Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!linac!att!cbnews!cbnews!military From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Sidewinders on everything Message-ID: <1991Feb20.053506.981@cbnews.att.com> Date: 20 Feb 91 05:35:06 GMT References: <1991Feb9.025209.29262@cbnews.att.com> <1991Feb11.043358.27375@cbnews.att.com> <1991Feb13.025855.23412@cbnews.att.com> Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) Organization: U of Toronto Zoology Lines: 24 Approved: military@att.att.com From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer) >From: Adrian Hurt >... I have seen film of an A-10 with at >least one Sidewinder. Buccaneers have also appeared on TV carrying AIM-9's, >as have Jaguars. The Jaguar has its Sidewinders above the wings! The above-wing Sidewinder mount for Jaguars actually was tested some years ago, but I don't think the RAF or lAdlA Jaguars were fitted with it at the time. It isn't as odd as it sounds, because the Sidewinder ignites while still on the rail (unlike some other missiles which ignite after release), so there is no particular reason why the rail has to be on the underside of the aircraft. The original Sidewinder-armed aircraft, the Crusader, carried its Sidewinders on its fuselage sides. In recent years people have started to come around to the idea that even the mud-moving specialists could do with self-defence capability, instead of having to rely on the wild-blue-yonder types who are probably off somewhere else anyway. So there has been some interest in putting lightweight AAMs onto mounts that don't take up a regular payload pylon. -- "Read the OSI protocol specifications? | Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology I can't even *lift* them!" | henry@zoo.toronto.edu utzoo!henry