F-117 Stealth Fighter + Caterpillar Crusher = Pile of Sadness

[RJF]

http://gizmodo.com/assets/images/gizmodo/2008/09/stealthscrap1_01.jpg

The End: F-117 Stealth Fighter + Caterpillar Crusher = Pile of Sadness (http://gizmodo.com/5052279/f+117-stealth-fighter-%252B-caterpillar-crusher--pile-of-sadness)

[Brian]

wow... kind of strange.
I had no idea they retired them

[HyperTek]

i didnt know they retired them.. craziee..

im sure they could have just sold em to foreign countries to pay back some of the US debt lol... but nahhh.. lets jsut destroy em and build new replacements

i know they pulled the f14 long time ago,.. did they pull the f15 and f16 or are those still out?

[civilized_drifter]

that was one bomb ass plane tho

[IdriveaNissan]

US cant sell it because it would give out the stealth tech. they could however gut them and put them in museums or something.

[renegade_ewok]

They dont want to give that kind of tech to other countries is my guess. So much money just being put to waste... eh.

[MudRacer]

I would enjoy that job. Breaking shit up.

Give me controls to the caterpillar crusher!

[mRclARK1]

I remember seeing one as a kid. It was roped off and had armed guards around it.

Now they're getting crushed. haha

[SexPanda]

lol.

They had those at whiteman for a while in 01 after 9/11. I was like "sweet!" Then they flew them all out at midnight over like a weeklong period. Then I didnt like them anymore.

[yokotas13]

yeah planes are cool, till you live by the runway

[kingkilburn]

That's Cali's state budget being crushed right there.

[fromxtor]

i didnt know they retired them.. craziee..

im sure they could have just sold em to foreign countries to pay back some of the US debt lol... but nahhh.. lets jsut destroy em and build new replacements

i know they pulled the f14 long time ago,.. did they pull the f15 and f16 or are those still out?

Unless they sold all 96 of our F-15s here w/o me knowing, we still have them in our inventory.

[Matej]

There goes my tax money.

[Agamemnon]

I had no idea they retired them
Thats news didnt show up on my radar either. haha. Couln't resist!

Low radar signature jokes FTW!!!

[cc4usmc]

Part out! Dibs on the seat! lol...

[brndck]

i can has stealth paint? fuck radar detectors, just get radar absorbing paint!

[drift freaq]

Unless they sold all 96 of our F-15s here w/o me knowing, we still have them in our inventory.

F16's are still active as well. My friend flies one and my fathers chip runs the damn things.

[BustedS13]

yeah planes are cool, till you live by the runway

that's where poor people go :(

[SexPanda]

that's where poor people go :(

Or people with fathers in the AirForce... Anyhow, it would be pretty bitchin to score some f117 seats.

Some guy: "Nice ride. What seats are those, bride, sparco?"
you: "Lockheed Martin"
some dude: "Who?"
you "Lockheed Martin. They make planes and shit. These are from an f117A"

thats bragging rights for ever.

[muddafakka]

Read about their eventual retirement a while back. Kinda sad to see such an awesome plane go but I was even sadder when the F-14s finally retired. :sadwavey:

i didnt know they retired them.. craziee..

im sure they could have just sold em to foreign countries to pay back some of the US debt lol... but nahhh.. lets jsut destroy em and build new replacements

i know they pulled the f14 long time ago,.. did they pull the f15 and f16 or are those still out?

F-14s were retired in '06 iirc. F-15s (C variants) are steadily being replaced by F-22s but F-15E Strike Eagles (along with F-16s) are gonna continue serving for a little longer.

They dont want to give that kind of tech to other countries is my guess. So much money just being put to waste... eh.
Wasn't one shot down during the Kosovo War? Pretty sure the Russians got ahold of the technology.

[cdlong]

that was one bomb ass plane tho

meh, it sucked. it could only carry 2 1K lb bombs and nothing else. short range, low speed, limited munitions, the f-22 does everything much better.

[MikeisNissan]

Fuckenay..... fuck en ay.

[s13dan]

If they are retired then what out there now?

[fromxtor]

^^ B-1, B-2s, hell F-15E/F-16s are able to drop bombs.

