Re: JH-7/JH-7A Thread
so then we all agree the next gen must be LO and, therefore, have weapon bays.
Only difference is some people think UCAVs will be ready to be fielded for that next gen, and some other people, like me, dont believe ucav technology will be ready for the given types of missions.
To send a ucav to hit a fixed target in a high threat enviroment - sure, that will probably be doable by the time taranis and x47 tech births true operational models. We're talking past 2020 timeframe. But sending ucavs into enemy territory, making them look for targets, deciding they've found something, identifying and deciding how to approeach them and how to evade potential defences - that may be some decades off.
That is the only reason i suggested a piloted next gen plane. i dont care if it will be called jh7b or jh-8 or whatever. And that plane will not be ready before 2020-2025, if piloted.
Mid life upgrades for jh7a may still happen, but id rather see them fumble with weapons integration, sensors, range, engine performance than with LO tech - as it would still be quite visible from afar with all the weapons out, no matter what.
Just like su34 is basically a 90s design, jh7a or b will still basically be 70/80s design. It served well and it wil serve well for the next decade, but it must get a proper replacement. And some notional strike j11bs variant is, truthfuelly, not much better in the strike role.
