Yea an A-6 might and I stress might have been able to do the job but not without having significant losses. Don't forget that baghdad was one of the most protected cities against airstrikes when we went in in 1990. We didn't loose a single F-117 during those few days of fighting. That would not have happened with an A-6 which is why they are phasing them out of serivce. Which still goes to prove that Advanced bombers and fighters will always play a significant role in war as along as there is more war.


I suppose America could use sub par equipment if you don't mind seeing more Americans come home in body bags.

 

I'm not buying into the "heavy losses if..." Merdox especially since the A-6 Intruder (now called the EA-6b Prowler) was used during the Iraq War, flew more sorties than the F-117, and not one has ever been shot down. They are still used extensively by the Air Force and Navy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EA-6B_Prowler

 

No the A-6 aka prowler is being done away with as we speak. They are switching them to the F-18 which will perform there roles. Do some research on this you will see I am right. I am not saying the A-6 was not a good aircraft but it is simply outdated and old.

I am not talking about what aircraft flew the most sorties I am talking about the aircraft that made those sorties possable. Which would be the F-117 in the first Gulf war. The radar signiture on an A-6 is freaking huge which makes them an easy target. The radar signiture on the F-117 is that of a sparrow, which makes them a harder target to shoot down. The radar signature of a B-2 is that of a insect Its this stealth capabilities that has saved american pilots lives and paved the way for the B-52, F-15 mud hens, F-16, B-1, F-18, F-14 (which have all ready been taken out of service) and even the A-6 to do there jobs. And yes I do feel that all these aircraft are some of the best in the world.

 

What is phenominal is the weapons/aircraft/technology that the US has that most of the general public have no knowledge of. Stealth is coming up on it's 40 year anniversary. All though first delivery of B-2 was in 1993. One b-2 can do the job of 40 standard aircraft, Even if you base the technology on 1993, that's 15 year old technology. But, technology is only as good as the heart of the crew guiding the technology to work advantegously to a nations advantage. Anybody can hit a button to blast an AGM out of the box, but it's the knowledge and the countermeasure expertise, along with the communication and small nunitions of the ground troops working as a whole, to deliver favorable results of more than what a hyped up plane can do. IMO anway.

 

Our military research spending is a small fraction of what it was as recently as 20 years ago, and is under far more check and scrutiny. The endless and rampant de-militarization of our country starting with the Clinton administration has put us in an extremely vulnerable position. This is not fear - it is fact. A majority of the technology being used in the Gulf right now is stuff that was used in the FIRST Gulf war. We have less active bases and military personnel both domestic and abroad now than we did prior to the Kennedy administration. Our troops our so thinly spread out right now that we couldn't survive being invaded by Mexico. Ever wonder why there were only TWO fighters available for any action on 9/11 along the entire north-eastern seaboard? 20 years ago there would have been an entire squadron of interceptors on the tail of the first plane that deviated within 5 minutes, and those towers would still be standing.

The B2 and the F117 were both developed and put into service prior to even the first Gulf War, and the collapse of the Soviet Union. The only really "new" warfare equipment put into service since then is the F22. Not even the current Nimitz class carriers are of new design - but from a design originating in 1975. The F18 - while freshened - is a 35 year old design as well - and it is the staple plane alongside the F16 which was designed and put into service even before that.

History has a habit of repeating itself... a long time ago door-to-door and face-to-face troop fighting was the norm. Then we got into modern warfare and this in turn fueled the cold war. Now we are back to ground troop fighting. Guess what the next step is? Yep - back to superweapons. That is - so long as a more military minded administration leads the country in the next 20 years. If not - we will quickly get left in the dust by other countries, and become even more vulnerable.

THe B52's did the same in this war as they did in the previous Gulf War... they conducted the carpet-bombing in the sand and took out the armored columns. They did NOT use the big bombers in the towns or for the precision strikes on bridges, factories, and infrastructure. Those were conducted mostly with F18, F15, and F117's.

Side note on the A6 - it has not dropped ordnance during this war, but has provided electronic warfare support, and therefor is able to maintain somewhat of a "safe" distance. The A6 has not carried ordnance since 97 aside from a gun cannon and does not have the speed and maneuverability to engage in air combat by todays standards. Yes, it is a great plane - but in today's warfare - it's role is not that of an attack fighter or a precision bomber.







The above images were taken on 4th of July weeks of 2007 and 2008, at the now defunct KI Sawyer AFB in northern Michigan. One of over 40 domestic air force bases closed since 1992, and one of 32 bases of all types which were listed in 1993 for closure alone.

You want to talk about a waste of money - closing these facilities is exactly that. This base was the last remaining bomber and tanker base in central North America. It was slated to receive both the B1 and the B2, but once it made BRaC's list, those plans vanished. The financial impact to the nearby communities has been devastating, and has only barely begun to recover in the last 5 years. In the span of 18 months over 11,000 personnel and families were removed from the area, taking with them over 20 million dollars in annual commerce, and resulting in the loss of over 5000 civilian jobs in the surrounding communities.

It cost them 143 MILLION just to close the base.

The closure of this base left just 2 B-52 bases active in the entire world.

This was just ONE base closing, way back in 1995. Now multiply the effects by a hundred.

*dusts off*

Anything else?

[/soapbox]

 

Sro, unfortuntely you are right.
I had part insight to the ssbn731, whiich even to todays standards is extremely impressive on it's aquatic capabilities.

The base where my grandpa spent his last years, is gone. The base my dad was stationed at is shut down. And we still suffer the consequences of those actions.

If you take the gnp vs capita to military, I believe we are at the lowest point we have ever been??

 

I forgot to mention... Those 5000 jobs were from a 3-county area consisting of less than 70,000 people.

 

The base that shut down where I am from was similar story. Town of 50,000.

 

How long ago was this? What base?

 

It was Walker Air Force base, and it was shut down quite a while ago. 70's if I remember right Sro. All though there is still a fair amount of military activity out there, including the Federal law enforcement training center out there. The Roswell municipal airport is on part of that land now, and there is a company still manufacturing missiles ( unsure of which ones, but could find out for ya), on part of that land. There are still quite a few Atlas missile silos in the immediate area. 7 that I personnaly know of, of which 2 are still heavily gaurded. The latest blow tho, was during the Clinton admin, that not only closed ( what was it 33 bases? ) but also downsized a lot of bases and employees. Of which Roswell, had a quite a few people out of work from the downsizing. Which included Holloman A/F Base and Cannon A/F base. They tried to completely close Cannon down and it was a mess of a nightmare. Which had sever impact on the small towns surrounding it, Clovis, Portales, Roswell, Dexter, etc. You wouldn't beleive all the people lines up protesting that. It was a heck of a sight. They didn't close it after all, but did downsize it greatly. Kirtland and White Sands was also affected, but not as widefelt in my community. All this is in a 150 mile radius of me. With the hardest hitting downsizing within 70 miles. Well, b4 I moved last year.