Stratos 4

[SebastianP]

Caught an interesting anime on Animesuki (distributution site for unlicensed anime), which I discovered to have some pretty major Whiff potential: Stratos 4 is the title, and the first half of it has been released on DVD in the States. The latest six eps are still unlicensed, though, and still up for grabs. (Be aware, the latest ep ends on a major cliffhanger, and I have *no* clue when the next bunch of eps will be released...)

The idea is, in the near future, the earth is being besieged by comets - big hunks of ice on a collision course with mother Terra. Naturally, letting them hit isn't a feasible option, so the governments of the world have united to form a two-tier defense against them - the space-based Comet Blasters, and the earth-based Meteor Sweepers. The CB teams intercept the comets using rocketships and "trident missiles" (no relation to the SLBM), and the Meteor Sweepers use high-powered aircraft and higher-powered missiles to blast whatever fragments are deemed big enough to be dangerous.

The rocket ships are interesting enough in and of themselves - pretty cool designs, and their crews (cute girls in skintight flight suits) would have been enough to draw me in regardless. (Yes, shallow person here with no social life. ) But it's the aircraft they use that are the real fun. Because unlike most other shows, these aren't original designs - these are mission-modified real aircraft. Immediately recognizable ones, fitted with RATO boosters, most often launched from rail launch units. Apparently, there's a shortage of airframes, and they're using whatever they can get their hands on and just updating the electronics and engines to get as many aircraft out there as possible, which means that anything goes.

So the ground team followed by the show uses a pair of TSR.2s for primary interception, three ancient Yakolev trainers (Firebar/Brewer trainer version - Maestro?), and the chief maintenance officer has a B-58 Hustler as a pet project stored in a hangar. In the last few episodes released, they get a pair of Mig-31s, which don't work properly; I also think I saw either a Mirage IV or Mirage 4000 (couldn't tell the difference) someplace.

Aside from the launch vehicles, it shouldn't be too hard to build these things (and who needs the vehicles anyway?), as the mods are minor. But the real fun is, *what else* can be modified to be a two-seat RATO anti-meteor interceptor? As is repeatedly stated in the show, maneuverability is not an issue - the targets are ballistic. All that matters is brute engine power and rate-of climb...

SP

[GeorgeC]

CF105 Arrow - maybe it was never cancelled all along - just went 'black' 1

Regards

GeorgeC

[JC Carbonel]

in this month's issue of Hobby Japan there is a conversion of the airfix TSR2 into the S4 version ....

JCC

[SebastianP]

CF105 Arrow - maybe it was never cancelled all along - just went 'black' 1

Regards

GeorgeC

The whole thing is as far from black as it gets, actually - the space-based intercepts are aired live on TV, with millions of cheering fans; the ground-based intercepts aren't nearly as common or as glamorous, and the crews aren't nearly as photogenic (at least not until the candidates from the first dozen eps become regular pilots, and even then they're mostly unknown).

Considering the other aircraft so far pulled into the show, the CF-105 would fit in rather well, true. Not sure how likely (or if it's already happened and I just haven't gotten to that ep yet), but still. I imagine the last few Century fighters would work too (F-106 to F-109). Sadly the Draken, premier high-altitude, high-speed interceptor of all time, would probably not hack it - the missile is too big, and the penalty of a second operator would be too large.

(I am confident in my classification of the Draken as premier, given that it is the only aircraft ever to achieve a positive missile lock on a Blackbird at speed and altitude.)

SP

[SPINNERS]

Quite topical for me this as I've just watched all 13 episodes from Series 1 this weekend!

[Damian2]

Ooooh I've got to look out for this!

[Spellbinder99]

Yep, I have the whole first series on DVD. If you trawl the TSR.2 messages here you will see numerous references to the seires. The Launch vehicles are Soviet mobile ICBM launchers I believe.
The base transport aircraft is a HS-125/Dominie derivative also.

At least one of my in-stock Airfix TSR.2s is destined to become a Stratos 4 version, hopefully with launch vehicle and boosters. By the awayb Seb P, the mechanics project ship si not a B-58 as such, but more a combined B-58/XB-70 amalgum.

Cheers

Tony

[mgp]

(I am confident in my classification of the Draken as premier, given that it is the only aircraft ever to achieve a positive missile lock on a Blackbird at speed and altitude.)

The Blackbird would be an obvious contender - big, fast and a two seater as well.  Plus if memory serves me right the A-12 version was meant to be an interceptor, wasn't it?

a combined B-58/XB-70 amalgum.

While we're digging through all the Air Force museums, the XB-70 would have to go on the reactivation list. New electronics and engines for a start, a rotary launch bay for the missiles and a funky new paint job while we're at it and it would be good to go.

I wonder what's sitting around at Monino in Russia?

[Hobbes]

Monino has lots of interesting stuff. The Sukhoi T-100 (?- similar to the B-70), for one.  

[SebastianP]

(I am confident in my classification of the Draken as premier, given that it is the only aircraft ever to achieve a positive missile lock on a Blackbird at speed and altitude.)

The Blackbird would be an obvious contender - big, fast and a two seater as well.  Plus if memory serves me right the A-12 version was meant to be an interceptor, wasn't it?

The trouble with the Blackbird is that doesn't generate enough lift to keep it airborne with anything remotely resembling a full tank of gas unless it's chugging along at a pretty good clip. In other words, that thing pretty much needs for there to be a tanker headed on a parallel course 20,000 feet over the runway when it takes off, or it won't even have enough to go round for a landing...

I think I'll need to watch the rest of it to find out why they didn't go with F-15s and Su-27s, though (since those are made for a similar job already, and are abundant compared to the poor museum exhibits used in most of the show I've seen so far...)

SP

[Hobbes]

I thought that the reason the SR-71 takes off with nearly-empty tanks was leaky gas tanks (the airframe needs to heat up in order for the tanks to seal) rather than a lack of lift.  

[elmayerle]

The Blackbird took off near empty because the airframe couldn't support it's max. gross weight on the ground, that's why they did a lot of aerial refueling.