LAST UPDATED: February 22, 1999.
A lot of speculation about A/C capability has lead to many interesting discussions. As the result of extensive research, I have decided to post information that I have compiled on modern A/C, principally the Eurofighter and the Rafale, and the F-22 and SU-37.
I have decided to add pilot comments and plane quirks to the listing, as they show what kind of character an A/C has. While I haven't been able to find anything on the EF, Rafale and SU35/37, I do have a few on the F-22.
This just in: new and more accurate radar information! Stealth figures revised!
DISCLAIMER: All figures here are as accurate as possible, and are derived from too many sources to list (the huge piles of Janes', printouts, emails, mags, and books is rather intimidating... I may do a source list later. I need to recover from writing these tables first!). The numbers here are NOT gospel, and there is no classified information posted here.
EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON |
RAFALE-C |
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| EMPTY WEIGHT: | 10995kg | EMPTY WEIGHT: | 9400kg |
| MAXIMUM ORDNANCE: | 8250kg | MAXIMUM ORDNANCE: | 9640kg |
| MAXIMUM T/O WEIGHT: | 23000kg | MAXIMUM T/O WEIGHT: | 24500kg |
| INTERNAL FUEL WEIGHT: | 4000kg | INTERNAL FUEL WEIGHT: | 4500kg |
| WING AREA: | 50.2 m^2 | WING AREA: | 45.7 m^2 |
| INTERNAL FUEL: | 5280L | INTERNAL FUEL: | 5940L |
| FUEL CONSUMPTION | (EJ200-1) | FUEL CONSUMPTION | (SNECMA M88-3) |
| CRUISE: | 1.122L/sec | CRUISE: | 0.954L/sec |
| MILITARY: | 3.642L/sec | MILITARY: | 3.024L/sec |
| REHEAT: | 11.646L/sec | REHEAT: | 10.794L/sec |
| MIL THRUST: | 12264kg | MIL THRUST: | 11844kg |
| A/B THRUST: | 18409kg | A/B THRUST: | 17780kg |
| MAX SPEED @ HIGH ALT: | 2140km/h | MAX SPEED @ HIGH ALT: | 2125km/h |
| MAX SPEED @ LOW ALT: | 1410km/h | MAX SPEED @ LOW ALT: | 1390km/h |
| OPERATIONAL CEILING: | 16765m | OPERATIONAL CEILING: | 18180m |
| RADAR: | (ECR 90) | RADAR: | (RBE2) |
| SEARCH RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 158500m | SEARCH RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 185000m |
| TRACKING RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 95000m | TRACKING RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 96000m |
| AUTOTRACK RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 11000m | AUTOTRACK RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 12000m |
| MULTI-TRACK/MULTI-TARGET: | 24/4 | MULTI-TRACK/MULTI-TARGET: | 16/4 |
| IRSTS: | Yes | IRSTS: | Yes |
| ECM SUITE: | Extensive | ECM SUITE: | Extensive |
| LOW OBSERVABLE/RADAR (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 39% front aspect only | LOW OBSERVABLE/RADAR (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 48% front aspect only |
| ATA COMBAT STATS | ATA COMBAT STATS | ||
| - 66% internal fuel - 2 ASRAAM - 10 AMRAAM |
- 66% internal fuel - 2 Matra 550 - 10 Matra MICA |
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| WEIGHT: | 15379kg | WEIGHT: | 13650kg |
| WING LOADING: | 306.4kg/m^2 | WING LOADING: | 298.7kg/m^2 |
| TWR (Mil): | 0.80:1 | TWR (Mil): | 0.87:1 |
| TWR (A/B): | 1.17:1 | TWR (A/B): | 1.30:1 |
F22 RAPTOR |
SU-37 |
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| EMPTY WEIGHT: | 14396kg | EMPTY WEIGHT: | 18400kg |
| MAXIMUM ORDNANCE: | 8250kg | MAXIMUM ORDNANCE: | 8200kg |
