NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: Well, a closed R&D-liked RP between two other nations, although others could of course, observe. /OOC

"Hawk flight seven one one, landing request authorized. Watch for the traffic. Good luck," the flight control tower announced over Bonrane's radio, crisp and clear. Flying the beautifully-designed Os-280 aircraft, it was always his dream to become a test pilot. A former fighter pilot used to fly small one-engine multirole fighters, he found the Os-280A to be very easy to handle, and pleasant to fly. Applying pressure onto the ejection seat, he called over the radio. "Roger that. Approaching airfield from the northeast," he said, as he moved the control stick and noticed his heading on his HUD began to change.

Looking outside through the streamlined canopy, the wings are clearly visible. Carrying two of the sleek "stealthy" fuel tanks, they were only a little different in appearance from the JASSM cruise missiles he used to carry. Looking at front, he could already see the ILS landing system working, as he tried to line up his aircraft with the runway, now just a few kilometers away. The two pulse detonation engines continued their job with two huge roaring sounds, as his aircraft began to slow down, deploying the special brake and flap systems he had gotten used to on this beautiful yet tailless aircraft. He found having no tails to be a slight nuisance, but he eventually got used to it. Finally lowering his landing gear, the beautiful bird continued to decrease its altitude and speed, until the landing gears finally touched down onto the paved cement runway. Touchdown, he thought, as he smiled and looked over. There seems to be two more Os-280s at his airbase, yet they looked somewhat... Different.

Bonrane smiled. Today is a day very special for him - and for the entire of OMASC, as he knew that not only are the competitors from Adejaani coming here in a few short hours, but also the most important of all - the people from the Scandavian States' government and their Imperial Air Force. Along with the Omzian Air Force people, he thought, as he began to move the aircraft onto the taxiway. It was ironic to him that the Omzian Air Force is only interested in the C variant of the bird, the strike variant, but he had little objection, seeing how much money the whole of OMASC would get if they win this competition anyways. It will be a tough day for the former Lieutenant.

"Bit of a rough landing, wasn't that?" Colonel Peter Nyder commented drily. He was a renowned Wing CO who was precise and efficient. Rather like the Vulcans from Star Trek. However, Colonel Nyder was just about the textbook definition of boring. With his slightly nasal monotone voice, he sounded as enthusiastic when piloting, as he did at briefings or telling jokes. It had become an urban legend just what kind of a person Mrs Nyder was, if she even existed, let alone the two Nyder children.

"Don't sweat it, sir, we'll be flying ourselves in no time and beating the competition!" Lieutenant Colonel Robert Black was the complete opposite to Nyder. Short and slightly rounder in the middle than average, he looked rather like Mario from the video game Super Mario Brothers. He had a big grin and a warm sense of humor... Without any italian accents, that is.

The Adejaani Air Forces had spared no expense for this demonstration, nor had the Omzian Air Force. An entire Air Force Base was at Nyder's disposal and there were over a dozen transport aircraft carrying technicians and tons of sophisticated equipment.

Black rubbed his thick mustache and was reminded of Formula 1 or NASCAR racing teams preparing for a race. Of course... Neither Michael Schumacher or Dale Earnheardt Jr raced anything this fast, or expensive or had a government's backing...

"Be careful with that aircraft!" Nyder sounded forceful and Black looked over. The two seat AFD-7B model now being unloaded was literally fresh from the factory. It had never been flown before, one of the first production Block 2 aircraft, it incoporated a number of improvements. Hopefully, the ARS-5 radar system would be the decisive edge in the coming demonstrations, as would a few minor improvements. Though would the whole system stand up to the testing? Who knows?

"Right." Nyder started pointing fingers. "I want this aircraft ready to fly in two hours. I want everyone set up immediately. Come on, Black, we need to get ready ourselves."

The MC-216 Ranger tactical transport, along with its escort of four F-27A fighters, began the descent to the Omzian airbase. The fighters were in the lead and formed up in what was called a Dragging Diamond formation, with the aft fighter the lowest and therefor the first to land with the other fighters following suit. It wasn't quite a combat landing, but it was still dangerous and the possiblity of one of the pilots screwing up and littering the tarmac with aircraft parts wasn't to be discounted. However, this time it went off without a hitch and the lumbering transport followed not five minutes later.

Once the aircraft were parked and the engines shut down the fighter pilots and the officers in the troop hold of the Ranger left their respective aircraft to greet their Adejaani and Omzian counter-parts.

"Bit on the 'light' side." Colonel Nyder commented and poked at the thruster nozzle hatch. "The engines aren't generating enough thrust, so the aircraft 'wobbles'. I want it fixed immediately. This is an important demonstration." Nyder finished drawling and patted the aircraft.

