Thursday, March 15, 2007

My Continuing Campaign Against Content




Nothing here but great visuals and shameless self reference.

13 Comments:

Blogger Oroborous said...

"Self-reference" ?

You're not the guy ejecting, are you ?

March 15, 2007 5:38 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

That's not a guy ejecting, it's the tail.

So are you flying that bird?

March 15, 2007 5:57 PM  
Blogger Susan's Husband said...

This is about the picture of ice, isn't it?

March 15, 2007 6:06 PM  
Blogger David said...

Fire and Ice? Good series, although Martin is rapidly falling into the Robert Jordan trap.

March 16, 2007 6:34 AM  
Blogger Hey Skipper said...

No, I'm not flying this particular plane, but it is the type aircraft (F-111) that I flew, Back In The Day.


Watch this space for a couple more photos (that way I won't annoy my boss by taking up any more space that should be devoted to actual content).


Oroborous:

Duck is right, that's the tail.


AOG:

I only I could be half that clever.

March 16, 2007 9:22 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Skipper, didn't the entire cockpit eject on the F-111?

Also, that looks like an extroadinary amount of flame from the exhaust. Is that usual? It looks like it's been hit by a missile. My first instinct, like Oro, was to think the ilot was ejecting.

March 16, 2007 9:40 AM  
Blogger Hey Skipper said...

Duck:

Yes, the entire cockpit went. That's because at the typical altitudes and speeds of an F-111 (treetop, and more than 550 mph), no ejection seat of the time could stop the pilot succumbing flail injuries.

The new picture gives a much better idea what is going on.

March 16, 2007 11:07 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Is the jet dumping fuel into the exhaust?

March 16, 2007 11:55 AM  
Blogger Hey Skipper said...

Yes.

Several situations, primarily engine failures of one sort or another, and flap/slat failures (the first because of limited thrust, the second due to extremely high approach speeds), made reducing gross weight a good idea.

Hence the ability to dump fuel. Most airliners, and all the big ones I know of, have the same ability. For them, it is largely because the takeoff structural limits are much higher than the landing limits. Any situation requiring an expeditious return to the airport means having to get rid of fuel.

Anyway.

Because of the 'vark's design, the best place for the dump mast was on the fuselage, instead of the more typical mid-span wing location.

Which means its 2300 pounds/minute flow is right between the engines.

Hit the dump switch, light the burners, and the airplane becomes a torch.

March 16, 2007 12:50 PM  
Blogger Harry Eagar said...

A commenter at Tim Blair a few weeks ago asserted that the only thing between Australia and the Muslim hordes of Indonesia was 30 F-111s.

No idea if any part of that was accurate, but it does give an idea of just how far ahead of the rest of the world we are when our obsolete technology is still good enough for one of the other Top Ten nations.

March 16, 2007 2:47 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

That's not a action you would want to take while you're in range of hostile heat-seeking missiles!

March 16, 2007 5:21 PM  
Blogger Hey Skipper said...

Harry:

That's a good point, which I hadn't really thought about.

The rest of the world can't even begin to aspire to what we have parked in the desert near Tucson.

Duck:

Oddly, the torch isn't as hot as the normal engine plume, so a heater probably wouldn't even see it.

Oh, and one more thing, boss. This latest picture is the last.

March 17, 2007 7:57 AM  
Blogger Oroborous said...

The rest of the world can't even begin to aspire to what we have parked in the desert near Tucson.

In the same vein, the F/A - 22 Raptor isn't just the best design going, it's also currently IMPOSSIBLE for anyone else to manufacture.

They don't have the tech.

March 17, 2007 1:39 PM  

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