalbard Island. In addition, arrestor hooks were installed and the first trial flights looked encouraging. It was decided that the load out would be as follows: two AIM-9X on each outboard pylon, LANTRIN in front of the right wheel well, 2 x AGH-84 SLAM which would be replaced by the Norwegian designed RB-12 Penguin anti ship missiles on each mid-wing pylon and drop tanks on the inboard pylons. There is also the option to carry the CAPTOR anti-submarine mine should the need arise.

On top of the A-10’s, the highly secret S/VTOL trimaran “Sea Shadow II-class†stealth carrier/LCU U.S.S. Colin Powell was barely in service when the CINCANT offered it to Norway’s plight. The hull was laid up in July of 2005 and the ship was christened on January 23, 2011. The vessel used many of the lessons in stealth learned from the Sea Shadow project in the 1980-1990s. It used a number of non-flat surfaces and subtle texturing on the flight deck to stay off radar. The Colin Powell used a new type of engine, which looked like a jet engine in dry dock, in reality this engine was simply a hooded propeller system designed to break up the bubble trail that is terribly visible by passing hostile aircraft. Under the through-deck, there are two magnetic elevators. Because the elevators are well protected, there is less chance that either elevator could be put out of commission. This was a lesson learned during Operation: Iraqi Freedom. The U.S.S. Enterprise was sunk because both of the elevators were put out of commission by the rebelling Iraqi F-22’s, in turn, the aircraft based there could not return because they were out of fuel and weapons and there was no way more could be carried to the flight deck. The Enterprise was a sitting duck and therefore an easy “splash.â€

On the bow of the Colin Powell, there was a ski jump installed to keep the length of the ship down, yet allow the A-10s to get into the air. In case a large number of aircraft needed to be scrambled, there is a secondary, lower flight deck in the bow of the ship that can be opened. Another first in the U.S. Navy fleet was the operational use of friction drive catapults. These catapults worked beautifully on the stealth ship as there was hardly any noise or heat generated. The only traditional thing about this technologically advanced vessel was the arresting cables; they were the same system that was used on the U.S.S. Enterprise without fail. Yet, the arresting cables were not exact copies of the Enterprise. These new cables had a triangular cross section to both make it easier for the landing airplanes hook to grab and to remain stealth.

Another ground breaking achievement for the Sea Shadow-class was a UAV control room aboard the ship so all of the data from the MQ—1 UAV’s can be processed instantly. In the past, the data had to be transmitted to a control room in the U.S. and it would take quite a while, up to a day in some cases, to translate the information and in turn act on it.

The best thing about the Colin Powell was the skeleton crew that it took to run the ship. Minus the aircrews and their supporting troops, there were only 375 individuals needed to keep the ship operational. This was a godsend for Norway now that the U.S. was talking about turning the ships command over to the Nordic Navy. The aircrew and supporting squadrons added up to about 650-700 people. The 1000 or so people it took to keep the ship in top order were a small number compared to the thousands of soldiers on an aircraft carrier in the past.

President Obama took the proposal back to the S4 summit that is now going on in Washington D.C. with the leaders of Canada, the U.S., Mexico, and Norway present. King Harald was amazed by this wonderful and generous offer and immediately accepted the help. Canada promises the use of its anti-shipping squadrons as well. The King hopes that will not be needed. The other countries promise to help where and when they are needed. All left the summit on a happy note. King Harald is overjoyed with what happened. Upon boarding the newly-purchased Airbus A380 “Norwegian 1â€, King Harald V learns of the strengthening of Russian forces, is very thankful for the United States generous offer and cannot wait to get home to share the good news with his Prime Minster and Minister of Defense.

Within the week, the U.S.S Colin Powell and its CSG (Carrier strike group) consisting of two “Ticonderoga-class†guided-missile cruisers, two “Arleigh Burke-class†destroyers, two “Los Angeles-class†submarines and because of the logistics of getting supplies to the groups, three “Supply-class†replenishment ships, were underway to Norwegian waters. Unfortunately, the CSG was anchored off the coast near Eielson AFB in Alaska participating in secret seaworthy trials, so it would take more time than usual to get to the fjords of Norway.

To protect U.S. interests at home and abroad, the U.S.S. Colin Powell as well as the entire inventory on board is “sold†to the Norwegian government for the time being and was re-numbered and named. The newly christened KNH Haakon’s air wing consists of the aforementioned A-10J’s, a squadron of ten F/A-23C Sea Widow fighters fitted with the brand new Gold Vixen radar, a quadruplet of BAe Sea Harriers operating in a fleet defense role, an anti submarine/shipping warfare squadron of five RAH-66 Comanche’s and two search and rescue MH-60S Knighthawks. All of the airframes were repainted into temporary Nordic camouflage consisting of light blue, light and dark green and a white base. The majority of squadron names and identifying marks were changed and every airframe was updated with Norwegian-compatible radar. Because the KNH Haakon is a SVTOL carrier, there is no room for a traditional AWACS craft. There is however, to fill the void, a trio of MQ-1 Predator UAVs to take on the task of early warning and reconnaissance. These Sea Predators are also armed if the need should arise. The Nordic flag was flying and all seemed well as the CSG steamed into the port in the capital city of Norway, Oslo.

