The low-cost fighter theory
Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2014 5:28 pm
To be honest, I'm not sure what you could do with this. It doesn't seem to have any particular mission:
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/2014090 ... ain_future" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I guess it's useful for small air forces which don't yet see a role for unmanned fighters which are the next generation. Other contenders might include the Taiwanese Ching-Kuo which was built to a price. There's also the Korean T-50 Golden Eagle and the Russian YaK-130.
Against those three, the Scorpion would be at a singular disadvantage.
But it's not a new idea and although it makes sense on paper, I can only think of one example where this has worked out. The Folland Gnat, which was used in the Indo-Pakistani conflict of the 1960s. Of course, the US tried with the F-16 but they had to sell the idea to Congress which meant getting more bang for buck. The new lightweight fighter of the early seventies became a bit of a welterweight as a result and now carries the price tag to match.
When Frank Whittle approached Rolls Royce with his new jet engine design, he extolled its simplicity. Rolls Royce engineers responded, "Don't worry, we'll soon design the simplicity out of it!"
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/2014090 ... ain_future" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I guess it's useful for small air forces which don't yet see a role for unmanned fighters which are the next generation. Other contenders might include the Taiwanese Ching-Kuo which was built to a price. There's also the Korean T-50 Golden Eagle and the Russian YaK-130.
Against those three, the Scorpion would be at a singular disadvantage.
But it's not a new idea and although it makes sense on paper, I can only think of one example where this has worked out. The Folland Gnat, which was used in the Indo-Pakistani conflict of the 1960s. Of course, the US tried with the F-16 but they had to sell the idea to Congress which meant getting more bang for buck. The new lightweight fighter of the early seventies became a bit of a welterweight as a result and now carries the price tag to match.
When Frank Whittle approached Rolls Royce with his new jet engine design, he extolled its simplicity. Rolls Royce engineers responded, "Don't worry, we'll soon design the simplicity out of it!"