| Strike Fighter |
Article Index for Strike |
Website Links For Strike Fighter |
Information AboutStrike Fighter |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT STRIKE FIGHTER | |
| fighter aircraft | |
| attack aircraft | |
|
A Strike Fighter is a Fighter Aircraft which is also capable of attacking Surface Target s including Ship s. It differs from an Attack Aircraft in that the aircraft remains a fighter whereas an attack aircraft typically has no, or limited, air-to-air capability. Strike-Fighter is almost synonymous with the term 'Fighter Bomber'. The term 'Bomber' infers the politically incorrect method of dropping bombs all over a target area, it also infers an indiscriminate attack. In political and media terms we rarely 'Bomb' things any more, we 'Strike' them. Often this is described as a 'Surgical Strike', a term which conveys the sometime accuracy of modern weapons and intelligence. 'Fighter-Bomber', which is how the Panavia Tornado was originally known, for example, becomes 'Fighter Striker' or rather Strike-Fighter. he Tornado strike-fighter is known in European terms as the 'IDS' model, meaning 'Interdiction/Strike. IDS is the European equivalent of the US F/A designation. Oddly, the term fighter-bomber is still used to describe the Tornado, because it falls into an arbitrary class of older, slightly slower, heavier and less manouverable strike-fighters. Strike-fighters are the ''new'' fighter-bombers. Recently the term has become blurred. The F-117 Nighthawk is often referred to as a strike fighter, although it has no air-to-air capability and is thus an Attack Plane . The F-22 Raptor was designated a fighter/ground-attacker or strike-fighter (F/A-22) from 2003 to 2005. Note that the ''F/A'' designation in the name of these US aircraft denotes their ''Fighter/Attack'', or Strike, role. The glamorous 'Strike Fighter' name describes the capabilities of the aircraft rather well. An air-strike on a ground target would usually involve a bomber with one or more fighters acting as defence. A dual purpose aircraft can attack the target while remaining manouverable and well equipped enough to defend itself. It can perform the full strike unaided by other aircraft. Two of the most famous strike fighters in the world are the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Eurofighter Typhoon . Note that the most modern European parlance describes the Typhoon as a 'Swing-role' aircraft. So, fighter-bomber = Strike-fighter = Swing-Role aircraft |
|
|