Y’all say this but I am going off of weapons stores pics from google… sources would be appreciated (I know I didn’t provide any)…
In any case, depends on which variant Gaijin adds. Perhaps there is more discussion to be had once we see which variant(s) are coming.
As an example though, RAAF has ASRAAM on their F-18A.
I don’t think that explicitly prohibits the use of the missile though, no?
I dunno.
According to the 1985 and 1990 Aviation Ordnanceman 3&2 training manuals, the LAU-115/A launcher can only be used on outboard wing pylons. The latter also indirectly confirms that the F/A-18C/D was not exempt from this restriction.
The system data from the Conduct of the Persial Gulf War: Final Report to Congress, Volume 3 mentions the Hornet’s inboard wing stations are only for fuel tanks or air-to-ground weapons.
Also in the F-18 Hornet in detail & scale Part 1: Developmental & Early Production Aircraft by Don Linn, a technical data shows that the AIM-7 is only mounted on stations 2/4/6/8. The source of this is unknown, but the format suggests it was taken from the preliminary Standard Aircraft Characteristics.
The bottom line is that the legacy Hornets were not able to carry air-to-air weapons on the inner wing pylons until at least 1991. The reason for this limitation is not known. However this is definitely not a wiring issue, so it’s more likely a software limitation or safety measure.
The restriction for AIM-7 was confirmed to have been removed from the 2001 Aviation Ordnanceman training manual, so it is likely that it disappeared at some point in the 1990s. The earliest would be around 1993, when the Hornets were authorized to operate AMRAAM.
However the inboard station AIM-9 is still not a thing.
I think it’s safety measure because of risk of engine intake sucking rocket motor exhaust causing engine problems.
That makes sense. But on the other hand, there were no restrictions on air-to-ground missiles, so there may have been other reasons as well.
Sure, the Hornet leads at lower speeds, from about 300-350 knots the F-15 leads, but depending on pilots, a good F-15 pilot can beat the Hornet at low speeds and vice versa.
How an F-15 pilot can beat a Hornet at slow speeds.
The F-15 has good nose authority, has good alpha and is stable, predictable . But the Hornet is far superior here. So how can an F-15 pilot beat a Hornet pilot at slow speeds? The difference is in the thrust of the engines An example is that if both pilots let themselves withdraw to lower speeds, the F-15 can accelerate faster in maneuvers and use the energy gained in the vertical, the F-15 loves the vertical. Thus the Hornet is beaten by higher thrust and better climb rate. But if an F-15 pilot can’t do that, he’ll be beaten very quickly.
Found more information about the stores management page in the aviation ordnanceman manual, and did a quick reconstruction of what it would look like in the game.
Since some features are currently omitted for the sake of gameplay, so I’ve merged some page-specific elements with others to provide as much information as possible.
Also, for weapon type acronyms, I’ve excluded those known from other flight sims but not mentioned in official documents.
1. Gun ammo count
2. Gun air-to-ground mode option:
3. Loaded ammunition type:
4. Gun fire rate option:
1. Air-to-air missile symbol
2. Loaded missile type:
3. Number of air-to-air missiles: dual missile pylons only
4. Selected air-to-air missile station:
5. Air-to-air missile status:
6. Loaded AIM-7 missile type
1. Loaded air-to-ground missiles: boxed and marked RDY when selected
2. Loaded air-to-ground missile type:
3. Number of air-to-ground missiles
4. Air-to-ground missile status: boxed when selected
1. Loaded bombs: boxed and marked RDY when selected
2. Loaded bomb type:
3. Number of bombs
4. Bomb status: boxed when selected
5. Mechanical fuzing options:
6. Electric fuzing options:
7. Drag options:
8. Quantity of selected weapon
9. Ripple quantity of selected weapon
Sources:
Legacy Hornet is long overdue. US get’s many variants, Sweden can get the Finnish one.
UK can get either CF-18 or an Aussie one, Germany can get a Swiss one, and both need something before the Eurofighter comes
F/A-18 this update
I think it’s going to be tough at RB
Just so they can whine it doesn’t have A2G ordnance? Nah, I’d rather Germany get nothing.
Still, Germany needs something better than AMRAAM-Phantom. Typhoon looks pretty far away, so there are not many options.
But F-4F KWS LV don’t want IRIS-T
EF-2000 Typhoon coming to germany tech tree in 2025 or 2026 ?
But I’m not surpriced located after F-4F KWS-LV
Ah, no other options
They have CAS in the form of the Tornado (its rubbish, I know).
The issue is A2A anyway plus grinding out the Typhoon with a Mig-29 or an F-4F ICE sounds like hell.
In this case the most reasonable and best option is a Swiss F-18 and really Germany could get a swiss ground tree with a standalone F-18 for the air tree like Britain has with South Africa.
Germany needs a Swiss one tbh. They are pretty well screwed until the EFT comes to the game and I doubt that will come any time soon
lmao