"Public relations, sir." Black pointed. About a third of the base was used by the Omzian group, a third by his and the remaining was for the observation group, judges and all the various dignitaries and monitoring equipment. "Reckon we should meet the potential customers, sir?"

Nyder nodded curtly and made sure he looked presentable. He was a Wing CO, not a tour guide. He smoothed down his jet black hair and straightened his glasses as he marched forward to the Scandinavian States' aircraft and saluted formally. "I'm Colonel Peter Nyder and this is my co-pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Black. Welcome to this little demonstration."

"Maybe I should take that direct transfer offer after all," Captain Norae joked with Bonrane as he looked at the aircraft. Like Bonrane, they were close friends and graduated from the same Flight School in the same year, but Captain Norae continued his military career instead. Bonrane looked up. "Well, being a test pilot has its own disadvantages," he said as he looked at his watch. "No more practice fights and exercises, but I do get to fly all the near little planes. A bit of disappointment that I didn't get to fly the Rapier Mark Two though." Looking up, he noticed the Scandavian States delegations some distance away, facing the direction of the Omzian winter sun. "Look, the Scandavian States people are here," Norae said it before him, noting that some of the Omzian delegations and even the Adejaani test pilots - their rival for the time being - are already greeting them. "Lets go," Norae fixed his officer's beret, as he walked towards the Scandavian States delegation.

Saluting as a member of the Omzian Air Force, he announced, "Welcome to the Jonara Air Force Base, home of the Bankarit Fighter Wing. I'm Captain Norae, the test pilot for the OS-280C strike variant, and here," he looked over at Bonrane, about a mere centimeter away, "is the test pilot of the OS-280A, Jonare Bonrane, former Lt in the Omzian Air Force. Welcome, and enjoy your stay."

Smiling, they extended their hands for a shaking or two with the Scandavian States delegates. Their aircraft was a mere distances away, and Bonrane hoped that the Scandavian States delegation would notice.

Nyder, as the more senior, introduced himself and Black to the two pilots and shook their hands after an exchange of greetings. "So what's in store for this demonstration?"

Nyder, as the more senior, introduced himself and Black to the two pilots and shook their hands after an exchange of greetings. "So what's in store for this demonstration?"
OOC: Well, if you are directing his post towards me, then I'll respond :P Also, I won't be able to RP much for the rest of the day (4PM here at my location) due to homework and some other stuff, so... yeah. /OOC

IC:

The Captain smiled at his Adejaani counterparts, though he had kept in his mind about the rivalry that will be present during the whole demostration. "Well, we are expectign a lot of things, including the basic demostrations such as maneuvers, fly-bys, and the likes, but also other things such as live weapons firings and simulated engagement with simulated targets, unmanned drones, and even aircraft such as the F-22As and the Su-35s from the Omzian Air Force's Aggressor Training Wings. We might also do some air-to-ground weapon firing demostrations at the Yellow Pebbles Testing Range," the Captain pointed to the northeast, a seemingly endless place with a mix of vegetation and rocks. "Plus, if we have the time, even mock engagments between the OS-280 and the AFD-7."

OOC: Yes, Nyder was talking to Norae and Bonrane. And hey, it's fine. I've said there should be no "rush" to post, post when you can. This is how it "should" be.

IC "That would be most acceptable." Nyder said imperially while Black rolled his eyes discretely. "Are all the guests here yet? We should begin soon."

Admiral Zac Brosgarth looked around the capacious hangar and found himself depressed. He was the only person in Adejaani who had Pilot's wings and who was not part of the Adejaani Air Forces. The service reorganisation a while ago had redefined the responsibilities. Logically speaking, anything on dry land went to the Land Forces, anything in the air belonged to the Air Forces and anything on the water belonged to the Naval Forces. Thus everyone here belonged to the Air Force or a contractor/specialist attached to it... All except Brosgarth. Well, he would've become an Air Force officer except he chose to command a battle group, thus staying Navy...

"How's that software going?" He asked loudly and stared at the screen... Which might've been written in Egyptian heiroglyphs. The specialists were combing over the radar software, trying to refine it, as were other specialists and technicians combing the flight control, fire control software and almost everything else. The senior specialist shrugged. No way to tell if it would work.

At least the best thing about the AFD-7 Starfury was that it was 100% Adejaani design. Before, Adejaani Government Industries had to rely on OMASC for almost everything, from radar to engines, to flight software. But this was different. Every last wing section, structural frame member, radar screen, fastener, thread, bolt, engine... Even the ejector seat fabric.

