"Eunometic" wrote:

It would appear to me that the probe and drogue system is now far more basic
than it needs to be to be and is therefore less effective and reliable than it
should be.

Not really...

First, the pilot in that video was obviously new to air refueling, and didn't
adhere to the concept of looking THROUGH the drogue, not AT the drogue. He was
obviously chasing the drogue on the first attempt, and tried to "stab" it with a
big burst of throttle the next time. That got him excess, uncontrolled closure
that the reel response system could not handle.

Reminds me of some of the Omanis who tried it in Jaguars behind our KA-6s back
in the 80s...


One reason the boom method works is that the boom is that the actively flown
into the recepitcal.

However, it still takes a stable receiver airplane...


It should be possible to place sensors and controls (flappers, fins or a
basket that can twist to direct itselt) that stabilizes the drogue and allows
it to fly further from the aircraft. Ideally it should 'home' itself towards
the probe slightly to help the pilot. A simple LED lamp with a specific
flashing frequency can serve as a homming
point.

Nope. The receiver pilot can usually figure out the drogue's movement cycle if
the tanker is stable. If unpredictable, extraneous control inputs are made in
the tanker, they upset the rhythm.

An analogous concept has been demonstrated MANY times before, with far more
negative than positive results: On a KC-135 equipped with the drogue adapter,
the "boomer" will sometimes attempt to "help" the receiver by trying to fly or
"tweak" the drogue to the probe. Since the receiver pilot cannot anticipate
what the probe will do, more often than not it results in a worse miss than if
the drogue is allowed to fly naturally.