| MAXIMUM T/O WEIGHT: | 34159kg | MAXIMUM T/O WEIGHT: | 36698kg |
| INTERNAL FUEL WEIGHT: | 11513kg | INTERNAL FUEL WEIGHT: | 14098kg |
| WING AREA: | 78.1m^2 | WING AREA: | 65.5m^2 |
| INTERNAL FUEL: | 14391L | INTERNAL FUEL: | 18584L |
| FUEL CONSUMPTION | (F119-PW-100) | FUEL CONSUMPTION | (AL-37FU) |
| CRUISE: | 1.243L/sec | CRUISE: | 1.159L/sec |
| MILITARY: | 5.313L/sec | MILITARY: | 4.997L/sec |
| REHEAT: | 22.159L/sec | REHEAT: | 15.863L/sec |
| MIL THRUST: | 23182kg | MIL THRUST: | 20042kg |
| A/B THRUST: | 32727kg | A/B THRUST: | 28059kg |
| MAX SPEED @ HIGH ALT: | 2534km/h | MAX SPEED @ HIGH ALT: | 2480km/h |
| MAX SPEED @ LOW ALT: | 1398km/h | MAX SPEED @ LOW ALT: | 1400km/h |
| OPERATIONAL CEILING: | 22720m | OPERATIONAL CEILING: | 18220m |
| RADAR: | (APG-77) | RADAR: | (N011M/N014) |
| SEARCH RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 210000m | SEARCH RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 185000m/75000m |
| TRACKING RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 125000m | TRACKING RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 108000m/45000m |
| AUTOTRACK RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 12500m | AUTOTRACK RANGE (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 11000m/5000m |
| MULTI-TRACK/MULTI-TARGET: | 48/8 | MULTI-TRACK/MULTI-TARGET: | 15/6 |
| IRSTS: | No | IRSTS: | 1000m/22 degrees |
| ECM SUITE: |
Sanders/General Electric AN/ALR-94 |
ECM SUITE: |
RWR MAWR DJM AJM |
| LOW OBSERVABLE/RADAR (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 28% All Aspect | LOW OBSERVABLE/RADAR (vs 3m^2 RCS): | 118% All Aspect |
| ATA COMBAT STATS | ATA COMBAT STATS | ||
| - 66% internal fuel - 2 AIM-9 - 6 AIM-120C |
- 66% internal fuel - 4 R-60 - 10 R-77 |
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| WEIGHT: | 23204kg | WEIGHT: | 29335kg |
| WING LOADING: | 297.1kg/m^2 | WING LOADING: | 447.6kg/m^2 |
| TWR (Mil): | 1.00:1 | TWR (Mil): | 0.68:1 |
| TWR (A/B): | 1.41:1 | TWR (A/B): | 0.96:1 |
| QUIRKS: |
1. Nose kick of 4-6 degrees during roll maneuvers. 2. Canopy has annoying habit of failing to open; pilot has to go through shutdown procedure again if he attempts to open canopy while the fans are still spinning (even after battery switched off!) or else he's trapped inside. 3. Braking system is fixed! 4. Plane is unusually steady and stable in level flight; test pilots find it "eerie." 5. Pilots have to be careful to avoid going supersonic, and transition is almost "unnoticeable." |
LOW OBSERVABLE/RADAR NOTE: The percentage listed is what an enemy radar's effective range is reduced to. For example, a 60% stealth rating means that a radar's effective range is 60% normal to detect an aircraft of that size and shape. This is a general number, and is based on manufacturer claims of radar cross section and "general stealthiness", and does not take into account radar type and atmospheric conditions. These numbers are similar/derived from the ones used by assorted agencies for A/C comparison.
F-22 SPEED NOTE: Due to the overwhelming controversy surrounding the top speed of the F-22, I have decided to err on the side of caution and use "average" figures, which is to say I took the extremes and averaged them. This yields a number which appears to be relatively realistic. Of course, as soon as official information is released, I will update the numbers.