"Just get it done, boys and girls. The software you're developing is going to make or break us. The ARS-5 radar system is unique, just like our unique aircraft... Now what the hell is taking so long?" Brosgarth grumbled aloud and looked onto the runway where Nyder and everyone was milling about.

The Captain quickly replied, as the test pilot stared at his Adejaani counterparts, reminding himself of the rivalry. "I'm sure that all are here now, maybe just short of some Omzian delegations, but it won't be a big problem. I'm looking forward to begin the demostration, and let's see who will gain the edge."

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Sitting in the cockpit again, and having the majority of his body enclosed in the standard Omzian G-Suit, he stared at the Omzian Air Force maintenance crews, mostly enlisted airmens and non-comms. Looking beyond the busy Omzian personnel, he could spot the Adejaani aircraft. Another beautiful bird, he admitted within his mind, but he also knew that this time it was a fight instead of some type of cooperation, and he also knew that the Adejaani competitors are willing to fight as hard as the Omzians to win the ultimate prize - a contract given by the Scandavian States Imperial Air Force. He had also examined the Adejaani aircraft once, and it looked finely made with percision. But of course, nothing is better than his own aircraft. Although he didn't not named his aircraft yet and still called it by the serial number - ZEE FA 502, he loved every moment in this bird, and it was surely a pleasure to fly. However, this time it was different, and his aircraft must fight. This time it is not going to be for pleasure - it is going to be for glory, and perhaps a big amount of cold, hard, blue Omzars.

Looking at his $500 Omzars watch, he could tell that the demostration is only 30 minutes away. Yet he's already in this aircraft, ready to fly. However, the bird still needed a few tweaks and fixes, and he hoped that these specially selected ground crews took every picoseconds available to them, to make this aircraft as healthy and fit as possible. The crews know about the thousand Omzar bonus anyways, he thought as he relaxed on the comfortable ejection seat, not yet covered by the straeamlined bubble canopy.

"So you don't know if it's going to work or not." Nyder asked in his usual nasal and imperial voice. If Brosgarth wasn't quietly watching (Nyder was many things, but he wasn't in the habit of being reprimanded), the senior tech would've simply raised a fuss. As it was, the man muttered an apology. Something about working well in simulations, but whether it would work in the real world... "Fine, just get the software uploaded." Nyder grated and yet more techs went to plug in the leads to the radar housing.

Although sorely tempted, Nyder bit his lip and watched quietly. Ground crews, maintenance staff and everyone were running around. He'd chewed them out already and looking over their shoulders and barking at them some more would only cause nervousness. Let them do their jobs.

What was worrying was Black, the co-pilot. Not that he was incompetant... But his waistline and overall weight were becoming a worry for the flight medics. The extremely high-G maneuvres were brief, but it tended to leave people extremely disoriented. Nyder never had much of a problem with this disorientation... Indeed, he'd managed to land on an aircraft carrier, in a storm, without any aid except his own onboard instrumentation (the radio was shorted out) while the deck was pitched to the side!

"Colonel. Omzian aircraft is going to go first." An aide reported, saluted and rushed off.

OOC: Omz, you may begin. ;) Oh... I do have a suggestion. Using "real" missiles, but with completely inert warheads. It will definitely add to the simulation results and far more exciting, plus the usual telemetry tracking and stuff.

Colonel Nyder sat in the slightly stifling cockpit of his aircraft. It didn't have a nickname, though in keeping with his squadron's radio callsigns, he was Kaled One. The pre-flight checks had been done long ago and now they were sitting in the cockpit, still strapped in, using the generator in the truck nearby to operate the computers. Nyder kept himself busy by toggling switches and running the aircraft through its mock paces...

While Black himself read comic books. The two were like this. After the 'serious' business was over of pre-flight, Nyder psyched himself up by pretending he was in the heat of battle while Black simply unwinded. Of course, the two worked together brilliantly.

They were professionals and extremely accurate. Although both grew up in the age of guided weapons, both had preferred the old generation of unguided 'iron' bombs. With a roughly 93% success rate, Nyder and Black delivered the unguided ordnance almost as accurately as most guided weapons, even while under fire. It was almost an anachronism, but Kaled Squadron was the cheapest to operate in the Adejaani Air Forces, because an unguided bomb was maybe ten times cheaper than a guided one.

Without bothering to look up, Black adjusted the ventilation nozzle beside him. Unlike the Omzian product, the AFD-7 was more a bomber-fighter than a fighter-bomber. As such, the cockpit was completely sealed, like a bomber's and thus the ventilation and air conditioning was a necessity... Not long now.

