OVERVIEW:
The Drag A-8 is a very good aircraft in our opinion. The combination of the Pummeler's simplicity and the Boar's redundancy make it very attractive to our testers. The only qualm about it is its low speed, even compared to Pummeler standards. Testing with PAF-standard propellers were able to achieve the desired performance.
COMBAT PERFORMANCE:
The aircraft's range under a full combat load is acceptable with drop tanks, and does manage well on lower throttle settings.
It is slower than both the Pummeler and the Boar, and pilots found the lack of any air brakes discomforting.
INTEGRAL FIREPOWER:
The cannon is accurate. It is just as effective as the eight Mk 2 machine guns on the Pummeler Mk 2, but is only capable of engaging light armor. The range on the weapon is appreciated.
EXTERNAL LOADS:
The external weapons load is superior to the Pummeler but inferior to the Boar. The placement of the hardpoints is comparable to the Pummeler, and is easy to access. The propellers do prevent some of them from employing rockets, but it can already carry an exceptional load of rockets anyways.
DURABILITY:
The type appeared quite durable to battle damage due to the multiple redundancies in the design. The simplicity allows for field repair easily.
VISIBILITY:
Cockpit visibility is very good frontally thanks to its short nose. While the Boar is slightly superior in this regard, it is far better compared to the Pummeler.
LOGISTICS:
The aircraft is certainly more complicated than the Pummeler, but far less so than the Boar. The T3000 engines are available, making parts availability a non-issue for them.
However, some of the components, such as the propellers, were not PAF standard. During testing, a Mk 2, Mk 4, and Mk 5 propeller were tested, as these propellers are available. Testing them was considered a huge success.
The Mk 2 propeller had four warbird-type blades and is 110 inches in diameter, and employs 3x chord length. This is the type employed on the Pummeler Mk 2 and the Mk 4 as well as the Provider transport.
The Mk 4 propeller has four Cessna-type blades and is 115 inches in diameter, and employs 3x chord length. This is the type employed on the Provider II transport.
The Mk 5 propeller has five Scimitar-type blades and is 120 inches in diameter, and employs a 2.5x chord length. This is the type employed on the Pathfinder airliner, which has been adapted into a gunship and a maritime patrol aircraft.
All three propeller types exhibited superior performance to the originals. The Mk 5 propeller exhibited the greatest performance boost, followed by the Mk 4, with the Mk 2 coming in last. All three types were able to achieve speeds past 450 miles per hour, with the Mk 5-equipped aircraft reaching over 500 miles per hour at low altitude with load. The stock propellers could only bring the machine up to a speed of 350mph. Testers recommend any of the PAF-standard propellers be fitted to the aircraft. No airframe or engine modifications were made.
Nice. @DragonAerotech
@Pilotmario We of DragonAerotech have already done considerable work on the new DragA-8A. We improved the visibility by removing the forward 20 mm assault rotary auto-cannon from its position and replaced it with a larger 30 mm assault rotary auto-cannon firing from beneath the nose. Realizing the shortcomings of the T3000s these were omitted in favor of a pair of conjoined T1000s turning contra-rotating Type 5 propellers at the fore of each boom. Though producing the same horsepower of the T2000 the performance produced by this arrangement is without question far superior to the base T2000. By switching to this propulsion system we also achieved a MUCH improved fuel efficiency rate making the use of drop tanks seem quite redundant and thus opening these pylons for additional disposable ordinance. This alteration in power plant arrangement made it all the more necessary to incorporate airbreaks into the design for use in diving attacks as well as on approach and during landing. The new Vengeance Rotary Assault-Cannon needs additional tests and alterations to the munition feed before the DragA-8A will be presented for evaluation.
Sure. The propeller tests were primarily done for logistical purposes. The Pilotmario Coast Guard was interested in a 2-seat variant of the aircraft to replace the aging Twin Pummelers and did not want to add a new part when existing components could achieve similar performance. Because metaphorically, the Army budget is Fort Knox and King Solomon's gold mines, the Navy (and Marine) budget is the US Treasury Department and the New York Stock Exchange, the Air Force budget is the GDP of the Eurozone and Sweden combined, and the Coast Guard budget is the average US state/provincial budget for education. It just so happens that these propellers gave it a significant performance boost in the process. @DragonAerotech
@Pilotmario Sounds like a decent review! :D I completely spaced out on adjusting the propeller size once everything was in its proper place. I mostly went with the cessna propellers to give it a more "modern" look - along the lines of the Piper Enforcer or C-130 (prior to the Newest model that is, which employs scimitar-like blades.) Perhaps its time to create the DragA-8A Carnivore? lol ^_~
@Liquidfox Enter here Please read the requirements.
@Liquidfox I need to make this sound like a formal report.
@Liquidfox Actually this is for a contest. If you want a review, you can enter it. It's only for attack planes, though.