Checking Six is Not Enough: The Evolution and Future of Air Superiority Armament
Abstract
This essay takes a historical approach to examining the nonnuclear armament acquisition process through the case of air superiority weapons. It deals first with the marriage of armament technology with aviation technology to produce military air power in the age of gun weapons. It argues that is was mainly an adaptive, evolutionary process until the 1950s. In part, that was because ammunition and gun technology were well matured, but airframe and engine technologies were still on the steep parts of their developmental curves. With the appearance of practical air-to-air missiles, there were predictions that guns were obsolete and defensive counterair tactics were on the verge of a revolution--from the conventional short-range stern chase of the gun era to a time of all-aspect threats at ranges much greater than before. In Vietnam, those predictions were proven premature, and the aircrew community became firmly committed to the requirement for an internal gun in all new fighters.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1992
- Accession Number
- ADA271601
Entities
People
- David R. Mets
Organizations
- Air University