jhungary
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There are many military aircraft using today, by different nations and different era. There are A LOT MORE Behind the scenes of those who got picked and those who didn't, i want to make a thread today to show my choice of top 10 Experimental Aircraft should have put in Full production
The criteria of selection are Aircraft that did not mass produce in commercial stage and have a finished and test flighted prototype. Let see what should have been or would have been....
Number 10 : Joint Convair NB-36 (United States) and Tu-95LAL (Soviet Russia)
Category : Nuclear Powered Heavy Bomber.
Number built : 1 (Each)
First Flight : Sept 17, 1955 (NB-36) N/A (TU-95LAL)
Comment : Although you can say it's a dream to put a Nuclear Reactor on a fighter plane or smaller plane like that, it's not a distant dream to put a nuclear reactor on a Strategic bomber. As you may know the role of Strategic bomber is to fly a really long distant and deliver the payload, it's obivious if such act (Putting a Nuclear reactor onboard) is successful, the bomber command can eliminate the need for tanker aircraft, which often expose the location of the Heavys.
Due to the cost override, the US was the first one to stop experimenting NPA (Nuclear Powered Aircraft Technology) and the only flight that NB-36 was done with is to carry a live Nuclear Plant onboard without connecting to any Engine, so close yet so far. One can really imagine if they were to develop it, what will be like today.
Number 9 : Junkers Ju 287 (Luftwaffe)
Category : Jet Powered Bomber
Number built : 2.5 (2 full prototype, 1 hull)
First Flight : August 8, 1944
Comment : Being the first one to start using Jet Engine in WW2 (Aand the first jet fighter was actually intented for Bomber use) the German was ahead in aircraft design during the whole war. With the Me262 servicing in 1944/1945, what German need is a Jet power bomber even the fastest of the fast Allied Air Force cannot shoot them down, answer is Ju 287. With 515 Km/h cruise speed and 580 max speed, it was 100 KM/h faster than anything Allied have almost the same with the fastest Allied Fighter in WW2 (The Mustang)
The downfall of this aircraft is also the downfall of Nazi Germany in WW2. IT simply too little, too late.
Number 8 : Su-37 (Russia)
Category : supermaneuverability fighters
Number Built : 2
First Flight : April 2, 1996
Comment : Being a supermaneuverability fighter, it's done thing that people don't expect them to do and with a large airframe, it's done thing that people think it's impossible to do, yet it did it, the aircraft is Su-37.
The story of Su-37 start with the little brother Su-35 when the need for thrust vectoring increased over the generation of fighter technology. With Su-35 itself can use thrust vectoring, the building, or rather converting of Su35 to Su37 only show what can be achieve on a large frame. So what can it archieve? Su-37 successfully demostrate ability to 360° somersault, a super cobra and high angle of attack (AoA) sustained flight. This is never through can be done by a large frame like Su-35/Su-37 alike. However, Russia inclined to upgrade the current version of Su-35 and Su-27 and also the development of 5th Gen PAK-FA than continue development of Supermaneuverability fighter.
Number 7: X-29 (USA)
Category : Aerodynamic and Fly-by wire testbed.
Number built : 2
First Flight : December 14, 1984
Comment : Today's Jet does not look like an areoplane, mostly and partly have to give thanks to this testbed aircraft. The design of the very plane is NOT sustained airborne operation. Yet the inflight computer is so strong that it make 40+ correction in flight per second to keep the aircraft airborne. It lead the way into high maneuverability jet fighter without aerodynamical design (Such as Eurofighter Typhoon and Rafale.
Although i have to acknowedge that building this fighter in mass does not help anything with anyone, this is still my 7th choice of what should have been in today jet airforces.
Number 6 : IAI Lavi (Israel)
Category : Multirole fighter
Number Built : 3 (2 full prototype, 2 hull, 1 incomplete hull)
First flight : December 31, 1986
Comment : A normal Gen 4 multirole fighter, not any different than the Eurotyphoon and Rafale or the JAS Gripen, the only different is this one is on Israeli, they are home grown and they are the first or second home make planes by IAI (third if you count the reverse engineer French planes).
What it literally was suppose to be Israeli answer to sell sufficient and independ from Outside Import (from Country such as US and France) It would also mean export market for the Israeli (I guess if they make it and put it up for sale, several airforce would be interested to it). Yet, it not to be, come down by political pressure from US and ever increasing cost (Also a factor fro mthe US) so USA single handedly killed this planes off.
The criteria of selection are Aircraft that did not mass produce in commercial stage and have a finished and test flighted prototype. Let see what should have been or would have been....
Number 10 : Joint Convair NB-36 (United States) and Tu-95LAL (Soviet Russia)
Category : Nuclear Powered Heavy Bomber.
