Slater

As far as tiltrotors go, the V-22 Osprey is quite expensive and I'm not sure the Budget officials could stomach the cost.

Is it possible for the A400M's to eventually take over the C-130 missions?

Good information, thanks. Looks like the F-104 was cleared for a wide range of munitions.

What type bombs, rockets, etc. did Luftwaffe F-104G's employ during their service? I would imagine that Mk 82's would have been part of their arsenal, but I don't recall any pictures documenting this.

Not sure what other (relatively) near term options would be available. Unless something like a drone could be made to work. https://www.defensenews.com/smr/air-force-priorities/2021/02/26/us-air-force-top-general-isnt-ready-to-buy-the-e-7-wedgetail-just-yet/

The USAF is getting their money's worth out of that airplane: https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/us-air-force-u-28a-reaches-600000-flight-hours

I have the 1/35 Trumpeter LAV III (Canadian) on order and was thinking of building it as a Saudi example. Is there a lot of difference between the variants? http://

Did the Jags see much service wearing this pattern?

That's the BDU-38 practice version.

I was USAF ammo. In the UK in the early 1980's, the SP's and us spent many a late night running convoys out to the F-111's during exercises.

Always wondered why these things had a two-tone color scheme.

Luftwaffe Tornadoes get a pretty extensive rework, apparently: https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/first-german-tornado-to-pass-through-life-extension-programme-makes-maiden-flight

The new F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III has a 9000 hour airframe life (up from 6000) due to some design changes by Boeing. Not sure exactly what changes they've made.

When the F-15 first flew in 1972, I doubt many people thought it would still be in production in 2021.

The newer F-15 variants do have a stronger airframe, although I'm not sure how much stronger. By way of comparison, the F-16V Block 70/72 has an airframe 50% stronger than previous variants. Manufacturing techniques and materials have come a long way since the F-16A.