peter wezeman wrote:

AL wrote in message ...

Hi,

Here is a newbie question.

What are the merits and the pitfalls of rail vs ejector launchers
for guided missiles? I suppose bombs have to be ejector launched and
rockets rail.

Whenever I visit an airshow, I ended up scratching my head.


Ejectors are used to place a missile or bomb far enough away from the
aircraft so that they are in relatively undisturbed airflow. This has been
required on every fighter that carries missiles in an internal weapons
bay, such as the F-102, F-106, YF-12, and the new FA-22. Ejectors are
also often useful for external stores to get the weapon clear of the
complex flow field near the aircraft. Extensive tests are carried out
for any new aircraft or new store to determine the separation behavior
and what type of ejector is required for it. I have a vague memory that
the F-14 required especially powerful ejectors to ensure clean separation
of bombs carried under the fuselage, as the fuselage of that aircraft is
a lifting body and stores are subjected to aerodynamic forces that tend
to push them up against the aircraft. I think it was also an F-14 that
shot itself down when the ejector for a Sparrow missile failed and the
missile lit off while still held in its recess.

Hope this helps,
Peter Wezeman
anti-social Darwinist

The F-106 and F-102 used rails, not ejectors for the AIM-4. Only the AIR-2A was "ejected" from the bay.


Vygg