Let’s see the “perfumed prince” F-35 do that. Roads have all kinds of FOD all over the place, and the 35’s intake is nicely positioned to perform an impromptu roadside cleanup. There’s a reason the Hog has its engines mounted so high.
Yabut, was there a bar nearby so the plane could park in the lot and the pilot grab a cold one?
Looking at the bigger picture, the US is heavily in debt, and we are already involved in numerous conflicts. Yet we have war planes from Michigan landing in Estonia. Something seems off here.
Wouldn’t an aircraft landing on a highway leave damage on the highway surface? I don’t think highways are built to accommodate the weight involved in an aircraft landing ...
They may not be pretty and sleek, but they are what you need when close air support can save your bacon.God save the warthogs and may they fly into a better incarnation can be developed, tested and manufactured.
While I was in the ROK back in 1979 there were roadways that were as straight as an arrow.It didn’t take long to figure out that those roadways would soon become runways in the event that a war broke out with the nuts up north of the DMZ.
Try landing on a rural highway in an F-35 without vertical take-off and landing (VTOL). At over 100 million a pop the pucker factor for the Brass is to great to even attempt it.
The Warthog is the right plane for the right time. It needs to receive some more technology investment but the airframe is perfect for the task of flying low and slow, taking small arms fire, all the while raining death and destruction on behalf of ground troops.
Because here in Michigan we know all about bad roads.
Is Estonia part of Michigan now?