Clark Griswold

Is the "they" not really ACC but the Fighter General / Mafia ? Not throwing 11F's under the bus but is that leadership caste the problem? Not passive-aggressive and not sure what background is the alternative as Schwartz was underwhelming.

I plan on not a total loss of order but spikes and concentrations of riots, criminality, etc. with my assessment that where I live now of that being low but be prepared to an appropriate level, flamethrowers and hand grenades are overkill but light arms are not. Just my opinion. Not a prepper just trying to be prepared. Referencing the LA riots of 92 earlier and seeing the Korean neighborhoods and business defend themselves was an example to be learned from, don't start shit but certainly don't take it either.

Somewhat stream of consciousness and off topic but what the hell.

Not worried about them, they're just playing radical revolutionary while in college before they move on to their upper middle class life via family connections and most likely the accidental privilege afforded by their birth, they are annoying and obnoxious but they themselves are not harmful, it's the bullshit they spew out to people born into horrible circumstances and grow up and are pissed for a variety of reasons, some valid but most not, at "the system", that concerns me. They infantilize them, tell them lies, half-truths and propaganda to make them angry, jealous, aggrieved and distracted from actually doing something about their own lives. The West or America is not being destroyed from outside but inside, these are the cancers eating away at us.

Yeah - I think economic meltdown leading to total chaos is very low however it cost about $200 for my "prepping" so I figured I spent an amount appropriate to the chance for what I think could happen Have a life preserver not a life boat if you think things are generally ok but could get bad for short periods of time Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Don't use logic or reason then you will understand Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

True but let's face it one man and his family defending his patch of dirt will not last against the roving hordes of sociopaths cut loose when or if the shit hits the fan. If it does go zombie apocalypse your only hope is in a group of like minded people, armed to the teeth in a defensible position with access to resupply. If not, no matter how much you have you will just get worn down. But the chances of this are slim to none, what I think is likely is you and/or your neighborhood could be own your own for a few days while order is restored so planning for that (not to a tin foil hat degree) is appropriate. What exactly that level of preparation is anyone's guess but my plan has always been be able to survive for a week without help, keep adequate ammo for the 9mm and AR-15 handy with some real cash on hand and enough gas for a full tank so the family truckster can get the hell out of dodge to a safe place at least 100 miles down the road if you have to abandon the house or city. I saw the LA riots from a nice safe house across the country then saw watched Baltimore again from safety and comfort, I think it's good to be prepared but instability leading to disorder in America tends to happen (unfortunately) in concentrated communities of disaffected people that get antagonized then encouraged by rabble rousers, punk college kids looking for action, gangs and some media outlets.

Are you saying that my college degree and the general education classes I had to take like learning how to use the library didn't give me the requisite knowledge to become an Air Force officer and pilot? Scott Walker - no college degree and the very successful Governor of Wisconsin Bill Gates - no college degree and a somewhat successful businessman Peter Thiel - no college degree and founded Pay Pal Those are just some of the cautionary tales that prove you have to have a college degree.

F-35 is in. https://defensetech.org/2015/07/24/f-35s-fly-in-first-civilian-airshow-in-wisconsin/

Ditto Not to stray too far off course either there was a proposal for a single Air Mobility aircraft from the late 90's - the New Strategic Aircraft. https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/nsa.htm Some fairly out there designs but one that I thought could have come about was this high wing T-tail tanker / airlifter Could have shared motors, flight control system, avionics, etc... with the C-17 probably and been a flexible asset. With the austere times likely to continue, AMC may have to look at the 46 this way and let it replace some of the older 17s as they time out (looping back to the idea of pretty good at a lot of missions rather than perfect at one) and just reduce capability in austere/short field delivery, aerial delivery, etc...

True if we go under or get really really bad it could bad: crime spike - riots - mass refugee movements - political instability . Thankfully, not happening and while I think Greece deserved a haircut on their debt for more reforms, they bit the bullet and didn't default which would have been very disruptive. Real Estate can be a good investment but it has its ups & downs too, my house value is down around 10% and the neighborhood is stable just lost value, I think there is certain real estate now, commercial - farm land - waterfront - etc... that is where you can safely store your money via equity but residential is a crap shoot now

Dog riding monkey cowboy. 'Merica. https://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/07/25/yes-that-is-a-cowboy-monkey-riding-a-dog-and-herding-sheep/

Jack of all trades and master of none is not a bad thing.

