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His biggest suggestion was "make the wings bigger!"

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He probably said make the rotors a lot larger too, which I had to do. I would wager that there are no 37,000 lb+--about the mass of an empty F-14--single pilot attack helicopters flying around.

You could make the aerocraft less massive, and that would, generally, remove the need to make the wings (not necessarily rotors) larger. That is the chief reason why the Robotech designs can work. You don't have to worry about 12,000lbs - 24,000lbs of additional fuel mass to bog down the aerocraft on top of weapons.

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You're really making me want to finally get me a new computer and get a copy of X-Plane LEM...

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I'd wait to X-Plane 9.0 comes out sometime next year. :D

PCs are relatively cheap right now, especially if you can assemble your own. I just upgraded mine to a Conroe/P35/DDR2 a few months ago.

VFA-4A-10 Test Data

Note: This is not based on a canon design in the Robotech. The Starfighter II is my extrapolation of what the production model of the prototype VFX-4 as seen in "To the Stars" could be with an exotic empennage. This aerocraft is designed for high speed and turning performance at high altitude.



All measurements are approximate figures.

Tests were performed with 28 Diamondbacks and 4 RMS-1/Firebird internally at 48,515 lbs--standard weapons load. The closest airport temperature was 15 deg Celcuis and 29.92 in Hg.

Class: 2.5 Generation Veritech/Variable Carrierborne Aerospace Dominance Fighter

Service: RDFN (in small numbers), RDFS, EFS, EFN (in small numbers)

Height (on gear): 14.89 ft. (-1.30 deg)
Length: 55.3 ft.
Wingspan: 48.32 ft.

Aspect ratio: ~2.54
Cruise L/D (35,000 ft, 0.80 Mach): 9.8:1
(L/D is a mark of subsonic aerodynamic efficiency.)

Weight (empty): 37,000 lbs
Weight (combat, typical): 48,515 lbs [28 Diamondbacks, 4 RMS-1 Angel of Death/Firebird]
Weight (maximum): 73,000 lbs
Weight (typical D20, 50% fuel): 600 lbs [enough to escape orbit]

Engines (atmosphere): 146,000 lbs [overboost, 200%], 73,000lbs [military, 100%]
Engines (atmosphere with auxiliary): 196,000 lbs [overboost, 200%], 123,000lbs [military, 100%]
Engines (space): 246,000 lbs
TtW (military, atmosphere, typical combat weight): 1.5: 1

Max Speed (1,000 ft. AGL, overboost): classified
Max Speed (10,000 ft. AGL, overboost): classified
Max Speed (30,000 ft. AGL, overboost): classified
Max Speed (60,000 ft. AGL, overboost): classified

Maximum Service Ceiling: N/A

Speed (1,000 ft. AGL, military): Mach 1.092
Speed (10,000 ft. AGL, military): Mach 1.80+
Speed (30,000 ft. AGL, military): Mach 3.00+
Supercruise (40,000 ft. AGL, military): Mach 3.65+

The Starfighter was designed to have the entire flight envelope of the Valkyrie while in military power alone.

Take Off Speed (military): 100 knots
Vunstick: 120 knots
Carrier Landing Approach: 140 knots, 10 deg AOA
Stall Speed (generalized): 115 knots, 20 deg AOA
Time to Atmospheric Ceiling (takeoff to 120,000 ft, overboost, not in reaction mass mode, no auxiliary): classified
Climb Rate (during atmospheric ceiling climb): classified

Note: Climb rate during atmospheric ceiling is less actually than climb rate in atmosphere due to the engine's power loss in thinner air and the vacuum. Test was also performed without auxiliary engines, which do not lose power in thin air and the vacuum.


The following is representative of the final performance of the airframe with full consideration of a humanoid operator. Unlike the Valkyrie, this performance representative of this airframe at a full combat load.

FBW Instantaneous G-Load (350knots, 10,000 ft. AGL): 10.0 G
FBW Maximum Roll-Rate (350knots, 10,000 ft. AGL): 225 deg/sec
FBW Maximum Roll-Rate (550knots, 10,000 ft. AGL): 180 deg/sec

FBW Best Instantaneous Turn Rate 180 deg turn (500 KIAS, 1,000 ft AGL, military): max 10.5 G, ~27 deg/s
FBW Best Sustained Turn-Rate 360 deg turn (400 KIAS, 1,000 ft AGL, military): 9.5 G, ~26 deg/s

FBW Best Instantaneous Turn Rate 180 deg turn (400 KIAS, 10,000 ft AGL, military): max 9.5 G, ~25 deg/s
FBW Best Sustained Turn-Rate 360 deg turn (400 KIAS, 10,000 ft AGL, military): 9.5 G, ~24 deg/s

FBW Best Instantaneous Turn Rate 180 deg turn (400 KIAS, 30,000 ft AGL, military): max 9.0 G, ~18 deg/s (stall warning)
FBW Best Sustained Turn-Rate 360 deg turn (400 KIAS, 30,000 ft AGL, military): 8.5 G, ~14 deg/s

FBW Best Instantaneous Turn Rate 180 deg turn (400 KIAS, 50,000 ft AGL, military): max 9.0 G, ~10 deg/s
FBW Best Sustained Turn-Rate 360 deg turn (400 KIAS, 50,000 ft AGL, military): 8.5 G, ~9.5 deg/s

Maximum Controllable AOA: +60deg/-30deg
Structural G-Limit: +13.5 G/-6.5 G
FBW G-Limit: +10.5 G/-4.5 G

Flying Controls: The Starfighter II (previously Lightning III) has a redundant fly by light control system. The main wing is a two section flap and aileron (aileron out board, flapervators in board) with speedbrake that occupies the entire trailing edge with full leading edge slats. There is a trailing edge flap in the interior of the wing, which assists in pitch and roll control, along with two-dimensional thrust vectoring (20 deg pitch, 20 deg roll). Assorted vernier thrusters assist in pitch and roll control in atmosphere. Adjacent to the top mounted nacelles rest a two segment modified Pelican tail with an oversized strake. The inner portion is all moving on a hinge, which moves with trim, and features a conventional elevator while the top portion is an all moving tail to control yaw. Outboard of the main wing also has drag rudders to assist in yaw control.

L/D for the Alpha is 5.5: 1 which means Cd was reduced to the 0.0570 range, making the Logan the undisputed drag leader unless I can revise the airframe for better performance.

The VFA-6A, the early Alphas, without thrust vectoring and high AOA, with aeroelastic wings (my addition), and a tail-less cropped, notched, double Delta planform has provided to be every bit as good as the Valkyrie at medium to low altitudes. The engineers and scientists at Boeing really know their wings. "> (See a head on profile between revised X-32 and the Alpha.)

Good news is this: Besides sustained speed and altitude, there is little difference between an operational Alpha and Valkyrie. (Operational is defined as flying with wing stores--unclean.) I was stuck for awhile with subpar performance with this model until I moved the CG back a bit and added more annhedral to the wing.

At the start, I was a bit skeptical. Now, the Alpha definitely is a keeper.

Update: Modifications to the model place the Logan at a higher service ceiling. Its performance, with the exception of climb, speed, and payload, is superior to the Valkyrie and Alpha.