Dreams of Revenge
^Can you summarise and explain things for someone unfamiliar with what you're talking about and its' context?
Also, that Project Dark Gene sounds rather interesting...
edited 17th Jan '12 2:15:30 PM by Flanker66
Locking you up on radar since '09
V
Project Dark Gene
was, basically, a joint operation between the CIA and the Iranian Air Force in the 1960s and 1970s, where recce aircraft were used within the Soviet Union. It worked with Project Ibex, a similar and related ELINT mission.
The Dark Gene aircraft were first RF-5, then two loaned USAF RF-4C (c.1970), then a batch of RF-4E and supplimented by a unknown number of un-serialed "Unknown Iranian"* Phantoms, which were probably of a very high specification. Apparently, even now it's hard to find information on the subject.
The RF-4s passed to the IIRAF after the Revolution, by the way.
Anyway, that first quote was about the "Unknown Iranian" RF-4C/E. There's more in an article here.
edited 17th Jan '12 2:51:19 PM by Greenmantle
Keep Rolling On
Dreams of Revenge
Cool, thanks.
Locking you up on radar since '09
V
By the way, on one of my irregular Pixiv searches, I found this — basically, someone's idea of an upgraded F-2.
A Basic Google Translation of the caption is this:
Looks good, doesn't it?
Keep Rolling On
Dreams of Revenge
Yeah, it does. Fetching shade of camoflague, too. 
V
There's better: How about a Hawker Typoon*?
edited 18th Jan '12 3:14:36 PM by Greenmantle
Keep Rolling On
Dreams of Revenge
Very nice art.
Although I don't have this sim myself (and I'm not sure about any of you), what do you all think of Take On Helicopters?
Locking you up on radar since '09
Night Clerk of the Apacalypse.
Northrop Grumman Flying wing designs. Note the pics are shopped. (cue shopped pic macro here)
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
... I just came.
edited 26th Jan '12 4:36:28 AM by Fuschlatz
Bloody Fossil
Very nice looking.
The cargo version I can see working, but I reckon what they say in the last two sentences is important too, you need to get everyone out quickly in an emergency and people just want windows.
A different shape every step I take A different mind every step of the line
Dreams of Revenge
Never really been a fan of the flying wing aesthetic, but cool anyway. I like the colour scheme.
Good find!
Locking you up on radar since '09
Dreams of Revenge
Thirty eight years, huh? I forgot just how old the F-16 was.
Locking you up on radar since '09
Bloody Fossil
38 years, that sure is something. And it's not like it's gonna go down any time soon either, at least not until the F-35 really comes alive.
A different shape every step I take A different mind every step of the line
Night Clerk of the Apacalypse.
How about the B-52 designs :P
Who watches the watchmen?
Bloody Fossil
Projected out-of-service date over 90 years after the design's first flight, by which time even the newest airframe will be more than 80 years old.
The long runner.
A different shape every step I take A different mind every step of the line
V
The KC-135 (especially the RC-135 versions) is almost as bad — the British ones due to arrive soon are meant to be in service until 2045, when they will be 81 years old.
Keep Rolling On
Bloody Fossil
Yep, and those are the newest 135 airframes in existence...
I wouldn't say that's bad per se though. Sure, the Stratofortresses and -tankers are old, but evidently they still work (beyond a mere technical/mechanical level, I mean). Transports and other support aircraft and even bombers age far better than fighters and both the KC-135 and B-52 have been continuously refurbished and refined so that they're still excellent aircraft.
A different shape every step I take A different mind every step of the line
Sneering Imperialist
"The only replacement for a DC-3 is another DC-3", indeed.
With cannon shot and gun blast smash the alien. With laser beam and searing plasma scatter the alien to the stars.
V
Same could be said of the DHC-6 Twin Otter; so much that it's now back in production.
Dreams of Revenge
All of those are cool, but don't forget the humble aircraft like the Pa-28. Sure, they may not have been going for as long (the higher end of the 20+ year scale, I believe), but their impact has been just as important.
Locking you up on radar since '09
Board Certified Sorcerer
Dreams of Revenge
Heh, nice. Now that's a subject you don't see too often.
Locking you up on radar since '09
Ah, here we are — I've found it. I read this last night here
. Apparently, it's from one of the authors of the Osprey Book on Iranian F-4 Phantoms:
The first examples supplied lacked the ALQ-126, but this was mounted later. What they have got nevertheless (and this already in 1971) was the AAS-118 IR-linescaner set, the ALR-69(V) RWR, and the ALR-17, plus a (still) clasiffied HF radio transceiver (with secure voice communications), and then the AN/ALQ-71, 72, and 87(V)4 ECM-pods. Later also the AN/ALQ-125 tac electronic recce system was added, plus the ALQ-101(V)-10 and ALQ-119(V)-10 ECM-pods. One of the planes had its underside painted black (last noticed in 1986): I don't know why.
Re. the case of 28 November 1973: the plane was flown by Maj. Shokhounia (executed by the Islamic regime in 1980), and the USAF officer known to me only as Col. Saunders.
Although he later said he was not sure if these have indeed decoyed the AAMs fired at them, Saudners fired all the 54 flash cartriges (27 were carried in two ejector racks, one each on one side of the aircraft), that were aboard and commented, "it looked like we were flying just ahead of the sun."
The Mi G finally approached from the left bellow and hit the rear part of the Phantom, somewhere in the area of the engine noozles, disintegrating in the process and killing the pilot. The RF-4E fell into a nose dive, the crew ejected and the plane hit the ground at supersonic speed, being completely destroyed on the impact (one reason more why the Russians became pretty mad: they could not recover anything from the "wreckage").
I have no additional data, especially not if this happened by day or night, but my guess is that the weather was clear (it is usually in that part of Iran and Turkmenistan), but if this is indeed such an interesting topic as it seems I could try to get more (besides, this would certainly result in an interesting article for some airspace mag.). One thing is sure: I'm currently working on a book about the F-14s in Iranian service, and - while this was not easy to prepare by any means - it costed my co-workers and me far more efforts to learn even so little about the Iranian RF-4Es and that mission than the whole story about the Tomcats (which includes dozens of narratives about air combats in which the type participated).
Obviously, for reasons that are completely unclear to us, most of the involved still consider these operations as _very_ sensitive...
Even now, it appears that even the Iranians* aren't revealing anything. And remember the Project Dark Gene Phantoms were advanced — possibly even more so than the ones in USAF service.
edited 17th Jan '12 8:07:50 AM by Greenmantle
Keep Rolling On