Bash the ATD-X thread

[Priory_of_Sion]

Japan has revealed their 5th generation fighter/demonstrator which is officially called the X-2 for now.

Here is a video of what appears to be the ATD-X's engines and an RC test model which looks hilarious for some reason.

Another video showing some computer modeled manuevers and some stereotypical Japanese music at the end.

[Belesarius]

I dunno why but it doesn't seem to look super stealthy to me.

[Priory_of_Sion]

I dunno why but it doesn't seem to look super stealthy to me.

It looks more like a smaller Stealth Eagle with a bad paint job with thrust vectoring. I don't think they were trying to get F-22 levels of a RCS. 

 

I don't seem to know how to change the Thread's title to Bash the ATD-X. Please help. 

[Belesarius]

Click on edit post, then use full editor to change the thread title.

[LostCosmonaut]

I vaguely recall seeing pictures of a full size Japanese 5th gen aircraft before. Perhaps I am misremembering.

[Collimatrix]

ATD-X is a subscale demonstrator.  If the Japanese government gets sick of the JSF program's shenanigans makes the bold move to go ahead with their own fifth-generation fighter the real deal will be bigger.

 

Stealth looks reasonable, given the usual proviso that this is not a production bird.  The lighting doesn't show it well, but the fuselage has chines and is angular.  It looks sorta round in the video, but it ain't.

 

What I want to know is why they're using those shitty, half-assed X-31 style vectoring paddles.

[Sturgeon]

I am guessing the cockpit is re-used from an F-15. Same thing Boeing did for the X-32 (except in that case it was a Harrier cockpit).

[Priory_of_Sion]

I vaguely recall seeing pictures of a full size Japanese 5th gen aircraft before. Perhaps I am misremembering.

There was a couple leaked grainy photos of the ATD-X a while ago. 

 

What I want to know is why they're using those shitty, half-assed X-31 style vectoring paddles.

They don't look that terrible. 

[Collimatrix]

They look exactly like the X-31's thrust vectoring paddles, only with sawtooth cuts on them.  Those were, if memory serves, found to be half-assed.

 

I am curious to know if they're any more efficient of a nozzle than the 2D nozzle on the F119.

[Priory_of_Sion]

They look exactly like the X-31's thrust vectoring paddles, only with sawtooth cuts on them.  Those were, if memory serves, found to be half-assed.

 

I am curious to know if they're any more efficient of a nozzle than the 2D nozzle on the F119.

I thought the X-31 had two flaps for a second there. 

[LostCosmonaut]

For reference, here's the X-31 paddles:

 

[Vanagandr]

Another video showing some computer modeled manuevers and some stereotypical Japanese music at the end.

Is this video suggesting at about 50 seconds that high yolos allow you to turn tighter? This is a novel concept

[cm_kruger]

It seems pretty small for a 5th gen prototype.

[Khand-e]

I can say, with all due biases expected of me, that it looks like the least impressive 5th generation fighter so far from what we've seen of it.

[Toxn]

I wonder if it and the Iranian 'stealth' fighter have long chats together about what they're going to do when they grow up?

[Khand-e]

*Iranian "Stealth" Glider.

[Priory_of_Sion]

I can say, with all due biases expected of me, that it looks like the least impressive 5th generation fighter so far from what we've seen of it.

Did you expect anything better from the land of the rising sun? 

[Tied]

It seems pretty small for a 5th gen prototype.

 

for you 

[SoukouDragon]

I vaguely recall seeing pictures of a full size Japanese 5th gen aircraft before. Perhaps I am misremembering.

 

The full scale prototype was first revealed to the public on a televised program last year, around May, if I recall correctly. So you've probably have seen it. Before that, it was a somewhat smaller black mock up built to test the stealth capabilities which was tested in France about 5 years ago or so. Before this black mock up was a smaller, 1/5 scale or so RC to test the designs ability to fly. The whole program has been going for a long time.

 

Originally, the earliest flight test for the full prototype was announced to be late 2014. But they kept on delaying, month after months, delays. It actually still hasn't had it's first flight test. The latest announced first flight plan is the earliest by the middle of this month, but could be later. The reasons they gave was restart-up issues with the engines.

 

After it's first flight, it's planned that the X-2 will fly at most 200 hours for 2016. And it is planned that a decision will be in 2018 as to whether or not to entirely develop a new F3 fighter from the prototype entirely domestically or to seek joint development with international partners. Decisions on whether or not should it be available for export will also be decided on in 2018. Entry into service of the F3 is currently aimed for the 2030s.

 

It's first flight is planned to be a flight from Nagoya airport to ASDF Gifu airbase. Here are some pictures of it in Nagoya.

 

 

 

 

[Belesarius]

If you post like this, it's gonna be really hard to ban you. Please, continue.

[SoukouDragon]

If you post like this, it's gonna be really hard to ban you. Please, continue.

 

[Collimatrix]

Looks like taxiing testing is underway:

[LostCosmonaut]

So, if I'm understanding this right, that thing you posted there is basically a Japanese Saab 210 (in that it's just a tech demonstrator for a later full scale design).

[Collimatrix]

Yep.  Doesn't even have a weapons bay.

[Priory_of_Sion]

 

I'm just going to assume they didn't retract the landing gear for safety purposes.