Military aviation experts inside

[dee]

I'm an avid lover of military planes. My all time favorite, the old Skunk Works secret that turned into the fastest manned jet ever made. I had a model of one hung from my ceiling as a kid for years.

SR71's are amazing machines, I'm sure they are still using it to some extent even though it's said to be retired.

[LANTIRN]

SR71's are amazing machines, I'm sure they are still using it to some extent even though it's said to be retired.

Last I heard before I got out of the AF is that they had two left that hadn't been 100% mothballed and they flew them once or twice a year from Edwards AFB to somewhere else and back to do a complete ops check and make sure everything was OK (this was from someone who had been stationed at Edwards so it seemed pretty reliable at the time). SR71 is badass; it would be stupid not to keep a couple of them ready just in case.

[slowbrick2]

This. They have been trying to find a replacement for the aging fleet for a while but the plane was just so well designed nothing today can really compete with it. I mean hell, it was designed to fly missing a wing. The amount of damage that plane can take and stay airborne just boggles my mind. The A10 will probably becomes the B52 of fighters; I see them extending its service life for a long time. In my opinion they should reopen the assembly line and order several hundred more instead of wasting money on all the other crap that the military does.

That would be nice but Republic went under.Lockheed has been doing crewstation upgrades. Think all of the tooling has been destroyed.

[68RR]

A few years back I attended my dad's sister Sqdn, the 13th, reactivated at Whiteman AFB in Missouri. They fly the B1 and the B2..

[black50]

Last I heard before I got out of the AF is that they had two left that hadn't been 100% mothballed and they flew them once or twice a year from Edwards AFB to somewhere else and back to do a complete ops check and make sure everything was OK (this was from someone who had been stationed at Edwards so it seemed pretty reliable at the time). SR71 is badass; it would be stupid not to keep a couple of them ready just in case.

Last I read was that NASA uses those 2 for tests that they need performed at the egde of space since the sr-71 is the only manned aircraft that can go that high without actually going into space..I know the advertised celling was 100,000ft but im sure they can go higher..

[BlacksunJacksun]

Fuck that. Check out a c5. That thing shouldn't be able to fly.

[Denny]

They have the 52s from Barksdale go out to Guam on rotations, alternating with the stealth bombers.

The C-17 is still my favorite big plane

[Couver]

Fuck that. Check out a c5. That thing shouldn't be able to fly.

That large a wingspan with that much thrust??? I feel better on one of those the the wimpy ass MD-80 I have to ride tm.

[2011GT]

That large a wingspan with that much thrust??? I feel better on one of those the the wimpy ass MD-80 I have to ride tm.

Md80s are nice. They may be old as snot but they will get you where you need to go alive!

[Mustangfreak]

A few years back I attended my dad's sister Sqdn, the 13th, reactivated at Whiteman AFB in Missouri. They fly the B1 and the B2..

Negative, the B-1B is stationed only at Dyess AFB and Ellsworth AFB.

Whiteman has the B-2 and trainers I believe.

[propellerhead]

Negative, the B-1B is stationed only at Dyess AFB and Ellsworth AFB.

Don't the Air Natl Guard have them at the base in Kansas?

[LANTIRN]

That would be nice but Republic went under.Lockheed has been doing crewstation upgrades. Think all of the tooling has been destroyed.

I knew they had gone under but with Lockheed doing upgrades I figured that meant they had purchased all other A10 equipment. Shame if it has been destroyed, though for a plane that awesome I wouldn't think it would be all that hard to start from the ground up with the assembly line and machines, tooling, etc. I know it will never happen but damnit I can dream.

[Chas_svo]

I can't imagine a world without A10's.

[turboford]

When I was in the Air Force I talked to a 2 star that explained how the Army didn't want the A-10 taken out of the service. The Army was even trying to get funding to pay the Air Force to keep it in service. It would be a shame to see it taken to the bone yard for good.

[Mustangfreak]

Don't the Air Natl Guard have them at the base in Kansas?

Don't believe so. All are in TX or SD.