[You Dirty Rats]

The plane has a "tub" of titanium surrounding the pilot. It was designed as a tank-killer and has to fly very low. It's hazardous even in peacetime, as the very low flight path required for operations means the same for training.

I saw one of the plants that produced the shells for the 30mm gatling gun. When the gun fires, the plane loses 100MPH of velocity! The shell tips are made of depleted uranium, which is very heavy and is designed to penetrate former Soviet tanks. It has the added advantage of upsetting the environmentalists!

[Wright is right!]

"I saw one of the plants that produced the shells for the 30mm gatling gun. When the gun fires, the plane loses 100MPH of velocity!"

In other words, a Killer Thrust Reverse system. I somehow doubt the 100-knot figger, but I'm sure the effect IS substantial. When the gun is firing, you have a rapid series of force vectors directly to the rear of the flight path, so it sure would slow the a/c down.

Michael

[aviator]

When the gun fires, the plane loses 100MPH of velocity!......

It does not lose any airspeed during a gun firing pass.

[americafirst]

Not exactly - that's an 'urban legend'. You'll lose 100 knots in a hard turn though. One thing about the titanium bathtub: the plexiglass directly overhead the cockpit is not bulletproof. Meaning, I was always afraid that if I was inverted close to the ground (as in a low angle pop up delivery) and took a small arms round through the canopy, the bullet would bounce around in that titanium bathtub until it hit something - like me!