Bonrane looked as the crews finished mounting the OMASC Air Snake short-range air-to-air missiles and the AMRAAM-N medium-to-long ranges AAMs, as he began checking the performance of the computer system. The powerful computer system, despite being very advanced as a result of the Omzian IT industry, had its own bugs, but he was sure that the nasty bugs and other problems are now fixed and non-existant. The idea of using special training variants of the missiles in demostrations didn't appear too... "normal" for him, but he already got used to blowing up the QF-16 drones since the day he entered Advanced F/A-160 Combat Pilot Training years ago. As the ground crews gave the signal, the bubble canopy began to close, as he then began to power up the powerful PDE-turbofan engines. He was often nervous about this new propulsion system on his aircraft, but now the almighty roar that he would often hear is a nothing but a relief for him, considering the advantages that the pair of engines would give him in both demostration and combat - even though he isn't a military man anymore.

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Bonrane was soon over the testing range, now a dry land not far from the base, littered with various targets for the ground attack demostration - everything from old artillery pieces to simulated command positions, while still shining with its history as an old army barracks closed tens of years ago. Even though they aren't necessarily the best target he would attack with the percision munition on the aircraft, the OMASC-designs PDAS bombs' accuracy and capabilities would give him relief. As he ingressed towards the target area, using the advanced IR and optical sensors on his aircraft for targeting, he immediately sighted and locked onto his assigned target - an abandoned building with a concrete field parked with what it appeared to be small helicopters along with small simulated AAA positions. At a medium altitude, the bomb bay slited open as he finished feeding data to the GPS receiver and the IR sensors on his PDAS bombs through the advanced targeting systems, while configuring the fuze for attack. Normally it is a very complex series of tasks on older aircraft he used to fly, but the automated nature of the aircraft had lend a very helpful hand. Soon, as he began closing in, he finally began to release the bombs - a total of four of the new 250lb PDAS bombs and two huge-sized 2000lb PDAS bombs. Pickle, he thought, as he applied pressure onto the particular button on the sleek control stick, while feeling that the bombs had now left the aircraft.

As he kicked up his PDE-turbofan engine to an awesome speed of Mach 1.6 - not quite worried the supersonic boom, since it is over a testing range consisting of restricted air and ground space - and began jinking and releasing flares, he could hear a series of huge booms as he began to climb and leave the target area. It was the bombs detonating, exploding, and spreading havoc. The two huge 2000lb PDAS bombs, with delayed fuze, quickly locked on the main multistory building as they soon penetrated the ceiling of the structure and detonated inside - immediately demolishing the big structure. At almost the same time, the four 250lb PDAS, targeting the concrete field with the helicopters, detonated just very slightly above the ground, with its explosive force and the shower of fragments destorying every helicopter in sight. He knew with confidence that he'd at least achieve a 99% kill rate. Despite having a high price tag, the onboard targeting systems of the Os-280 and the PDAS bombs gave him great accuracy and flexibility, he thought as a slight smile began to appear.

Still carrying the air-to-air missiles, he began to progress to the next area, while checking is fuel. As long as he stayed on course without the afterburner, he had more than enough.

"Right, let's do it this way." Black, who was in the back seat tapped a small command into the computer unit and then sent the picture to Nyder, who nodded. "I recommend a 'skiing' movement." Nyder again nodded and said his affirmative through the radio, then began concentrating along the mapped path.

Ever since the AFD-9 fighter program, AGI techs had developed an extremely complex, though effective AI program. Calculating air temperature, range, airspeed, altitude, pitch and numerous other factors, the AI could calculate the best conditions for releasing any particular weapon. The AI program was essentially written for unguided weapons, which would definitely save a lot of scarce money.

Black continued tapping in commands, selecting a series of 500 pound bombs and then feeding the flying profile forward. "Commencing attack run." Nyder announced formally and banked left, then did a tight turn to the right, releasing the first bomb. "That was a bit high, but there was an air pocket in the middle." He commented after the first target was hit, which was a mock barracks.

"Second target..." Nyder banked to the right this time. It was called the 'skiing' maneuver because the aircraft went in a left and right zig zag motions and generally released their ordnance at the 'tips' of the motions. In this way, six targets in a relatively straight line could be hit, whilst still dodging most hostile fire aimed at them.

"Target six destroyed." Nyder and Black both released their hands from the consoles and flexed. The AI worked pretty well, the dry desert air causing some minor problems, particularly in the final stages, but the targets were destroyed anyway. 99.9% isn't the same as 100% and Nyder resolved for absolute perfection.

"Air to air range is next..."

