Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!rutgers!att!cbnews!military
From: tdrinkar@cosmos.acs.calpoly.edu (Terrell Drinkard)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Sidewinder !!!
Message-ID: <12768@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 4 Jan 90 04:25:07 GMT
References: <12703@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Sender: military@cbnews.ATT.COM
Organization: Cal Poly State University -- San Luis Obispo
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Approved: military@att.att.com



From: tdrinkar@cosmos.acs.calpoly.edu (Terrell Drinkard)
In article <12703@cbnews.ATT.COM> mmm@cup.portal.com writes:
>From: mmm@cup.portal.com
>
>What has me confused is the last photo in the article.  It shows a
>Sidewinder being loaded on an F-16, and this missile seems NOT to have
>any rollerons.  Could this be an air-to-ground version, or a version
>for practice (the article said rollerons were only needed for stability
>at high altitude)?

A friend of mine works at the Naval Weapon Center at China Lake and
he has told me a story that I thought I'd pass along:
  A CPO on some aircraft carrier wrote the manufacturer of the
Sidewinder (I forget who) to tell them how much he and his group
appreciated the thoughtful inclusion of little wheels on the tail
fins for dragging the missles about on the flight deck when the
appropriate dollies weren't available.
  There was shortly an ECO (engineering change order) performed to
the sidewinder which shrouded the entire wheel.  A slot on the top
of the fin now leads the flow past the rolleron.

So there you have it.  You can't see the rollerons on the new
Sidewinders because they are completely shrouded to prevent abuse
by the ammo handlers.
 
Terry

Disclaimer et la Signaturo:
Hell no, I'm not responsible for what I say!  If everyone were
responsible for what they said, we'd have had a balanced budget in
1984.