I seriously don’t get the point of this goddamn thing:

It’s not just mine, that is a general opinion on Su-33. Even the Russian Navy thinks so.

Not when flying off a ski-jump ramp. A loaded Su-33 weighs twice as much as the MIG-29.

I agree with that. I’d even point out that Russia is already losing an arms race as it simply cannot afford anything, no matter how awesome or state-of-the-art their new kit is.

Yeah, I still don’t get the point of that nonsense USN camo.

The lift comes as a funtion of speed, and 30 tons don’t get up to speed really quickly. It can lift off, but with very few stores and fuel.

BTW, is Kinja screwed just for me or is anyone else having trouble?

I know that PLAN is going to get proper carriers in the (near) future. As for the rest, I seriously doubt it is true. It is still a freakin huge airframe, and there isn’t much to be saved; a ton or two at most, and that is not really significant.

No, it doesn’t. Su-33 can’t even carry close to half of its max ordnance or fuel (it’s dry weight is almost the same as a fully loaded MiG-29) and there are rumors that it can’t even carry a AShM when flying off a carrier. When comparing carrier based aircraft, you have to compare them as if they are actually flying…

Nobody is dismissing them. China will undoubtedly have a true blue water navy withing a decade or two, but right now they lack some important things such as the quiet submarines and the domestic-produced turbofans, especially the high-bypass one. Not everything can be copied.

It would work with catapults. Su-33 doesn’t work.

Like I said, it was a political decision that had something to do with a high ranking general or government member also being a board member at Sukhoi. I don’t rember whether if the decision was made before or after 91’.

I know that the purpose of Liaoning is purely for training and R&D, but I just don’t understand why did they copy Su-33?Because an aircraft that big combined with STOBAR is quite useless. Even the original Soviet decision was quite puzzling, but that one had more to do with nepotism and corruption than actual military…

That is epic!!! All stars for you!

Can I, please, get ungreyed by the Black flag staff?? I wanna be able to freely discuss this race. Then you can send me back to grey.

- everyone agrees that the war in Iraq and the initial widespread support for the Syrian rebels inadvertently led to the rise of the ISIL. That is not a secret

No man, wrong. Heavy tanks are obsolete since the 60s. They have the same firepower and armor as what we now call MBTs, but they sacrifice mobility and speed. MBTs don’t fit that description, it is an obsolete term.

Elaborate?

I’m sorry, but you are wrong calling Challenger a heavy tank. It’s pretty much the UK equivalent of the Abrams, both of them have the same armor (see Chobham armor), same weight and so on; apart from the gun. British Army wants to keep the rifled gun because it has a longer range and much better precision when firing…

Still, it’s a good empire. Like the British Empire. Definitely not like the evil Soviet empire. Sure, things like Iraq, Iran-Contra, Pinochet, Operation Ajax and many others cast a giant shadow on the US’ legacy, but it is still far better than the deeds of the other side.