Shenyang FC-31 / J-31 Fighter Demonstrator
- Thread starter RedSky
- Start date
Last time I asked that question, the answer I got was because it looked cool, or simply... it's their preference.
ladioussupp
Junior Member
There is a dark painting beneath the radome shown in the new pictures of J-31. Does this mean any supporting frame structure for fixing antenna plane?
Besides, there is a bay behind main gear bays. Any guess? APU bay?
Those hangars looks like they need an overhaul. It looks so rusty both inside AND outside.
It is extreem think foil of Iron treated with Sinc. So after time the sinc is gone and the rusting starts. You see these sheets in many nations as rooftops. Nothing unusual or shocking. It is very very cheap and still ok to be used as shelter. But there is one big problem. If the sun shines on it then you are almost steaming cause of the heat radiation. Better add kind of isolation on the inside.
I do not think dual engined J31 has an APU and there are better places then there... As far as I see there are always external electricity generating vehicles parked near the plane...
I think that it is part of the construction to shuffle the Radome on to the plane from the front side and indeed to absorb the forces when plane pulls lots of G's... I mean, there is a lot more stress on it then the conventional radomes.It is kind of triangle with huge area that has to absorb energy.
Thats very true and radomes or any fairing over electronics or otherwise needs supporting structure all around its base, the material likely tapers in thickness, with the base supporting structure thicker and the layup thinning toward the tip, if you hand lay glass or carbon fiber that is a easy process, and although labor intensive, does save weight. Wing root fairings etc are often structural plastic with a pliable plastic or rubber seal around the base to keep the airflow out, once that seal is breached, airloads from with-in can causing a twisting warfare with air from without, destroying the fairing in a short time. The fiberglass of a radome is usually somewhat opaque, and if you will notice the front of any aircraft normally has less paint than toward the rear due to the heat of initial contact, when we talk about DRAG, it is evident when we observe the erosion of not only paint, but the underlying fiberglass structure, that is caused by the friction against the air and the heat build up insipiant with the increase of that drag, the faster you go, the more drag and more heat. I should also mention that rain or any abrasive such as volcanic ash can greatly accelerate that process, and is particularly hard on turbine blades and internals being both abrasive and corrosive. The SR-71 "weeps" fuel when it slows below a certain speed because the panels, have space between them for heat expansion, once up to speed it seals up tight and fits like it should. Without those gaps it would buckle and fail in a short time, and yes gentlemen it IS ROCKET Science! AFB
We Don't Have The Video
Hey, that makes me dizzy, could you play a longer clip slower? I would like another second or two, but it looks purty slick with the gear all tucked up.AFB