Originally, the Colin Powell was slated to have the next-generation fighter, the F-35, deployed as the fighter wing. Scant weeks before the birds were to be delivered; the USAF and USN got very crippling news. The F-35 fighters had been plunging out of the sky like shooting stars and no one could explain why. Due to this setback, the YF-23 fighter was given the go ahead for final testing and production. At the government’s prodding, Northrop/McDonnell Douglas, Boeing and BAe America combined to speed up production. The aircraft were delivered 4 days before the ship was to leave for Norway.

It was a last minute and hard fought decision to include the secretly developed MH-66J Sea Comanche’s. The Marines felt that because of the money invested in training the pilots, modifying the airframes and the time it took to get it all approved that they could be serving a better role somewhere else. The Pentagon quickly said that whatever was on the ship would be going to Norway. The RAH-66 had quite a few modifications in order to be shipbourne. The most major one is trading the chin gun for a radome carrying APG-66 radar, also torpedoes were hung in the internal bays and defensive gear was installed on the stub wings. It was decided that the Penguin antiship missile would be retrofitted to them as soon as the missile was onboard. The landing gear was beefed up and the rotor was redesigned to fold. The resulting combination was renamed the MH-66J Sea Comanche.

Upon docking, the Haakon took on Norwegian-supplied missiles, torpedoes, mines, and necessary provisions for the mission. While in port, the order came in to get the Americans off the ship as soon as possible. The Pentagon was severely worried that in the event of an emergency or capsize, the American influence found on board would look bad when word got out that the U.S. was helping Norway. Therefore, the U.S. Navy and Marines personnel on board the Haakon had to train the Nordic Navy crews in the equipment on board very quickly. With any luck, by the time the CSG got to Kvitøya Island, just north of Svalbard proper, the Royal Norwegian Navy would be able to take the helm. The Norwegians luckily had an ace up their sleeve, during the 2012 naval Red Flag exercises, some of the brass got the chance to train on the Sea Shadow II-class carrier so they did not have to start from scratch to learn the ship.

The reasoning for docking at Kvitøya instead of the big island was to keep the as of yet super secret fleet out of the public eye. Logistically it was perfect, there were many fjords deep enough to hide the Oslo and her CSG plus the island already had a relatively crude airstrip, so there was a possibility the Norwegians could bring in supplies by C-130J until the airfield was suitable improved to allow the newly purchased RNoAF C-17’s to land.

As far as the world press was concerned, the U.S. sent the carrier group U.S.S. Dwight Eisenhower to Norwegian waters on a training mission. The carrier and her escorts practiced maneuvers close to the oil field and also were there for support to the Norwegians. The American leaders hoped that this reinforcement would make Norway more inclined, if provoked; to use the forces it has been given.

The world is holding its breath that the situation will not come to blows with Russia, but everyone also knows that unless the two countries compromise, all hell is going to break loose. After all, 4.8 billion gross U.S. dollars a day is nothing to take lightly.

The whole scenario has been in a stalemate for the past two weeks with both sides stocking up militarily. Russia has put the Air Force, Army and amphibious forces on high alert. To the world, it looks like Russia is preparing for a full scale invasion of Norway. The EU notices this and warns Russia, diplomatically, to stand down or it may face the wrath of the entire member roster. Russia, of course, pays the EU threat no heed, after all, Anatolyevich thinks that Russia, if it comes down to it, can take on the entire European continent.

There is one flaw in the Russian plan however, the United States of America. The United States has been offering untold amounts of support to the Norwegian “war effort.†Civilian contracted United Airlines C-17’s and Federal Express C-5’s have been flying into Oslo International Airport almost daily with supplies, aircraft, and ground support equipment. All of the cargo has been inconspicuously stored in the Oslo hangers. It is looking more and more like war is inevitable

Edited December 29, 2009 by Remington Box

[dahut]

How about a Naboo N-1 fighter in something other than yellow?

[FAR148]

"What-If" the F-111 was never designed and built!

With the F-105 in need of replacing, the USAF was very exicited about TSR.2 for the start. But when the program was in danger of being canceled, the USAF placed an order for 400 TSR.2's and brought the project back to life. In May of 1965, General Dynamics join the program and in 1966 begin building TSR.2's under license.

During flight testing, the large all-moving rudder became a serious problem and a traditional tail and rudder system was developed and installed. General Dynamics also remove the weapon bay and a very large fuel tank was put in it's place. This freed up it hardpoints to weapons and not drop tanks. A receptacle was added to accept the boom from a KC-135, increasing the range even farer. In the early 1980's, USAF TSR.2's began to be equipped with the AVQ-26 Pave Tack forward looking infrared and laser designator system.

On 14 April 1986, 18 TSR.2's and approximately 25 Navy aircraft executed Operation El Dorado Canyon by conducting air strikes against Libya. The TSR.2's F-111s belonging to the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing flew what turned out to be the longest fighter combat mission in history. The round-trip flight between RAF Lakenheath, United Kingdom and Libya of 6,400 miles spanned 13 hours. No TSR.2's were lost.

During Operation Desert Storm, USAF TSR.2's was one of the most effective aircraft. Flying over 2,600 combat sorties and destroyed 2,300 targets. Of the 8,000 PGM dropped by the USAF during ODS, TSR.2 delivered 4,666 of them.

This aircraft lead the attack in Operation El Dorado Canyon, USAF TSR.2A 70-2390 "Stephanie Marie" from the 48th Fighter Wing based at RAF Lakenheath.

Until next year,

Steven L

Edited December 30, 2009 by FAR148