A-16

[GTX]

I'd add a honking big turboprop with contra-rotating sickle blades in the rear, but then again, it might just be the pills talking...

Regards,

Greg

[LemonJello]

Looking very promising.  You've got a great start going on this one.  I like the idea of a pair of guns, be it centerline or in pods out on the wings.  Good for really tearing into armor columns behind the front lines, or for interdicting supply routes in a COIN mission.

Keep us updated.

[Archangel]

Looking forward to the finnished model. I would keep the M61 where it is just as GD designed it. All you would have to do is have someone make 20MM rounds of the same type that the 30MM Avenger system uses. The only drawback is range compared to the 30MM gun.

[Burncycle]

Depending on the era, you could install an angle rate bombing system in the nose like some versions of the A-4 and harrier

[Supertom]

How about a podded Mauser BK-27?  Better yet, replace the internal M61 with a BK-27 or GIAT30?

Or, since it's a what-if aircraft, add a what-if gun!  Use the ADEN 25.

[AeroplaneDriver]

Or, since it's a what-if aircraft, add a what-if gun!  Use the ADEN 25.

Or something less far-fetched.  Maybe a laser cannon?

(after all the F-35 will likely carry a laser in less time that in took to abandon efforts to turn a tried and true, combat proven cannon from 30mm to 25mm)

[Hobbes]

Use the GAU-8 in a fixed centreline pod instead of a removable pylon. Add to the backstory that the pod is built as an integral part of the fuselage, this should eliminate the problems with the Pave Claw that ysi_maniac linked to.

[elmayerle]

Going with a single Mauser 30mm cannon shouldn't be that much of a problem (given that you have to stay within the structural and dimentional limits of the F-16's ammo bay, developing the ammo storage and feed system could be a bit challenging as you can't really change that bay, it's where the forward and center sections of the aircraft come together).  Sure, the rate of fire is down from a Gatling, but that does reduce the stresses to something the airframe can handle without major redesign and the Mauser cannon should fit nicely where the 20mm Vulcan did, though you'd probably have just the single muzzle extending out into the gun trough on the side of the fuselage.  Since this cannon uses the same rounds as the GAU-8, there shouldn't be any problems with effectiveness.

[ysi_maniac]

... please, look at this ...

[ysi_maniac]

What if these bulges are intended to install a gun into each one?

25 or 30 mm?

EDIT: Vulcan gun was deleted after this pic was taken, so its room can be used for anything we can envisage.

[ysi_maniac]

BTW, tail fin has been changed just for whiffing shake.

[famvburg]

A-10 gun in a centerline Drop Tank?

   ISTR a pic in the early '70s of a VW Beetle parked next to the A-10's gun. I guess if you could figure out how to get something that big under an F-16, much less inside a drop tank.

[Mossie]

Ta dah!

[ysi_maniac]

BTW I am trhinking in ADEN, Oerlikon or Mauser guns not Avenger anyway

[Shasper]

In theory you could use the CFTs as a part of the gun system, but you'll still need external tanks for range/loiter ability, thus reducing the aircraft's useful load.


Shas B)