[BustedS13]

Or people with fathers in the AirForce...

that's an entirely different situation, you're allowed to live next to planes if you're in any way related to air force stuff

[muddafakka]

If they are retired then what out there now?

F-22s and later on, the JSF.

And like someone else said, B-1B, B-2, F-15E, and F-16s.

[bloodangels13]

I like how the article was wrote but its sad to see em destroyed. My Father helped make digital maps and guidents (cant spell) sytems for thoes badboys for bombing missons during the kosovo crazyness. He worked for at that time was called Defence Mapping Agency. He even brought me home a super sweet plastic toy model F117a that a general or someone gave him after he told em i loved that plane. Still have that thing somewhere.

[cdlong]

F-22s and later on, the JSF.

And like someone else said, B-1B, B-2, F-15E, and F-16s.

don't forget the B-52, A-10, and the MQ-9 Reaper UAV

[OptionZero]

Very distinctive looking craft, but i think the B-2 spirit is even better aesthetically

isn't that being retired soon too because the F22 has the newest radest stealth tech and fulfills the same duties?

[fliprayzin240sx]

F-117s got retired because it was expensive to keep them flying. It got to the point that its easier to just trash them than keep pumping money into them. People dont realize that these planes were out of the 70s. They didnt get declassified till the mid 80s. Alot of the technology that were still in the plane were old. Plus there wasnt anything special about the plane now. It sucked as a fighter and it sucks as a bomber too. F22 as a stealth fighter and B2 as the stealth bomber are what made F-117 replaceable.

The navy retired the F-14s for the same reason. Upkeep was a bitch and the new F-18C model pretty much replaced them, plus F-18s were proven to be a better all around platform for the carriers.

F-15s in the AF as stated is slowly getting replaced by the F-22. The F-16 is supposedly gonna get replaced by the new JSF/F-35 Lightning. The problem is the overcost on the thing is killing the appeal. F16s were developed to be cheap, F-35s arent so production number gonna suffer. But with the swing of things, seesm like we're starting to be more and more dependent on UAVs. I see us making a UAV bomber and fighter.


PS: A-10 is still the baddest plane we have. Flying tanks kicks ass...

[chibo]

I've got this out of one:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v180/chibo/tehbuttan-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v180/chibo/tehbuttan-2.jpg

:rofl:

[HyperTek]

anyone else remember this game?
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51DE0A032JL._SL500_AA280_.jpg

[OptionZero]

PS: A-10 is still the baddest plane we have. Flying tanks kicks ass...

+1

Yeah, that warthog was so ugly it was beautiful

screamed badassery

[fromxtor]

A guy i know said the panels on the F-117 where super expensive composite. And that some had to be replaced constantly.

[S14DB]

It's old tech now. Into the dumpster it goes. Saving $1billion by trashing it early.

F-117 Nighthawk - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-117_Nighthawk)

[shade]

Uhh.. you know that cops aim their shit at the license plate right? You would still be fucked by a radar gun. Unless you take your plate off or paint it, lol.

i can has stealth paint? fuck radar detectors, just get radar absorbing paint!

[codyace]

yeah planes are cool, till you live by the runway

Haha, so true. We lived at the end of a runway in Kirkuk. Lets just say silent sleep nights were few and far between. The C130's and choppers weren't so bad....but those jet's were awesomely loud.

I see us making a UAV bomber and fighter.

Interesting concept. I loved having UAV support when we were deployed. Those little things did some excellent work.

+1
Yeah, that warthog was so ugly it was beautiful
screamed badassery

Agreed. Exactly why I like the Apahce as well. It just looks buff. (Plus having 3 above a convoy typically meant for a nice drive to the next fob haha)

[fliprayzin240sx]

^^^I guess you love the Rippers then...we got a bunch of them out here in Balad. Nothings sweeter than lighting up an insurgent, lobbing mortars into the perimeter with a Hellfire Missile, to wake you up in the morning after an indirect fire attack. .

[codyace]

^^^I guess you love the Rippers then...we got a bunch of them out here in Balad. Nothings sweeter than lighting up an insurgent, lobbing mortars into the perimeter with a Hellfire Missile, to wake you up in the morning after an indirect fire attack. .

