Helicopters 75 Years! Part-Two.

U.S. Catching up to the Russian Kamov KA-52 Alligator?

It is only now that the U.S. is finding a place for the Russian Alligator helicopter concept, which is the fastest in the world!

The idea of the helicopter gunship has been around from the 1960's and there early deployment in the Vietnam war, machines such as the Cobra are well established, while Europe developed the Tiger and the U.S. upgraded to the Sikorsky AH-64 Apache. 

Many other countries have just put rocket pods and machine guns on helicopters with a crew of two and use them in a similar role, but these are not dedicated machines for ground support combat and anti-tank or MBT-Killers?

Meanwhile the Soviets lead the way initially in the development of the Mil Mi-24/35 combination special forces and gunship, nothing like it has yet been attempted and sales of it continue to flourish world-wide.

But the Kamov design team cam up with the first jet powered helicopter in the late 1990's and the west did everything to knock it down boasting that the faulty British Lynx was far superior, now demised while down on the south pole the Kamov KA-32/34 transport helicopters are an essential tool to cope with the coldest weather conditions on the planet.

Various new concepts are coming to the fore in the U.S. and many drone versions too, since this is now being seen as another invaluable tool in warfare and many civil adaptions in the years to come?

Mikoyan-Gurevich. MIG-15. Part-Two.

Extensive Training Aircraft.

Many of the worlds air forces can boast today that it was the Midget (NATO-Codename) that got them where they are. This aircraft saw some twenty years as a front line fighter, before being moved on the roles of counter attack and advanced trainer.

Over eighty-seven countries received the type and it became the basis for Jet aviation production in the Peoples Republic of China, North-Korea, and a few other countries around the globe. The Soviet Union quickly revealed to the west the next generation the MIG-17/19, for a time it was not known if they were the same aircraft?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

N-Korea, Cuba and one or two other countries still may be flying the Midget in both counter attack and advanced training, since there are so many sanctions placed on them?              

Mikoyan-Gurevich MIG-15. Part-One.

First Soviet era Jet Fighter.

The MIG-15 Midget was the Communist's world first exported jet fighter that made money for the former Soviet Union (Russia). This jet powered the  Russian copy of the Rolls-Royce Nene was faster than U.S. jets during the Korean wars.

The type was exported to over sixty-five countries as both a combat jet and later an advanced trainer, there were also several licence built versions in China, India and Poland where it was known as the LIM-2.

Despite its size and limitations compared to types today, back in the late-forties and 1950's it was a state of the art machine. This was the face of Soviet aviation for the world to see and a whole series would follow of new types, MIG-17/19/21.

But the more serious and dangerous types of Soviet jets remained hidden for years from western-eyes?

Happy New Year?

New Technology!

2017 Promises the demise of the faithful and cheaper Diesel engine in automobiles, because it seems to be the cause of Global Warming and carbon monoxide poising in our urban environments? NASA claims that the new electro engine will replace the jet engine in all aspects when it is introduces (No dates given)?

There is much debate about the digital age entering every aspect of our lives from the Amazon Echo Dot to automated driving and the first robots for domestic service? But Amazon has been caught out by its Echo Dot, after it recorded a murder in the U.S. This has put off sales of the device, because of its eves dropping ability and that instead of storing information within its self, the data goes to a central computer the United States for analysis and processing!

It will be design that will again shape visually what we see in the machine world, from vehicles to trains, aircraft and shipping. It is unclear at this time why China has dropped its mass transit 300 seat mover, perhaps the need to turn a corner may be one of many factors as well as the cost and limited sales potential?

Construction and farming machinery are being revolutionised by cutting the need for less human activity. One man operation covering a whole host of tasks, instead of having several different machines for each one?

Speed remains the target market in the luxury car and motor-bike world, but it is China who have developed the fold-away electric bike as seen in the recent Guy Martin in China programme!

The new U.S. Administration is promising not only a new arms industry race, but new exploration and development in Space? Reaching for the stars to mine the Asteroid belt is also now back on the cards?

Much of what we take for granted in our homes today from gadgets to medicine, were developed in space over the last twenty years or so!