Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!uwm.edu!lll-winken!sun-barr!newstop!sun!amdcad!amdcad!military From: PAISLEY%auvm.auvm.edu@VM1.gatech.edu Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Can the backseater in f-18's bring it home? Message-ID: <1991Apr19.071058.14405@amd.com> Date: 18 Apr 91 18:56:16 GMT References: <1991Apr18.032319.21395@amd.com> Sender: military@amd.com Organization: The American University - University Computing Center Lines: 18 Approved: military@amd.com From: The backseater in most navy fighter-attack type aircraft is a navigation/ weapons person. His job is to keep track of the enemy fighters or ground targets so that the pilot can concentrate on flying the plane. Since the pilot doesn't have to worry about such details, he can concentrate on flying and just let the backseater tell him where to go. In this sense, such aircraft are more survivable. Besides that, there isn't a huge difference. Almost any casualty that took the pilot out would either destroy the plane outright, or get the backseater, too. Even if he lived through something like this, the backseater can't 'drive' the plane anyway--he doesn't have the controls to do so. L. Gordon Paisley, paisley@auvm.auvm.edu THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON, DC USA