Aetherdyne Ae-15 Ayame (Pacifica)
| Ae-15 Ayame | |
|---|---|
| Role | Strike fighter |
| National origin |  Pelinai
|
| Manufacturer | Aetherdyne IDB |
| First flight | February 7, 2005 |
| Introduction | October 19, 2008 |
| Status | In service |
| Primary user |  Royal Pelinese Air Force
|
| Produced | 2005–present |
| Number built | Ae-15A/B/V/S/U: approx. 1600+ (as of 2023) |
The Aetherdyne Ae-15 Ayame (Pelinese: イシ-15 あやめ, Ishi-15 Ayame) is a Pelinese twin-engine, all-weather, low-observable strike fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Aetherdyne. Variants of the Ae-15 are the current principal air superiority and strike fighter aircraft of the Royal Pelinese Air Force, with over 1,600 serial production versions built since 2008.
The Ae-15 made its maiden flight on February 7, 2005, and was accepted into RPAF service on November 2, 2008; its intended combat roles include air superiority, interdiction, and close air support.
Development
Design
Overview
The Ae-15 was designed as a large multirole air superiority and strike fighter using a conventional wing-tailplane layout, hybrid semi-monocoque construction using metal and composite materials, a one-seat or two-seat cockpit supporting either a pilot or a pilot and a WSO, two afterburning turbofan engines, an AESA radar array, and low-observable construction techniques.
Features such as the engines, airframe, and avionics are greatly improved over previous Pelinese aircraft designs due to better access to tooling, expertise, and technology; subsequent upgrades in the form of the Ae-15B and Ae-15V variants have brought further increases in the sophistication of avionics systems in particular.
Airframe
The Ae-15 has an angular semi-monocoque fuselage with forward-swept, side-mounted air intakes, a conventional wing-tailplane layout of shoulder-mounted delta wings incorporating leading-edge root extensions and chines, and twin outwards-canted vertical stabilizers. elevons are used for the tailplane in order to reduce mass. The aerodynamic characteristics of the Ae-15 are intentionally unstable in order to improve maneuverability for within-visual-range engagements against contemporary fighter aircraft.
The structure of the Ae-15 incorporates features such as radar-absorbent paint, S-ducts in front of the engine compressors, and sawtoothed panel joints to reduce radar cross section. Modern aerospace manufacturing materials such as fiber-reinforced polymers and aluminium-scandium alloy are also used extensively and to a much greater degree than preceding Pelinese fighter aircraft such as the Ae-13, allowing for a higher payload capacity and greater combat range. The canopy of the Ae-15 is frameless and is coated in a layer of indium tin oxide in order to prevent radar returns from internal features of the aircraft’s cockpit.
Armament
Avionics
Engines
Upgrades
Variants
Production models
Research aircraft
Operators
- Royal Pelinese Air Force: 1,500+ of all variants as of 2023
Specifications (Ae-15V)
General characteristics
- Crew: one (pilot)
- Length: 22.4 m (73 ft 6 in)
- Wingspan: 13.0 m (42 ft 8 in)
- Height: 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in)
- Wing area: 71.3 m2 (767 sq ft)
- Empty weight: 19,000 kg (41,888 lb)
- Gross weight: 29,000 kg (63,934 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 40,000 kg (88,185 lb)
- Fuel capacity: roughly 13,000kg internally
- Powerplant: 2 × Yuzimashi AF-11D afterburning low-bypass turbofan engines, 130 kN (29,000 lbf) thrust each dry, 180 kN (40,000 lbf) with afterburner
Performance
- Maximum speed: 2,600 km/h (1,600 mph, 1,400 kn)
- Maximum speed: Mach 2.1
- Cruise speed: 2,200 km/h (1,400 mph, 1,200 kn)
- Range: 6,000 km (3,700 mi, 3,200 nmi)
- Combat range: 2,000 km (1,200 mi, 1,100 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 20,000 m (66,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 300 m/s (59,000 ft/min)
- Wing loading: 406.7 kg/m2 (83.3 lb/sq ft)
- Thrust/weight: 1.27
Armament
- Guns: 1 x 30mm autocannon with up to 200 rounds
- Hardpoints: 4 external hardpoints with a capacity of 8,000kg,with provisions to carry combinations of:
- Rockets:
- S-80 80mm unguided rockets
- S-120 120mm unguided rockets
- S-240 240mm unguided rockets
- Missiles:
- Bombs:
- BVN-100, BVN-250, BVN-500, BVN-750, BVN-1000 gravity bombs
- Laser, satellite guided bombs
- Cluster bombs
- N91B Prasiolite anti-runway bombs
- N12B Rose Quartz guided anti-fortification bombs
- Other: external fuel tanks
- Rockets:
- Bombs: 3 internal weapons bays with a maximum capacity of 12,000 kilograms of ordnance.
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era