Forum: F-16 Armament & Stores

Here's some cost-benefit analysis for you, Loomis. It costs approximately $1 million PER YEAR to keep a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan. That means the U.S., ipso facto, considers it worth it to spend $1 million per year to keep just one soldier in active combat duty. Let's say the AIM-9X costs $85,000 per round. How much is that soldier "worth" to the military? Certainly more than an AIM-9X. So you use the AIM-9X, potentially saving a very precious resource. And I'm not even talking about how much this putative soldier is "worth" to his family and friends.

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That's not even considering the cost it takes to train each soldier, the cost of death benefits, and the cost of recruiting and training replacements.

banken wrote:

That's not even considering the cost it takes to train each soldier, the cost of death benefits, and the cost of recruiting and training replacements.

Exactly. There is a whole lot of money, time, energy and - dare I say, heart - invested on each soldier.

Your concept of cost/benefit is as tenuous as your grasp of Latin. However, enjoy your sanctimony festival.

What's your damage, Loomis? Ipso facto = by the fact itself. Ergo, a posteriori, ad infinitum, you are an...

AIM-9X Block II Missile Achieves Two-for-Two in Testing
Missiles & Bombs News — By Raytheon on December 23, 2009 at 6:38 am

TUCSON, Az: A U.S. Air Force F-15C fired Raytheon Company's AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder advanced, infrared-guided air-to-air missile as part of the missile's developmental testing program. The weapon successfully guided and passed within lethal range of a BQM-74 target drone, meeting all primary test objectives.

The Nov. 20 test occurred at the U.S. Air Force's Eglin Air Force Base test range and marks the second time the missile has been fired.

"The AIM-9X Block II will give the warfighter an unparalleled advantage," said Capt. Jeffrey Penfield, the U.S. Navy's Air-to-Air Missile program manager. "AIM-9X Block II offers the warfighter a solution that combines maneuverability, off-boresight capability, speed and affordability."

The AIM-9X Block II adds a lock-on-after-launch capability, redesigned fuze and a one-way forward-quarter datalink capability to the AIM-9X Block I.

"The U.S. Navy and Raytheon achieved this milestone by leveraging our experience building more than 4,000 AIM-9X Block I missiles for the U.S. and its allies," said Harry Schulte, vice president of Raytheon Missile Systems Air Warfare Systems' product line. "Raytheon is committed to helping warfighters around the world defeat advanced threats by providing the most capable and reliable air-to-air missiles in the world."

Raytheon Company, with 2008 sales of $23.2 billion, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 73,000 people worldwide.

Forum: F-16 Armament & Stores

AIM-9X destroys third surface(!) target