From: 'Jennyr'
To: soc.military.starfighters
RE: Glass Cannons (was: RE: The entrants are in. A few surprises, and surprise ommissions)
This 'tyranny of armor' is exactly why you need a kinetic shield... no, a fighter shield will not be strong enough to protect you from the heavy anti-fighter hitters... but it will work as a Whipple Shield that breaks up the incoming projectile and allows your armor to soak it up without being penetrated. The same mechanism will also give you a much better protection against fragmentation warheads, which are really popular in anti-fighter weapons.
Yes, you need agility... but pure agility just means you rely on "I am always the aggressor and shoot first" or "I am lucky enough not being shot". Both are not really a good mindset for fighter pilots.
Jenny
To: soc.military.starfighters
RE: Glass Cannons (was: RE: The entrants are in. A few surprises, and surprise ommissions)
This 'tyranny of armor' is exactly why you need a kinetic shield... no, a fighter shield will not be strong enough to protect you from the heavy anti-fighter hitters... but it will work as a Whipple Shield that breaks up the incoming projectile and allows your armor to soak it up without being penetrated. The same mechanism will also give you a much better protection against fragmentation warheads, which are really popular in anti-fighter weapons.
Yes, you need agility... but pure agility just means you rely on "I am always the aggressor and shoot first" or "I am lucky enough not being shot". Both are not really a good mindset for fighter pilots.
Jenny