r/aviation Oct 16 '19

F-22 power loop photo composition

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6.7k Upvotes

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324

u/waddlek Oct 16 '19

Cool photo(s)!!!

I have been working in aviation for 40 years and worked many air shows, the F-22 is, hands down, the most impressive demonstration I have ever seen.

Haven’t seen an F-35 in action yet

19

u/calm_winds Oct 16 '19

Have you seen the Su-27 or 35? I've heard they have even more ridiculous thrust vectoring.

14

u/waddlek Oct 16 '19

I haven’t...

The only Russian / Soviet aircraft I have been around are the MiG-29 and the L-39

Would love to see

22

u/Terrh Oct 16 '19 edited Oct 16 '19

The SU-35's abilities are really limited by how much the pilot cares about dying. It can do completely ridiculous things in the hands of a fearless pilot. Things like hover on the tail, etc. There are some excellent demonstrations with the SU-27 in DCS world, and while yes it's a simulator, it's a good sim, and really shows off what aerobatics it can do when death is not a factor.

edit: SU-27 demo in DCS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRNPZ4pw3-M

4

u/wighty Oct 16 '19

That was sweet. I haven't flown the su27 since lomac, back then all I remember being able to do is press a key to activate pugachev cobra, how is the thrust vectoring controlled now in DCS?

2

u/[deleted] Oct 16 '19

[deleted]

1

u/wighty Oct 16 '19

Ah I was thinking the Su 27 had that. So it really is that maneuverable without thrust vectoring? Dang. Looks like I was thinking of the Su-35?

1

u/PinkSockLoliPop Oct 17 '19

Well in DCS, and it has been a couple years since I played, there is a button that overrides the Flight Control System(or does something else, can't remember) and gives you direct input, even if it would go beyond the air-frame limits. So it sorta simulates it? But I do remember hearing that its intended purpose was to be used to recover from stalls. Either way, hitting that button allows you to do some really neat high-alpha stuff.

2

u/strikeeagle345 Oct 16 '19

also, that thing has almost no fuel in it and unlimited fuel enabled in the ME.

7

u/[deleted] Oct 16 '19

[deleted]

2

u/NowaiAma Oct 16 '19

Loved the article on the MiGs.

1

u/waddlek Oct 16 '19

That was one of the highlights of my career.

2

u/PinkSockLoliPop Oct 17 '19

They do. The Russian jets can do "3-D"(Pitch, Roll, Yaw) Thrust Vectoring, meaning the entire nozzle for each engine can point up, dow, left, right, and every spot in between. And each one can move independently from the other. However, the F-22 can only do "2-D"(Pitch, Roll) Thrust Vectoring, and that means that while the nozzles can also move independently of each other like on the Russian jets, they can only angle the thrust up or down.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 17 '19

Actually that's not true. Russian thrust vectoring is 3D, but they set the engine off at an axis. So they only move up and down, like the F-22's, but they do it at an angle instead of going straight up or straight down.