Boulton-Paul Spectre

[Joe C-P]

Silly boy!! :dum:

But I DID consider puuting a rear gunner in the well created by the large air brake of the 2-seat Typhoon.
Dark Earth, Dark Green and Sky, with early WW2 markings??
Cool, eh???
     

How about  a four-barrelled Gatling-type gun, in a gimbel-type mount. The gun could be controlled from the second seat using a TV and joystick, or you could have a blister window.

JoeP

[Swamphen]

Or maybe some kind of aerial depth charge you leave in your wake?  Like a chaff dispenser but with a hell of a lot more attitude.  I'm thinking some kind of clustered concussion grenade that goes off behind you when you've got someone close enough on your six with a lock on you.  Like a flak burst.

Get in line behind Dale Brown.    The Old Dog had (has?) its tail cannon replaced by a 'Stinger airmine launcher', which operates very similarly to what you suggest here...

[Hobbes]

Has anyone ever created a type of rocket-propelled AAM which can actually be fired (in flight) directly aft against a pursuer?  Maybe too "Airwolf" an idea but would sure save a lot of tracking time vs shooting a missile forward which has to turn 180 degrees to strike your opponent.

ISTR reading that either the Russians or the Israelis were developing this. Nothing complicated, they just hung an existing missile donkey-first on a pylon.
Can't find an online source right now, though.
I suspect the disadvantage is that a rear-facing AAM can only be used to fire to the rear (because the missile loses a lot of energy if it tries to turn and overtake the firing aircraft), and a front-facing AAM can be fired at all azimuths.  

[Jschmus]

I've read somewhere that the newer off-bore targeting systems allow for "over-the-shoulder" shots, whereby an AAM may be fired at a target behind the launching aircraft.  I haven't heard of it being tested in combat anywhere, but there's been a dearth of any kind of real ACM the last couple of years.

[NARSES2]

[
Or maybe some kind of aerial depth charge you leave in your wake?  Like a chaff dispenser but with a hell of a lot more attitude.  I'm thinking some kind of clustered concussion grenade that goes off behind you when you've got someone close enough on your six with a lock on you.  Like a flak burst.

Airial mine's were developed for ground based AA instalations in WWII. Would of meant releasing parachute mines from barrage ballons, don't know whether they were impact or time fused (impact would obviously lead to a few complaints from local civilians). Was trialled but don't know about use - so shouldn't be that difficult to sort out now with modern cluser munition technology and proximity fusing.

Also I seem to remember some talk of airial para-mines in WWI ?

Chris

[Hobbes]

Hah. Found it, here. It's an R-73 derivative.  

[Hobbes]

Aerial mines: why bother? You can use the space either to accomodate wings, a parachute or something like that so your mine can float, or you can put a rocket motor in it and have the missile actively hunt the target.
Naval and land mines make sense because they're invisible. Air mines aren't. They also aren't persistent (sooner or later they'll fall from the sky).
And in a dogfight, both sides are just as likely to run into an air mine. This sort of defeats the purpose of having them...

[NARSES2]

Aerial mines: why bother? You can use the space either to accomodate wings, a parachute or something like that so your mine can float, or you can put a rocket motor in it and have the missile actively hunt the target.
Naval and land mines make sense because they're invisible. Air mines aren't. They also aren't persistent (sooner or later they'll fall from the sky).
And in a dogfight, both sides are just as likely to run into an air mine. This sort of defeats the purpose of having them...

Exactly Hoobes which is why it isn't used, but I was talking about WWII or even WWI technology. In a way it was similar to the barrage ballon idea I suppose. Make the enemy fly higher to avoid the obstacle and thus hinder their aim. More logical when all you had to aim with was a Mark I eyeball.

Chris

[Radish]

The first "Spectre", a GR.2 has had it's u/c plus doors, etc, glued on.
A few more tiny details to add.....
braces for the u/c doors from sprue, detail the front wall (this model has no nose cone....I'll explain later), add a few bits of sprue to the cockpit rear wall and the odd lump and bump/aerial and straight to the paintshop tomorrow, after calling in at the tarpaulin drapery service!!

Right then......
the story.........

Flight Lieutenant (To be decided) returns from his mission against Communist Insurgents just outside Rhodesia's eastern boundaries, as part of a Commonwealth Force supporting democracy in Central Africa.
As he lands, he notices that the snake he'd discovered mid-flight (unconcious due presumably to altitude) and that he'd stamped on, had now re-awaken with a badattitude and bit him. The fangs had only just pierced his suit, but he "banged out" anyway, leaving the Spectre to come to a halt just off the runway.
Fl Lt ?? survived, plus after a brief period, returned to the Sqn.
The snake.....result unknown, but the pilot claimed it as a probable!
As the Spectre had slight battle damage and was a very high hours airframe, it was towed to the side of the airfield, and some parts were removed before it was left to rot and become a haven for snakes.
Thereafter, Fl.Lt ?? was known as "Snake".

The reason for the story....

The kit is complete, but the kit decals (with cockpit instruments) dissolved and with no substitutes, I needed to cover the cockpit with a tarpaulin. Plus, the ejection seat in the kit is crap and this gives me a reason to use my resin Pavla "Jaguar" seat (I have a few) on my next project.
I can save the Mirage V nose from this kit and put it on my next, the GR2a of Fl Lt "Snake" ?? (name still undecided) which'll feature full-length fuselage snake decals.

Camouflage of the GR2 is SE Asia, but sand instead of tan, with black undersurfaces, all very weathered.
Target for completion is Thursday afternoon.

Next, the GR2a, will be cut out on Thursday evening or Friday evening (Stafford and Mercia IPMS branch meetings respectively), and will be again in a modified SE Asia scheme, but with pale grey undersurfaces.

[Radish]

After the GR2a, it'll be an "export" Spectre.

First up could be either Polish or Estonian (remember, these are "Free" after the Soviets were pushed back in 1956).

Or Portuguese, Britain's "oldest" ally.

I'll probably change my mind several times!

                   

[Matt_S]

PICTURES! WE WANT PICTURES, DAMNIT!

What he said.

Matt B)  

[Jschmus]

It's hokey, I know, but your anonymous Flight Leftenant's name could always be "Plissken".  

[elmayerle]

It's hokey, I know, but your anonymous Flight Leftenant's name could always be "Plissken".

talk about someone who'd want to "Escape" his past....

[overscan]

A nice idea, but why Boulton-Paul?

I'd use Fairey as the Mirage was heavily influenced by the FD2 and Fairey and Dassualt even suggested a Spey-engined co-production delta combining FD2 and Mirage know-how.

I guess its up to you though

[Radish]

Boulton-Paul??

Just liked the name.