Number built : 1 (Each)
First Flight : Sept 17, 1955 (NB-36) N/A (TU-95LAL)
Comment : Although you can say it's a dream to put a Nuclear Reactor on a fighter plane or smaller plane like that, it's not a distant dream to put a nuclear reactor on a Strategic bomber. As you may know the role of Strategic bomber is to fly a really long distant and deliver the payload, it's obivious if such act (Putting a Nuclear reactor onboard) is successful, the bomber command can eliminate the need for tanker aircraft, which often expose the location of the Heavys.
Due to the cost override, the US was the first one to stop experimenting NPA (Nuclear Powered Aircraft Technology) and the only flight that NB-36 was done with is to carry a live Nuclear Plant onboard without connecting to any Engine, so close yet so far. One can really imagine if they were to develop it, what will be like today.
Number 9 : Junkers Ju 287 (Luftwaffe)
Category : Jet Powered Bomber
Number built : 2.5 (2 full prototype, 1 hull)
First Flight : August 8, 1944
Comment : Being the first one to start using Jet Engine in WW2 (Aand the first jet fighter was actually intented for Bomber use) the German was ahead in aircraft design during the whole war. With the Me262 servicing in 1944/1945, what German need is a Jet power bomber even the fastest of the fast Allied Air Force cannot shoot them down, answer is Ju 287. With 515 Km/h cruise speed and 580 max speed, it was 100 KM/h faster than anything Allied have almost the same with the fastest Allied Fighter in WW2 (The Mustang)
The downfall of this aircraft is also the downfall of Nazi Germany in WW2. IT simply too little, too late.
Number 8 : Su-37 (Russia)
![300px-Sukhoi_Su-37_at_Farnborough_1996_airshow.jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2Ff%2Ff3%2FSukhoi_Su-37_at_Farnborough_1996_airshow.jpg%2F300px-Sukhoi_Su-37_at_Farnborough_1996_airshow.jpg&hash=7f434fdcd5735c8393acd19356d5149a)
Category : supermaneuverability fighters
Number Built : 2
First Flight : April 2, 1996
Comment : Being a supermaneuverability fighter, it's done thing that people don't expect them to do and with a large airframe, it's done thing that people think it's impossible to do, yet it did it, the aircraft is Su-37.
The story of Su-37 start with the little brother Su-35 when the need for thrust vectoring increased over the generation of fighter technology. With Su-35 itself can use thrust vectoring, the building, or rather converting of Su35 to Su37 only show what can be achieve on a large frame. So what can it archieve? Su-37 successfully demostrate ability to 360° somersault, a super cobra and high angle of attack (AoA) sustained flight. This is never through can be done by a large frame like Su-35/Su-37 alike. However, Russia inclined to upgrade the current version of Su-35 and Su-27 and also the development of 5th Gen PAK-FA than continue development of Supermaneuverability fighter.
Number 7: X-29 (USA)
![300px-Grumman-X29-InFlight.jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2F9%2F91%2FGrumman-X29-InFlight.jpg%2F300px-Grumman-X29-InFlight.jpg&hash=33f233c1f1c89f2e5bf74f04308adf79)
Category : Aerodynamic and Fly-by wire testbed.
Number built : 2
First Flight : December 14, 1984
Comment : Today's Jet does not look like an areoplane, mostly and partly have to give thanks to this testbed aircraft. The design of the very plane is NOT sustained airborne operation. Yet the inflight computer is so strong that it make 40+ correction in flight per second to keep the aircraft airborne. It lead the way into high maneuverability jet fighter without aerodynamical design (Such as Eurofighter Typhoon and Rafale.
Although i have to acknowedge that building this fighter in mass does not help anything with anyone, this is still my 7th choice of what should have been in today jet airforces.
Number 6 : IAI Lavi (Israel)
![300px-IAI-Lavi-B-2-hatzerim-2.jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2Fthumb%2F7%2F78%2FIAI-Lavi-B-2-hatzerim-2.jpg%2F300px-IAI-Lavi-B-2-hatzerim-2.jpg&hash=ad183bfd2daaf4474882e18fbc42c760)
Category : Multirole fighter
Number Built : 3 (2 full prototype, 2 hull, 1 incomplete hull)
First flight : December 31, 1986
Comment : A normal Gen 4 multirole fighter, not any different than the Eurotyphoon and Rafale or the JAS Gripen, the only different is this one is on Israeli, they are home grown and they are the first or second home make planes by IAI (third if you count the reverse engineer French planes).
What it literally was suppose to be Israeli answer to sell sufficient and independ from Outside Import (from Country such as US and France) It would also mean export market for the Israeli (I guess if they make it and put it up for sale, several airforce would be interested to it). Yet, it not to be, come down by political pressure from US and ever increasing cost (Also a factor fro mthe US) so USA single handedly killed this planes off.