Mindstorm Mon Nov 30, 2015 8:12 pm
Austin wrote:Why because it has MAWS on top of Spine probably just covering top 180 Degree
Yes very likely Austin.
Л-082 was purposely designed and conceived for open war operations against NATO targets;
the very "peculiar" situation in Syrian theatre ,instead, has generated a
scenario totally inconceivable for original designers of the system.
In none instance in a true conflict, in facts, an "enemy" interceptor potentially capable to engage an Su-24M (moreover one perfectly tracked and followed any second, since its take-off, by the Federation's sensor echelon present in the sector)
could had be capable to approach at only 5 km of distance at 35 degrees in the rear sector from lower altitude ,receiving target positional update from a pair of AWACS in the area, to deliver an AIM-9X in LOBL close combat mode ostensibly without a radar lock.
The position on the Su-24M's frame of the Л-082's calotte take into account that in an open conflict a Su-24M pass through or egressing from a contested area ,would mostly proceed at low altitude and high speed, therefore an air engagement with IR homing missiles would come from the upper hemisphere.
If any the very
odd modality of this attack (even discounting the spatial ,temporal and procedural elements of the engagement sequence, very far from the normal international procedure between not enemy operators not threatening each the other)
reinforce the hypothesis of an accurately planned ambush.In particular some factors are important in ascertain that :
1) The vector and azimuth of approach of the Turkish aircraft, that seem to any extent guided directly by third party ISR assets to an useful point of interception, out of the chosen SU-24Ms sensor FOV.
2) The accurate avoidance by part of the F-16 of a direct radar lock , that could have alerted the Su-24M and/or the allied ground operators that was following that Viper in theirs screens ,that the aircraft in question had become hostile
3) The choice of a close range IR missile, shot at point blank range against a target moving at low speed and totally unaware that any aircraft could even only think to engage it ,not constituting a menace for any actor in the theatre (except for the local terrorist groups).
This is the technical meaning of the words "stab in the back".
Last edited by Mindstorm on Fri Dec 04, 2015 5:05 pm; edited 1 time in total