Fairly certain the A-4M could mount AIM-9M. Could be 9G → 9L → 9M. Though to balance it maybe it just stops at the Lima.
Big +1 from me as (one of) the resident Skyhawk enjoyer(s)
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@Surbaissemaxxing, you might want to add these initial weapons fitted to pre-Kahu A-4K aircraft as possible armament. It was mentioned earlier with a given source.
- AIM-9G Sidewinders
- 2.75-in (69.85-mm) rocket pods
- Mk.80 series bombs
Cheers :)
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Will do!
It better go to the UK, we are a commonwealth realm. Canada and Aus equipment being given to the US and Germany annoys me because they’re commonwealth realms.
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Kahu Skyhawk Link: https://archive.org/details/NZA4KFlightManual
The Kahu could also carry GBU-13 laser guided bombs but did not have a targeting pod (which was going be added after 2001 but they got decommissioned) So instead they relied on the army to spot targets with a laser lol
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Forgot to mention this but I dont think the Kahu skyhawks used AIM-9Gs, the Gs were only for the pre-kahu (1970s) A-4Ks.
Any knowledge of any ballistic computers fitted to either of the A-4K’s?
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I can check once I’m back from work, but it should have a ballistic computer, as it shares a lot of tech from the F-16.
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It better not go to the UK as this vehicle has nothing to do with them and isn’t needed there.
The Kahu Skyhawks used it in missile practice & testing to deplete the stocks of AIM-9Gs and assess their effectiveness.
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I mean the Americans have the A-4M they can get which is already better than the Kahu. Also the Swiss Hunter went to Germany and the Thai F-5 went to Japan so I’d say there’s a good chance it can go to Britain.
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I wouldn’t say it’d be better, but definitely different
Kahu A-4K would get a really good RWR, as well as a much better cockpit (F-16 HUD and MFDs), as well as a proper radar (APG-66) and up to 4x AIM-9L/M Sidewinders. Maverick B, D, and G as well.
The latest A-4M the US could get would only get an ALR-45 RWR, but would get full ballistics calculator on a decent HUD. No radar, likely only up to 2x Sidewinders (I have found no sources to indicate the useage of 4x rails across all wing pylons), a more powerful engine, and possibly Mavericks (dubious at best)
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The A-4E in-game should already have access to 4xAIM-9Ds, the A-4M should therefore have at least 4xAIM-9Gs and AIM-9Ls shouldn’t be a problem either. Also the A-4M can equip Mavs on every pylon, at least pictures for that are easy to find.
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I’ve seen photos of adversary A-4Ms carrying 9L/M as inert ones so I don’t see no reason why the live ones could not be carried.
Regarding it’s carriage of Mavs, as TV footage from mavericks should be using the same ports over all models I don’t see a reason the plane shouldn’t be compatible with all but the laser Mavs ( requires buddy lasing). We’re talking mostly D/F/G models here of course
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While 9Ms are cool I think it’d be best to keep it to 9Ls for balance reasons, plus to match the Kahu which never used 9Ms afaik.
Similar story with the A-4AR potentially for Germany.
Additionally A-4Ms were definitely capable of carrying AIM-9s on the outboard wing pylons:
even if this wasn’t done operationally (on that I have no clue)
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Argentine Jets where denied for Germany sadly
Never say never, Imagine how much of a banger update it’d be if we got Kahu for GB, A-4AR for GER and A-4M for the US at the same time.
My god I’d be overloaded with the sheer thought of which one to grind first lol
Edit: plus they aren’t the slowest of jets so balancing them wouldn’t be as much of a pain as for example the A-10s. They’d be much in the same category as the Su-25T/SM and would have different tradeoffs but still.
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Yes, but for the most part the Mavs equipped are either on a single test airframe, or were purely laser-guided (of which the A-4M could not self-designate), which is why I consider them dubious.
Historically, I don’t believe the USMC ever equipped their A-4Ms with the AGM-65F (Imaging-Infrared), and I’m pretty sure neither the Navy nor Marines even used the AGM-65A, B, and D.
I would be perfectly fine with Gaijin making a concession to give the A-4M up to 4x AGM-65Fs, despite it possibly being semi-historical or even ahistorical, as it would at least give it something.
As for Sidewinders: I was mostly going off of the few photos I have of A-4Ms with CATM-9s, where they are only ever shown on the outermost pylon. I’ve tried to find anything that would even explicitly indicate proper AIM-9L capability in the first place aside from just those pictures, but I’ve unfortunately found nothing (same goes for the Legacy Harriers).
Edit: I should also mention that I am essentially trying to take any precautions necessary for if it ever gets added with either incorrect or missing weapons, so it can properly be bug reported and actually acknowledged, rather than labelled “not a bug” or just outright being forgotten
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… Not necessarily.
While the manual does say “provision only” it’s not a directly excluded weapon for it. So it would still be perfectly in line with gaijins “historically accurate” system
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