Thread about MIlitary News

[easye]

I see we did not have a thread on random military news, so I figured I would start one with this tid-bit..

www.cnn.com/2024/07/22/middleeast/us-navy-first-air-to-air-kill-female-fighter-pilot-intl-hnk-ml/index.html

Navy aviator scores first air-to-air victory by a US female fighter pilot

A US Navy fighter pilot has become the first American woman to score a victory in air-to-air combat, the service has revealed.



The female pilot, who was not named in the Navy release, was flying an F/A-18 Super Hornet off the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower as part of Strike Fighter Squadron 32, nicknamed the “Flying Swordsmen.”



The aerial victory came against a one-way Houthi attack drone, one of dozens the Yemen-based group has deployed against civilian merchant ships in the Red Sea and nearby waters in reaction to the destruction in Gaza during Israel’s war against Hamas, a release from Carrier Strike Group 2 said.

[skyth]

I'm not sure I would consider downing a drone an air victory. I always see that as against a manned combat vehicle (Especially one engaging you...)

[Haighus]

I agree. Once we get drone fighters maybe, but taking down a drone on an attack mission is the equivalent of downing a slow-moving missile.

Did pilots in WWII get credited for taking down V1 flying bombs?

[mdgv2]

Not commenting on the Airman’s achievement, but WW2 vs a V1 or V2 would be prop driven vs jet, and so a very different proposition.

[Haighus]

Jul 22, 2024 10:41:30 GMT -5 mdgv2 said:

Not commenting on the Airman’s achievement, but WW2 vs a V1 or V2 would be prop driven vs jet, and so a very different proposition.

V2 and V1 are completely different kettles of fish. The Allies couldn't intercept V2's at all (the first ballistic missile) whereas V1's flew slowly enough that a method fighter pilots used to take them out was to fly alongside and nudge the V1 wing with their plane wing to send the rocket into an uncontrolled dive over the countryside.

[pacific]

Jul 22, 2024 10:37:14 GMT -5 Haighus said:

I agree. Once we get drone fighters maybe, but taking down a drone on an attack mission is the equivalent of downing a slow-moving missile.

Did pilots in WWII get credited for taking down V1 flying bombs?

From the people on the ground, almost certainly!

I'm pretty sure I've seen photos of British aircraft with Doodlebug 'kill' stamps on the side of their cockpit, would need to check. 

In this instance, on the grounds that shooting down a drone would still take an element of skill and planning, surely it still counts? Perhaps less than the Mig-29 pilots in Ukraine chasing down incoming cruise missiles, more than the F22 that shot down the Chinese spy balloon..