Zephyr Net

See the blue things above the red items? The red items are 30MM tracer rounds I imagine. But WTH are the blue things? Are they rockets for the LAU pods or something else?

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Centurian

Yes, they look like 2.25" Hydra rockets.

Zephyr

yes, blue to indicate they are most dangerouse when being loaded

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Fighting for justice with brains of steel

Let your anger be like the monkey which hides inside the piniata.

Yes there seems to be 38 per row, 19 per launcher on either side...

Standard folding fin rockets... Its funny isnt it? These types of rockets were considered the most advanced air to gorund weapons during the end of WWII and all during the Korean War, and now they are only mostly carried on Helos or the A-10...

CAG out...

Well back then they were revolutionary and still rockets are hell if you are ground forces. Back then they used the Tiny Tim rocket as well, which was a big hurt! Now I'd same the most important air to ground weapon is the laser guided bomb. While the JDAM is overall better, the Paveway can be used in much less time and with greater ease, though it costs more.

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Centurian

Negative! Negative!! The JDAM is much more effective and I am not just speaking about its use in bad weather...

The JDAM can be used to engage multiple targets simultaneously... A single pass by a B-2 can rain down over 80 JDAMs all simultaneously targetted on 80+ seperate targets and take out and entire airbase in one pass. Plus it can do all this at night or bad weather...

You can not even begin to approach that with LGBs that have to be individually guided to their targets by either an aircraft or ground targetting laser...

You can't use them against moving targets and you have to get coordinates and such. LGBs can be used at night too with NVGs and thats standard so...I still think JDAMs got some flaws in them. I'm sticking with my LGBs for now.

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Centurian

ANd you will remain 10 years out of date...

LGBs definatley have their place, but with the advances in SAM technology over the last 10 years, if you attempt to use them as your main precision strike weapon, you will lose your attacking aircraft to the new SAMs... their range far exceeds the capability of the LGBs...

Besides, if you want to hit moving targets, use a Maverick, its much more effective and can be used from a farther range then a LGB...

JDAMs and JSOWs were never diigned to attack vehicles unless they are bunkered...

Its like comparing apples to oranges... makes no sense whatsoever...

CAG out...

What I like about LGBs is that they can be guided by ground personnel. Sure ground personnel can report to the plane coordinates and have them drop but what if the target moves? What if they were wrong the first time? What if a better target comes around with a higher priority? You know what I mean.

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Centurian

JDAM will have moving target capability rather soon, they are developing a link to update the JDAM with the moving targets changing co-ordinates similar to a SARH missle, the plane trackes the target and sends the updates to the JDAM.

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Fighting for justice with brains of steel

Let your anger be like the monkey which hides inside the piniata.

Until ground forces can do the guiding go LGB...

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Centurian

And as I stated before, you will be on the losing end with out of date technology agasint a better armed and superior force ....

Laser also gives away the position of those using it on the ground, as many military vehicles now have laser waring devices that can give an alert of the tergetting laser and a direction from where it comes from, and since its strictly line of sight, its easy to back track to the men using it...

CAG out...

That may be the case but until they give that capability to JDAMs such as mid-course changes to its target via flight it's not entirely as fluid.

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Centurian

I agree with Cent...

Why argue that he will be 10 years out of date if the technology that will put him 10 years out of date doesn't come out for 10 more years.

Until JDAMs can hit moving targets, LGBs can perform more tasks than they can.

Anyway, USA's laser guided bombs are probably (besides USA JDAMs) the most advanced A2G weapons in use in the world (I know Russia has LGBs, they just don't have the money to use them).

by the way CAG, I am aware that the capability of JDAMs to hit moving targets will be out much sooner than 10 years from now.

Once again, exaggeration.