Blood for the Baron!

US Air Force's F-22s & F-15s Just Battled One Of Their Most Feared Foes

Cope Taufan is a biennial exercise between Malaysia and the US, and it has grown over the past few evolutions to become one of the premier multinational air combat exercises in the hemisphere. For 2014, America's most capable air-to-air fighters were deployed to take part, and sending the Raptor to Malaysia fired a strong message to potential foes and potential allies throughout the region.

The sheer mix of dissimilar fighter aircraft presented by Malaysia's small but potent air force makes sending America's best fighters and crews halfway around the world, at least when it comes to the Massachusetts Air National Guard and their F-15Cs, well worth the investment.

Malaysia has both of Russia's most feared fighter competitors currently in inventory, those being the MiG-29 and the Su-30. The MiG-29N is not the most advanced version of the type available, and it will probably only last in Malaysia's inventory another half decade or so, but it still represents the classic MiG-29 threat profile, which is a dangerous one.

This includes eye watering initial turning capability, high-off bore-sight A-11 Archer missile capability, and a capable infrared search and track system. For over two decades since the fall of the Soviet Union, US fighter pilots have been flying basic fighter maneuvers (BFM) against various MiG-29s and even with their many faults (poor rearward visibility, appalling range, a high cockpit workload, etc.) they remain deadly in the right hands.

Malaysia's 18 Russian-built Sukhoi Su-30MKMs are a whole different story. They represent a highly capable foe with eye-watering maneuverability via their three dimensional thrust vectoring exhaust nozzles and their canard fore-planes.

Additionally they have incredible endurance and a mix of both high-end Russian and Western avionics, including a capable phased array radar and powerful electronic warfare suite. All this along with the best missiles Russia has to offer on the export market makes the Su-30MKM just about as potent of bandit as you can currently find anywhere in the world.

The F-22 in particular, which is also equipped with thrust vectoring although only in two dimensions (pitch only), may have much to learn from the Malaysia's Su-30s. In the past only limited engagements between the Raptor and the thrust vectoring Flankers have occurred. Maybe at Cope Taufan, Malaysia will allow their pilots to really open up the jet's full range of capabilities, including full use of its radar, and maybe the Raptor will be allowed to do the same, at least to some degree.

In so many ways, thrust vectoring introduces a whole new set of variables that modify the close aerial combat fundamentals that have been academically applied to traditional dogfights for decades. Ones where an aircraft's sustained turning capability and a pilot's energy management skills result in a more narrow range of potential outcomes when compared to fighting an aircraft that is equipped with thrust vectoring and a pilot that knows how to effectively employ it. These new variables are especially present when you are talking about a 1v1 fight where both aircraft can maneuver with confidence in the "post stall" flight regime via the use of thrust vectoring.

Su-30MK Beats F-15C 'Every Time'
Aviation Week and Space Technology
By David A. Fulghum and Douglas Barrie
[May 24, 2002]
The Russian-built Sukhoi Su-30MK, the high-performance fighter being exported to India and China, consistently beat the F-15C in classified simulations, say U.S. Air Force and aerospace industry officials.

In certain circumstances, the Su-30 can use its maneuverability, enhanced by thrust-vectoring nozzles, and speed to fool the F-15's radar, fire two missiles and escape before the U.S. fighter can adequately respond. This is according to Air Force officials who have seen the results of extensive studies of multi-aircraft engagements conducted in a complex of 360-deg. simulation domes at Boeing's St. Louis facilities.