The entire PS-46 is still classified because it was used in developing the PS-05 presentation so we really don’t know how advanced it was. Though I have heard from pilots at the time that the JA37s radar at the final stages was incredibly capable and outperformed the Gripen at range before it had been properly adjusted. Still, nothing official.
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My bad: 1.13.
Either way, it’ll do fine outside escaping considering the peak of maneuverability is Typhoon and Rafale, and we’re effectively there with Gripen.
90 - 95% of a Mig-29SMT’s performance with 4x AMRAAMs and 4x 9Li/9Ms.
Viggen D with 4x AMRAAMs and 2x 9Li/9Ms [up to 6] would be 12.7 minimum.
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I think its more considered 4th gen because it used innovative designs like the delta-canard configuration and was the first to carry a digital computer.
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There’s a lot of definitions floating around when it comes to what’s TRULY gen 4. Is it BVR, multirole capability, supermaneuverability, avionics, active radar homing, radar jamming? Basically it just comes down to what someone considers revolutionary to define a new generation of aircraft.
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I’m still skeptical
ICE was mostly a stopgap until EF2000s started entering service
Acceleration is poor on Phantoms IIRC
(F-4S is the one that can’t hit Mach 1.1 I think)
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harrier 2 is considered Gen 4 and some versions didnt even have a radar
But yeah, there are no hard rules for it
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Loose definition at the end of the day. Imo the JA37 had enough innovation to warrant being an early gen 4 while the AJ37 is still in the later Gen 3 spectrum.
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I think we are just gunna have to wait and see how they decompress it. Because Tornado F3 AoP, Ja37D, F4F-ICE vs each other. Fair fight. Vs F-15C, yeah… no chance
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Also I have no idea why the JAS39A got the 74(M). I understand its for balancing reasons but I doubt we actually bought this variant. So yea probably by the same logic we could give the JA37 these missiles to give him a bit more life support
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I think it’s pretty fun how all nations have a Gen 3+ equivalent in this discussion as a lot of older platforms got Fox 3 support to extend their service. So even if this problem can be debated regarding the JA37 we will likely have a pretty blurred group of aircraft at this battle-rating as missiles begin to massively outperform the planes that actually utilize them.
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Yeah, Basically all of Europe.
Britain and Germany upgraded older airframes to keep them going till Typhoon
Italy leased F-16s until Typhoon
Sweden I assume used the Ja37D as a stop gap until the JA39
France I think ran MICA on the Mirage 2k until Rafale
But yeah, in game, its gunna be a messy bracket. too high and they’ll be outperformed in WVR. Too low and they dominate in BVR.
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I think its natural for these planes to act as stepping stones towards getting the higher end vehicles. They give you a harsh introduction to the higher end missiles at play before letting you research the top end alternatives
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Yeah, if they get the balance right though, they should still be kinda fun. But at the same time. I really hope they dont sit on those better airframes for too long.
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F-4S is probably the one.
I did an acceleration test.
Mig-29SMT with the same amount of AB time as F-4F got to mach in 52 seconds.
F-4F in 58 seconds.
In comparison Su-27 is 44 seconds. Mig-29G has less fuel time, gets there in 44 seconds with 70% of the fuel time of F-4F, Su-27, and 29SMT.
F-16C is 44 seconds with 93% of the fuel time.
And last but not least since this is a Viggen topic:
JA37 gets to mach 1 in 62 seconds.
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These definitely shouldn’t act as a nations “top tier” vehicle. The JA37D will never have even close to the same efficiency as the JAS39 in any situation. But I do think they offer a bit more alternatives if you feel burnt out on specific vehicles as nations like Sweden wont have many top tier alternatives to pick between.
I think the ICE or a later EJ-Kai are other good examples as they would essentially give more challenging options for those who want to play something similar yet limiting, as these nations will only really get 1-2 high tier fighter jet platforms.
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The Phantoms are no slouch in acceleration just that they can quickly top out past mach and don’t like to turn a lot. They can feel a bit heavy but in terms of missile combat they deliver in the most important aspects.
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Yeah, also for me as Britian. Im not actually that bothered by the Gripen and rather looking forward to the Sea Harrier FA2. Even if its gunna be an underdog
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Later Tornado F.3s also get plenty of AMRAAMs to carry. They’ll probably perform just fine given the range of the radar.
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That just means the kills in it will be more satisfying.
Right?
Right?
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Yeah, its just they are gunna struggle defending against ARH and unlike at 11.3. They are stand absolutely 0 chance in any semblence of WVR vs even 12.0s.