USAF Declassifies Elite Aggressor Program

We now have several former Red Eagle registered on the Constant Peg forum.

Head over to www.constantpeg.com if you want to interact with them.

reply to post by fulcrumflyer


Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I get so tired of people arguing back and forth which airframe is better and 99% haven't flown a single minute in any of the airframes they are talking about.

I'm very impressed the F-16 is still holding up so well.

Keep up the good posts. Your knowledge is needed on this forum.

Have you ever been in an F-18 vs F-16 scenario? What was the outcome and your thoughts on which aircraft is the better dogfighter? Always wondered if the USAF made the right decision selecting the F-16 over the F-18.

Thanks again.

[edit on 10-9-2007 by on_yur_6]

on_yur_6,
For a good, even-handed read on the Viper vs the Hornet, I recommend doing a search for the Jun 2003 edition of Flight Journal magazine. I recommend typing in "F-16 vs F-18 John Tougas". An article was written by Commander John "Toonces" Tougas about his experience flying the F-16 as a Navy exchange pilot with the USAF. John and I are good friends and we served together for nearly 3 years. He arranged for me to fly the Super Hornet. He prefered the Hornet as that is what he was comfortable with and I prefered the Viper for similar reasons.
There are a couple of inaccuracies in his article. The Viper HUD is certified as the primary flight instrument and has been for many, many years. The Block 40 and 50 F-16 have color displays and the seat is actually reclined at 30 degrees. The other evaluations are a matter of personal taste.
In any case, I have flown against the Hornet in all the fighters I have flown and Toonces' assessment is correct. The Hornet is a good slow-speed fighter (as are the F-15, F-5 and MiG-29[the MiG-29 is kind of like an F-18 on steroids]). Fighting against the Hornet in the F-16 meant I had to be wary of his slow-speed, nose-pointing capability. I had to drive the fight to my advantage in sustained turn rate and my ability to out accelerate and out climb the F-18. It was a tough fight and each pilot had no room for mistakes.
I hope you find the article. We did give Toonces a large ration of grief regardless.