"Target destroyed," Bonrane simply announced, without the style that he would use in combat operations. He hated speaking over the radio with techanical terms, and is much more comfortable this way. Receiving data from his advanced datalinking systems, and with his radar still off, he could already see that enemy targets are already near him - a total of five QF-16s, F-16Cs converted to drones with a simple radar and a flight computer, along with ECM systems, radar warning receivers and decoy dispensers. They were only more challenging when compared to the simple subsonic drones he'd shoot in entrance training, but they still simulated what he'd encounter in typical air-to-air operations, minus the advanced ECM systems he'd expect. Sporting a total of four of the experimental rocket-ramjet AMRAAMs that OMASC has designed just recently, sporting thrust vectoring, a new warhead, and an AESA radar seeker, Bonares expected them to be a good combination with the Basilisk short range missiles that he'd use. But that didn't matter much, it is his aircraft that is more important.

Turning on his advanced ELPI radar, he peeked as he could already spot the four "enemy" aircraft, represented as dots on his radar MFD screen, and as small red-coloured shapes on his other MFD screen, currently switched to situational awareness mode. Beginning to take advantage of the air-to-air modes, he already locked onto two as he entered one of the target tracking modes, as he could see that both aircraft were travelling at low supersonic speeds, just slightly below him. As the aircraft's radar continue to emit the stealthy "snapshots", he could see that he was on their nine o'clock, as he maneuvered into an ideal firing position, to fully take advantage of the current situation. The fire control computer had already authorized him to fire, and despite that he is already in a good firing position, he continued to wait, as he continue to prepare for the shot.

The two PDE-turbofan engines kicked as he pushed his throttle, and he is now only 40km away from the "enemy" aircraft. As the fire control system continued to emit a beeping sound, he finally decided to fire, as he applied pressure on the pickle button. Locking on the other two target rapidly, the fire control computer quickly calculated firing solutions, though it would be better for him to take more time to maneuver into a more ideal firing position. As the first two specially modified AMRAAMs were already on their way, the ducted ramjet system kicking the missiles towards a higher speed. As he shot another of the two missiles, he could sense the whoosh sound, as he could see two light smoke trails some distances away. Still flying towards the target drones, he announced the shots over the radio, as he continued to observe the whole situation.

The QF-16s were still flying, completely unaware of the Os-280 flying towards and firing missiles at them. But however, with some luck they had detected the missile launch, as the missiles began to lock onto the drones with their own tiny radars. As the drones began maneuvering aggressively, while punching out chaff after chaff, it seemed hopeless for them to evade, as they had completely missed the Os-280 that had fired missiles at them just a short moment ago. As they continued to maneuver and stay flying, a sudden explosion rocked the sky, as the first missile's warhead detonated, as fragments after fragments began to fly towards the drone at high velocities. This followed, and soon, a huge smile begin to appear on his face.

"Four kills," he announced as he turned, and began to exit the air-to-air range.

Black flexed his fingers as Nyder quietly glanced at his controls. "Approaching range... Set ARS-5 to Mode One." Black immediately complied. "Hmm... Light scatterings. Switch to Mode Two?" Nyder shook his head.

"That's a bit better." Black rubbed his chin and changed the radar frequencies and scanning range. "We've got four targets now. Shall we go to Mode Three?" Black inquired as he poked the arming sequences.

"No." Nyder thought briefly. "Let's keep that a surprise for the dogfight. Mode One should be adequate for an old fashioned AMRAAM launch. Do it the old fashioned way, Black, you remember how to, don't you?" Nyder smiled to himself, sure that his nasal voice contained just enough sarcasm.

"Roger that, sir. Locked up... Commence your attack run." Black finished and hung on. Nyder made a 'Tunnel Roll'. Flying forward while rolling. More or less a forward spiral, like the thread of a screw.

"Kaled One, first Fox Three." The missile neatly dropped out from under the aircraft and flew forwards, smashing into the target drone. "Kaled One... Second Fox Three again!" Nyder pulled the aircraft to a 'stop' in midair, spun around so he faced his vapor trail and fired again. "Stupid warhead. I never liked the AMRAAM... Kaled One. Third Fox Three!" The missile dropped out and fired away as the aircraft continued rolling along the course."

"That's a hit." Black commented as he watched the radar. "ARS-5 is working beautifully... Sir, ease it up a bit, to your left. That's good... Third target. Damn, another AMRAAM misfire. We're out. Sir, if the warheads had worked as advertised, we'd have three kills. The guidance was near perfect. But we've only got two to show for it."

Nyder nodded curtly. "Fine. Then let's get back on the ground, chew some people out and get some rest before the next part." Kaled One then turned back and flared for landing.