Newer, less outlandish jet fighter design, unfortunately without 1 tonne bomb load.
UFAF-F-40 "Thunderbird"
Named for the distinctive roar of its engines, the Thunderbird represents a fundamental change in the nature of aircraft. It is powered by twin turbojet engines using axial-flow compressors to reduce its drag profile, mounted in underwing nacelles near the wing root for easy maintenance given the revolutionary nature of the engines. The low-mounted wings include a moderate degree of sweep to minimise high-speed drag, wing fences to prevent pitch-up, and inbuilt air-brakes should it need to engage low-speed bombers. For armament, it carries two nose-mounted AS-AC18s and one Sorraia. A retractable tricycle undercarriage arrangement provides greater ease and safety when taking off and landing, as well as minimising the jet blast directed at the runway. This purpose-built fighter is built entirely for speed, with a smooth streamlined canopy that gives the pilot a great field of view, and using aluminium alloys to save weight along with leaving out the manganese bathtub of the Haast, although self-sealing fuel tanks are still included.
If time permits, a foldable-wing design could be attempted, although this is not a priority.
P.S. Wing fences aren't anachronistic, they were invented in 1938! Not to mention, they involve no machinery at all and are really just a tiny fence. On the wing.
Very Hard: 6, 4
UFAF-F-40 "Thunderbird": This is a jet aircraft, powered by two of Forenia's first functional turbojet engines. It is a relatively small fighter, the pilot sits in a round glass cockpit with two AS-AC18 cannons and a Sorraia in the nose. The wings are as narrow as possible, low-mounted and swept back, and have small wing fences to prevent sweep-related instability. The tail is relatively high-mounted to put it outside the jet wash from the wings. It also features air brakes. The Thunderbird's engines are relatively small, axial-flow turbojets, and they are somewhat crude in nature. The interior of the turbojet becomes extremely hot, necessitating high-temperature alloys, but failure of the turbine and even compressor blades has led to a design where they are relatively small, with large combustion chambers which burn lean in the middle, excess air is used for cooling. The high-temperature materials could probably stand to be improved. The two engines burn kerosene, and lots of it, and they sit in nacelles under the wings which are thickest in the middle, giving a sort of egg shape. Overall the aircraft has a speed a good bit faster than the Stinger (though much less than what these new turbojets are theorized to be capable of), and its jet engines have a higher altitude ceiling. The air brakes are a good choice, because the jet engines must maintain a lot of thrust at their minimum speed to avoid a flame out, so landings and slower combat engagements benefit from them. Requires a long runway for takeoff. Right now, the engines are [Complex] and require frequent maintenance. [4 Ore (1 Ti), 4 Oil]
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17 (16%)
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Topic: Intercontinental Arms Race: Finale (Read 599863 times)