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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jemiba" data-source="post: 23125" data-attributes="member: 80">"F16's, F15's and other multi-role aircraft used in COIN roles."The number of military aircraft types, designed for just one role is dwindling, and that'sa tendency for many years. Figthers have to double as bombers, recce aircraft, close-support, in some cases (F-18E/F) as EW aircraft and as tankers. IIRC, some years before a derivative of the Flanker was proposed as ASW aircraft, so this tendency isn't limitedto the US or western airforces. In Afghanistan and Iraq the B-52 was used in the close-support role, the BAe Nimrod as an overland recce aircraft. Why not ? Especially in the asymmetric warfare, there's seldom an air-to-air threat to be faced. The great all-outconflict with a comparable enemy is (hopefully) a thing of the past. I remember an articlein Air International about future fighter design. The result was, that in some years it should be possible, to arm an AEW aircraft with highly agile AAMs to counter all possible airbornethreats. Yes, I can hear all fighter jocks screaming, but the dedicated fighter may well be a thing of the past in the quite near future. And other mission designed aircraft, too ...maybe !Just take something like a standard airliner, add a powerful radar and other sensors, maybepackaged, and the weapons needed for the mission, air-to-air or air-to-ground or ASW or ASUW,and that's all. A large aircraft with a long loiter time and a large weapons load, why do you needa fighter or a COIN aircraft then ? The basic aircraft probably would be cheaper then nowadaysfigthers and if not used in an armed mission, you could use it as a transport or tanker. And youwould need just one type ! One type aircraft, one type of engine, one type of pilot rating !Boring for us aviation minded freaks, surely, but maybe better for the taxpayer .. in theory!  Not to mix up this with Sandy Duncans statement, that the missile will do all jobs. There still would bean aircraft to brings its weapons to bear, but for killing a number of Talibans, you not necessarilyhave to go in at below 60 feet !  So, when the industry don't design new mission specific aircraft, but is just improving "multi rolecapabilities", it may well be not the end, but the beginning of a new thinking.</blockquote>

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