BEST AIRCRAFT
Category: BANG FOR THE BUCK!!
B-52 Stratofortress.
For more than 40 years B-52 Stratofortresses have been the backbone of the manned strategic bomber force for the United States. The B-52 is capable of dropping or launching the widest array of weapons in the U.S. inventory. This includes gravity bombs, cluster bombs, precision guided missiles and joint direct attack munitions. Updated with modern technology the B-52 will be capable of delivering the full complement of joint developed weapons and will continue into the 21st century as an important element of our nation's defenses. Current engineering analyses show the B-52's life span to extend beyond the year 2040.
For more on this work-horse, go to: http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=83
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Category: MOVING SKYSCRAPER (People-mover)!!
Presently: Boeing 747.
Flight
The 747 fleet has logged more than 35 billion statute miles (56 billion km) - enough to make 74,000 trips to the moon and back.
The 747 fleet has flown 3.5 billion people - the equivalent of more than half of the world's population.
The 747-400ER range is approximately 7,720 statute miles (14,297 km).
A 747-400 typically takes off at 180 mph (290 km/h), cruises at 565 mph (910 km/h) and lands at 160 mph (260 km/h).
For a typical international flight, one 747 operator uses about 5.5 tons (5,000 kg) of food supplies and more than 50,000 in-flight service items.
For more on the Boeing 747, go to: http://www.boeing.com/commercial/747family/pf/pf_facts.html
FUTURE: AIRBUS A380
The A380 will carry more passengers over longer distances, allowing for projected passenger growth worldwide and helping to ease an increasingly congested environment. It will achieve this without increasing the number of air traffic movements and without negatively impacting the environment, thanks to significantly reduced noise and emissions levels.
Taking a clean-sheet design for airlines’ operational needs of tomorrow, Airbus developed the A380 as the most spacious and efficient airliner ever conceived. This 555-seat aircraft will deliver an unparalleled level of comfort while retaining all the benefits of commonality with Airbus’ other fly-by-wire aircraft Families.
Thirty years after launching the world’s first twin-aisle, twin-engine jetliner, Airbus is preparing to introduce its A380 as the first true double-deck passenger airliner for the long-range market. The A380 offers unprecedented levels of productivity, efficiency and economics in passenger service, while the A380-800F cargo version is to be the first commercial freighter with three full cargo decks.
For more information about the AIRBUS A380, go here: http://www.airbus.com/en/aircraftfamilies/a380/index.html
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Category: ALL HAIL THE DYING KING OF THE AIR (Past Air Superiority without a Gigantic Cost)
F-16 FALCON
The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a compact, multirole fighter aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and has proven itself in air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack. It provides a relatively low-cost, high-performance weapon system for the United States and allied nations.
In an air combat role, the F-16's maneuverability and combat radius (distance it can fly to enter air combat, stay, fight and return) exceed that of all potential threat fighter aircraft. It can locate targets in all weather conditions and detect low flying aircraft in radar ground clutter. In an air-to-surface role, the F-16 can fly more than 500 miles (860 kilometers), deliver its weapons with superior accuracy, defend itself against enemy aircraft, and return to its starting point. An all-weather capability allows it to accurately deliver ordnance during non-visual bombing conditions.
For more on the F-16 Falcon, go here: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/f-16.htm
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Category: "MOMMA, I WANNA MOVE THAT MOUNTAIN TO CHINA" (Most utilized pure CARGO jet)
C-5A Galaxy
General Characteristics
Primary Function: Outsize cargo transport
Prime Contractor: Lockheed-Georgia Co.
Power Plant: Four General Electric TF-39 engines
Thrust: 43,000 pounds, each engine
Wingspan: 222.9 feet (67.89 meters)
Length: 247.1 feet (75.3 meters)
Height: 65.1 feet (19.84 meters)
Cargo Compartment: height , 13.5 feet (4.11 meters); width, 19 feet (5.79 meters); length, 143 feet, 9 in (43.8 meters)
Pallet Positions: 36
Maximum Cargo: 270,000 pounds (122,472 kilograms)
Maximum Takeoff Weight: C-5B 769,000 pounds (348,818 kilograms) (peacetime), 840,000 pounds (381,024 kilograms) (wartime)
Speed: 518 mph (.77 Mach)
Range: 6,320 nautical miles (empty)
Crew: 7 (pilot, co-pilot, two flight engineers and three loadmasters)
Unit Cost: C-5A - $152.8 million (FY98 constant dollars) C-5B - $179 million (FY98 constant dollars)
Deployed: C-5A - 1969, C-5B - 1980
Inventory: Active force and Reserve, 126
For more information about the C-5A/B Galaxy, go here: http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=84
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Category: SPEED DEMON, CEILING FLYING, SPY MACHINE:
SR-71
SPECIFICATIONS
Span: 55 ft. 7 in.
Length: 107 ft. 5 in.
Height: 18 ft. 6 in.
Weight: 170,000 lbs. loaded
Armament: None
Engines: Two Pratt & Whitney J58s of 32,500 lbs. thrust each with afterburner
Crew: Two
Serial number: 64-7976
PERFORMANCE
Maximum speed: Plus 2,000 mph.
Range: Plus 2,900 miles
Service Ceiling: Plus 85,000 ft.
For more information on the SR-71 Blackbird, go here: http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/modern_flight/mf35.htm
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Category: AIR DOMINION!! (Technologically Unparalleled Super-fighter)
The F-22 program is the next-generation air superiority fighter for the Air Force to counter emerging worldwide threats. It is designed to penetrate enemy airspace and achieve a first-look, first-kill capability against multiple targets. The F-22 is characterized by a low-observable, highly maneuverable airframe; advanced integrated avionics; and aerodynamic performance allowing supersonic cruise without afterburner.
Stealth: Greatly increases survivability and lethality by denying the enemy critical information required to successfully attack the F-22
Integrated Avionics: Allows F-22 pilots unprecedented awareness of enemy forces through the fusion of on- and off-board information
Supercruise: Enhances weapons effectiveness; allows rapid transit through the battlespace; reduces the enemy’s time to counter attack
Specifications of the F/A-22 Raptor:
Wing Area:
840 sq ft
Engine Thrust Class:
35,000 lb
Level Speed: 921 mph
Total Length:
62.08 ft
Wing Span:
44.5 ft
Horizontal Tail Span:
29ft
Tail Span: 18'10"
Total Height:
16.67ft
Track Width:
10.6ft
Engines:
Pratt & Whitney F-119
Max. Takeoff Weight: 60,000 lb (27,216 kg)
Max. External Stores: 5,000 lb (2,270 kg)
Weight Empty: 31,670 lb (14,365 kg)
Ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,240 m)
Crew: 1
G Limit: +9 G
First Flight: September 7th 1997
For more information about the F/A-22 Raptor, go here: http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/f-22.htm