I *hate* it when this happens!

[ryoder 1,408]

http://gizmodo.com/5752983/this-is-what-happens-when-a-fighter-jet-gets-too-close-to-a-bomber

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[jrmrangers 0]

is that covered under his AAA roadside assistance plan?

Wait , I pull what first?

[JohnMitchell 14]

That was funny. I wonder how much it was to fix that wingtip? I'm sure it scraped the hell out of the Sidewinder missile that usually rides there.

The person posting the video seemed to think it was the departing B-1 that blew the F-16 over. It's more likely the B-1 sitting on the taxi way that the F-16 was directly behind that tipped him over. Those Vipers have very tall, narrow tracked landing gear. I'm not too surprised by this incident.

[warpedskydiver 0]

I wonder why they abandoned the "cranked arrow" delta wing?

It worked so damned well in all testing done.

Maybe it was a cost cutting measure.

better stall speed, better maneuvering, better fuel economy, increased payload, yeah there was not anything to like about it.

[JohnMitchell 14]

I remember seeing pics of delta winged F-16's. I didn't know it had that many advantages. How was it for roll rate and maneuverability? Makes you wonder if the bean counters killed it.

[warpedskydiver 0]

By all accounts it was better in every aspsect.

Yeah the accountants killed it to save other projects that were failures.

[warpedskydiver 0]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Dynamics_F-16XL

General characteristics

* Crew: One (XL #1) or Two (XL #2)
* Length: 54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)
* Wingspan: 34 ft 3 in (10.44 m)
* Height: 17 ft 7 in (5.36 m)
* Wing area: 646 ft² (60.0 m²)
* Empty weight: 22,000 lb (9,980 kg)
* Loaded weight: 48,000 lb (21,800 kg)
* Max takeoff weight: 48,000 lb (21,800 kg)
* Powerplant: 1× General Electric F110-GE-100 turbofan
o Dry thrust: 17,100 lbf (76.3 kN)
o Thrust with afterburner: 28,900 lbf (125 kN)

Performance

* Maximum speed: Mach 2.05 (1,400 mph)
* Cruise speed: 600 mph
* Range: 2,480 nmi (2,850 mi, 4,590 km)
* Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
* Rate of climb: 62,000 ft/min (320 m/s)

Armament

* Guns: 1× 20 mm (0.79 in) M61 Vulcan (Gatling) gun
* Hardpoints: 17 pylons with a capacity of up to 15,000 lb (6,800 kg) of payload


The wing and rear horizontal control surfaces were replaced with a cranked-arrow delta wing 120% larger than the original wing. Extensive use of carbon fiber composites allowed the savings of 600 lb (270 kg) of weight but the F-16XL was still 2,800 lb (1300 kg) heavier than the original F-16A.

Less noticeable is that the fuselage was lengthened by 56 in (1.4 m) by the addition of 2 sections at the joints of the main fuselage sub-assemblies. With the new wing design, the tail section had to be canted up 3°, and the ventral fins removed, to prevent them from striking the pavement during takeoff and landing. However, as the F-16XL exhibits greater stability than the native F-16, these changes were not detrimental to the handling of the aircraft.

These changes resulted in a 25% improvement in maximum lift-to-drag ratio in supersonic flight and 11% in subsonic flight, and a plane that reportedly handled much smoother at high speeds and low altitudes. The enlargements increased fuel capacity by 82%. The F-16XL could carry twice the ordnance of the F-16 and deliver it 40% further. The enlarged wing allowed a total of 27 hardpoints on the plane:

* 16 wing stations of capacity 750 lb (340 kg) each
* 4 semi-recessed AIM-120 AMRAAM stations under fuselage
* 2 wingtip stations
* 1 centerline station
* 2 wing "heavy/wet" stations
* 2 chin LANTIRN stations