Is there a Moderate Form of Political Islam?

[Anomalocaris]

[h4ym4n]

I'm not impressed by the fit and finish on the TF-X. Let's hope this is only a prototype problem, 'cause you ain't getting much stealth out of countersunk phillips-heads:

They haven’t filled them with bondo yet?

[Anomalocaris]

that row of screw holes is probably not as big a problem for stealth as it might seem because it is aligned with the leading edge of the wing, so it is planform aligned will reflect radar back along the same prescribed direction as the main airframe.

Soviet style military aircraft had always been cheap in willing to accept a very rough finish where the finish didn’t matter too much, compared to gold plated western products. so for example su-27 and Mig-29 didn’t even use countersunk rivets that fits flush with aircraft skin in areas where bumps didn’t disturb the airflow in flight.

But the Su-57 has many more fundamental design issues from stealth perspective, such as absence of a serpentine air intake duct so the radar bright fan blades of the front of the engine is directly visible from the front, and many exterior seams, hatches and canopy rails lack serrated edges to provide planform alignmemt.

so su-57 might be considered a reduced observably design rather than stealthy design by international standards.

[Thumpalumpacus]

that row of screw holes is probably not as big a problem for stealth as it might seem because it is aligned with the leading edge of the wing, so it is planform aligned will reflect radar back along the same prescribed direction as the main airframe.    

You're assuming that the radar is incoming from the front and level. Those holes will show up on radar from above -- or the side if the plane is banked into the emissions. That's a serious flaw in a 5th gen stealth fighter.

I have to assume that this is simply a matter of wanting to get the prototype into the air ASAP, and this flaw will be corrected in production models.

[Anomalocaris]

I suspect chronic underinvestment in fabrication and assembly capability also played a role.    I would not be too surprised if the su-57 was designed to reuse as much of the existing production tooling for the su-27/30/35 family as possible.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I suspect chronic underinvestment in fabrication and assembly capability also played a role.    I would not be too surprised if the su-57 was designed to reuse as much of the existing production tooling for the su-27/30/35 family as possible.

The plane is the new Turkish fighter, not a Russian plane.

[Leonardo17]

[The Grand Nudger]

You'll never be able to show how low an islamist can get. Anytime you think they've hit the floor they'll dig a basement.

[Anomalocaris]

I suspect chronic underinvestment in fabrication and assembly capability also played a role.    I would not be too surprised if the su-57 was designed to reuse as much of the existing production tooling for the su-27/30/35 family as possible.

The plane is the new Turkish fighter, not a Russian plane.

But the photo of the plane in flight with poorly finished screw holes on the wing is the Russian Su-57, not the new Turkish fighter.


Photos of the TF-X Faan prototype during it first flight seem to show better basic attention to stealth shaping in some areas compared to the Su-57, such as the in faceted shapes of ends of leading edge slats, and electro optical sensors hidden behind faceted glass windows with radar reflecting coated glass.

[Thumpalumpacus]

The plane is the new Turkish fighter, not a Russian plane.

But the photo of the plane in flight with poorly finished screw holes on the wing is the Russian Su-57, not the new Turkish fighter.


Photos of the TF-X Faan prototype during it first flight seem to show better basic attention to stealth shaping in some areas compared to the Su-57, such as the in faceted shapes of ends of leading edge slats, and electro optical sensors hidden behind faceted glass windows with radar reflecting coated glass.

I stand corrected. Thanks.