Shouldn't you be swimming in the pool, or getting lost in the what, 4 DFacs? haha...not posting on here ;) Just kidding...our HQ was based out of Balad when were first got into country. We used to make a weekly trip from Warrior/Kirkuk to Balad.

For what it's worth, it takes ONE full ass tank to get there in one trip...we used to hate those Hadji Gas Pumpers as they'd never top us off. Good times there though...certainly deserverd of their 'Mortaritaville' name tag haha. We visited most Fobs and posts from balad to Mosul, and it certainly took the cake (this side of Gains Mills and Bernstein) in terms of IDF.


But yea, the Predators/Warriors with the upgraded systems were just getting deployed towards the end of our rotation. Certainly was neat having the 'flying weedwackers' above head at times....however nothing beats the presence of Apaches or Kiowas from the Air Cav giving you support....plus it's always neat calling the 'hells angels' on the radio for lookout.

[slw240sx]

i live right outside or wright patt, and the last few months they have been moving alot of jets in and out, and they are flying them really low at what sounds like full throttle. its fucking horrible from 6:30 to about 8:30am when they are leaving making the entire house shake and car alarms go off. I am waiting for them to start with the sonic boom shit again.

[Antihero983]

A-10.....win.


my uncle (Col. Murdock) flew the F-16, although i'm not sure what he does now....

[HyperTek]

oh man can we talk about old fighter planes!?!
http://www.ctrl-c.liu.se/ftp/images/aviation/military/warbirds/p40-warhawk-1.gif
i know its one of the early war planes that got replaced for better planes, but i loved how the p40 looked =p

[Matej]

SU-27 is my favorite.
Most genius design in the history of jet fighters in my opinion.
http://kuusanmaki.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/su27_flanker_t.jpg


Out of old war planes, here are some I always liked.

Messerschmitt BF109, balleur.
http://www.vectorsite.net/avbf109_0_1.jpg
http://www.oyphotos.co.uk/photos/transport/aviation/ME-109/Messerschmitt_109_5.jpg

Spitfire MK2.
http://www.richard-seaman.com/Aircraft/AirShows/Duxford2002/Spitfires/Sampler/SpitfireEp120Banking30DegreesLeft10oClock.jpg


Mig 15 & 17, such a cool design.
http://www.maxair2air.com/WEB%20MEDIA/BEST%20OF/RayPittman/Mig-17.jpg
http://www.richard-seaman.com/Aircraft/AirShows/YankeeAirMuseum2005/Highlights/Mig17WithAfterburner11oClock.jpg

Junkers Stuka.
http://www.exteriorangle.com/ross/Projects/stuka1.jpg

[fromxtor]

su-27 is my favorite.
Most genius design in the history of jet fighters in my opinion.
http://kuusanmaki.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/su27_flanker_t.jpg
f-22 > su-27

[S14DB]

f-22 > su-27

Isn't the SU-27 just a knock-off of the F-15 Eagle?

[David Steele]

PS: A-10 is still the baddest plane we have. Flying tanks kicks ass...

LoL for busting up things on the ground....


I still love two seater variable wing geometry twin engine tomcats I wonder why they wing implement twin engines and variable wings again.

I wonder what Sukoi has to offer now.


But we all know this is the best fighter right here.

http://surbrook.devermore.net/superpics/machines/vtol_fighter.jpg

[fromxtor]

Isn't the SU-27 just a knock-off of the F-15 Eagle?
Yes but with vectoring thrust.

[Matej]

f-22 > su-27
SU-27 was designed in the early 70s, the F-22 almost 20 years later. Of course by now there's going to be better aircraft.
There are many features that make the SU-27 a great design, especially for its time. I'd say the biggest ones are its amazing maneuverability, thrust vectoring as you mentioned, and the fact that it was the first jet that's able to easily fly with one of its engines shot out. It actually might still be the only one that can do that, but I don't want to be making things up as I haven't been keeping up with newer aircraft.

Plus I just love how it looks, haha.

[yokotas13]

Uhh.. you know that cops aim their shit at the license plate right? You would still be fucked by a radar gun. Unless you take your plate off or paint it, lol.
actually
a guy that is here with me at this base in sheetmetal, was stationed at a stealth base. Well a coworked stole a gallon of stealth paint. The only way they caught him was base SP were tryign to radar him....and it didnt work. so OSI investigated it