Thanks Yep - just someone's concept drawing but close enough for a visual for the discussion Yeah - I think that 6 pallets is in a particular configuration, I think with passenger seating but from the AF website and fact sheet: A cargo deck above the refueling system can accommodate a mix load of passengers, patients and cargo. The KC-46A can carry up to 18 463L cargo pallets. Seat tracks and the onboard cargo handling system make it possible to simultaneously carry palletized cargo, seats, and patient support pallets in a variety of combinations. The new tanker aircraft offers significantly increased cargo and aeromedical evacuation capabilities. https://www.af.mil/AboutUs/FactSheets/Display/tabid/224/Article/104537/kc-46a-pegasus.aspx I suppose the 6 pallets mentioned was in this configuration: JK I have a bit of practice with Sketch up (planning a remodel) but no where near enough for an aircraft project.

Copy that My druthers, the new strategic tanker would be a 747-8 tanker.

True but his argument was the total overall cost of flying a few KC-46's inefficiently to move cargo occasionally vice keeping older C-17s flying was probably cheaper, as we were discussing this over a cold beer at the end of the day neither of us did any math or research on this. We got on this subject as I was talking about how few KC-46s the AF was planning to acquire (at least officially) compared to the current fleet size of the KC-135s & KC-10s - he believes that more will have to purchased but my cynical hunch is that as the F-35 goes into full rate production, there will be no money for more 46s, just thinking positively... not...

Don't doubt that it is not its strong suit but his idea was that we would accept having less dedicated airlift / air delivery capability to have more modern full time tanker part time cargo hauler capability, his opinion and was just an interesting idea I thought. Basically to save hours on the remaining C-17s and have the dedicated regular airlift movements from CONUS to established OCONUS locations flown by less expensive per flight hour aircraft, etc... saving the C-17s, etc... for operations that specifically need that capability No doubt Minor edit.

Shocking but true... however as Azimuth said this is on Boeing to eat (sts) Question if anyone has heard this discussed or can comment on an open forum about it: has it been discussed to buy more 46s as the 17s are retired? A friend who flies the 135 seems to think that is the going to be be the case as the 17s reach the end of their service life. Seems reasonable but wondered if this idea is circulating...

Problems but still on track for a September first flight of the KC-46 https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-faces-8-month-delay-on-3b-tanker-contracts/ https://www.military.com/daily-news/2015/07/21/first-air-force-tanker-flight-on-track-despite-cost-overruns.html Sexy beast...

Hipsters? Nah... But I see your point, there is plenty of chaff on their site but occasionally wheat also.

Wouldn't call them clueless but highly opinionated that sometimes keeps them from seeing the forest because the trees. I felt worthy of a repost for this august thread as it was a piece of good news for the besieged F-35 and while CMANO is a video game available to the public and only has publicly available knowledge on it, the simulation engine with the database it has available gives plausible results, just my opinion. Just my summary of the simulation results for those who want the spoiler.

Article from War is Boring on CMANO simulation of F-35B v Su-35 BLUF: shooting someone when they don't know you're there is a great tactic. https://medium.com/war-is-boring/don-t-think-the-f-35-can-fight-it-does-in-this-realistic-war-game-fc10706ba9f4

That may or may not be a big deal over there

True - the Canberra class is significantly smaller than the Kuznetsov class carrier with a ski jump but don't discount the ski jump concept because it can't put as heavy a jet as cat assisted launch. While the Canberra class probably could not handle a Super-duper bug it's the idea that you field what you can afford and work with those capabilities that I argue for. Not everyone can afford a nuclear powered carrier with a steam or EAL system but a lot countries that have or want carriers could afford a ski jump oil burner boat that could get probably 20-30 WOD. China is getting their Su-33 off (sts) with 4,000 lbs. of ordinance while a Superbug can launch with 12,000+ lbs. (no mention of fuel and take reference with salt but seems reasonable) Obviously the cat setup is mucho better but it's not like the ski jump is crap. Bring back weight is also a big problem with STOVL, the Harrier has been dropping ordinance into the drink for years because of vertical performance limits, SRVL will help with this but you are still limited in what can be brought back . Can't argue with the loss of parking for RW aircraft, google'd and seems no one has tried a variable ramp for a ski jump carrier, might as well get a catapult at that point I guess. Add-on now BO.net is Code 1: Found this simulation result on Hornet ski jump feasibility here.

Ski jump hornet - now make that the Advanced Capability Hornet and that is your F-35B alternative. Surprised the Rafale hasn't made any inroads with the Brits - Aussies - Spanish - Italians