VEVAK
SENIOR MEMBER
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- Oct 24, 2013
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No, it was not. Despite what people might think the RQ UAV series was not 'stealth'. The flying wing design does have some inherent low radar obsersable traits, but that was well known since WW II. The flying wing itself was known from the 1920s when every aviation pioneer in the US, Europe, and Russia experimented with it to some degrees. Prior to the B-2, the flying wing's main advantage was range over any radar 'evading' trait.
Neither is US airpower since then.
We do not rely on luck. I posted on this forum many explanations on US SIGINT efforts. It has been some yrs but they are still relevant regarding general information. You can be whatever next yr's salary you have, that we have extensive knowledge of Iran's EM signatures.
More than most suspect. Even with 'only' two aircraft carriers.
We will just bypass you. And yes, we are that good. My first assignment was the F-111. When I was stationed in the UK, I learned the Soviets feared and hated the 'Vark. At every arms negotiation, the Soviets always tried to have the 'Vark removed from the country. We always told them to STFU. Post Cold War, Adolf Tolkachev confirmed to US that during the Cold War yrs, the Soviets literally had no defense against the F-111. I was reassigned to the F-16 during Desert Storm and saw how lethal the F-111 became against Iraqi tanks.
By what standards do you measured Iran's air defense as 'too'? Compared to who and with what combat experience against US? We have learned much since the F-111 and Desert Storm. That 1960s jet proved itself against opponents who were qualitatively and quantitavely higher than Iran or at least on a par with Iran. Today, we do not need to carry the heavy bombs that the F-111 carried against Iraqi tanks. Five hundred or even 250 pounders with precision guided heads will do the job. Iran will not be facing just the USN but the entirety of US airpower from CONUS. Iran have no defense against the combination of high altitude B-2s and B-52s, and low altitude penetration of the B-1. Those 'too' that you mentioned? They are meaningless to US. And I do not say with any malice, just objectivity based upon my yrs of service.
Military academies everywhere are watching this US-Iran scenario.
Yea and how useful were all your F-22, F-117, B-2, B-1 & B-52's during the 1st stage of your 1/4 Billion USD Millennial challenge?
During Desert Storm all U.S. did was drive it's tanks all across Iraq really quickly to scare Saddam and get him to withdraw Iraqi armored battalion back into Iraq!
In the early 90's stealth was relatively new and by the most part the only aircrafts going deep into protected Iraqi airspace were stealth F-117.
U.S. B-52's didn't really need to fly deep into Iraqi airspace to takeout Iraqi tanks standing in the path of coalition forces near the boarder! So don't turn Desert Storm into something that it wasn't because if the U.S. could have taken Iraq in the early 90's they would have! It took the U.S. another decade of constant bombings to clear Iraqi Air Defenses so they can send none stealth aircraft into their Air Space whenever and wherever they wanted!
And unlike Iran's missiles today Iraqi missiles where never really a threat to coalition forces and with an Air Force that would even run from Iran's poorly maintained air force, Saddam had no real retaliatory capabilities!
Today it doesn't matter how nice American fighter are and they are nice and far superior in every aspect to anything Iran has! It's simply isn't going to stop the barrage of Iranian precision guided missiles flying towards bases that would be launching fighters against Iranian territory! And yes U.S. anti ballistic Missiles will likely intercept a good number of Iranian missiles but how many of these missiles is the U.S. going to deploy? 1000's? tens of 1000's I think NOT!