F-117 vs BSL

[VovaLee]

[zraver]

Engrish please...

[citanon]

From what I can figure out the Russians have patented a stealth shovel...

[YellowFever]

BSL wins.

Can someone tell me what the hell a BSL is before this gets locked?

[ace16807]

This is apparently a joke about how to kill an F-117. A BSL is short for "Большая сапёрная лопата" or as far as my poor Cyrillic translates it to as "bolsazha sapyehrnaya lopata". Translation- entrenching tool. So it's about whacking the F-117 in indicated places with a shovel to kill it.

I don't get it though.

[YellowFever]

This is apparently a joke about how to kill an F-117. A BSL is short for "Большая сапёрная лопата" or as far as my poor Cyrillic translates it to as "bolsazha sapyehrnaya lopata". Translation- entrenching tool. So it's about whacking the F-117 in indicated places with a shovel to kill it.

I don't get it though.

I thought VovaLee was joking but considering his past posts, I'm not sure.

Hmmm....

[Jimmy]

Based on advanced Serbian trenching techniques, no doubt.

[tuna]

All is lost now, they've discovered a way to defeat aircraft no longer in the inventory.

[Stitch]

Did the F-117's go to AMARC, or somewhere more secure? I find it hard to believe that they'd park a (still) classified aircraft out in the middle of a desert with minimal security. Maybe a Russian spy could sneak onto the base and try these dastardly techniques out on a defenseless aircraft?

[TopHatter]

All is lost now, they've discovered a way to defeat aircraft no longer in the inventory.

Only for nearly 6 years, so there's still some hope.

Did the F-117's go to AMARC, or somewhere more secure? I find it hard to believe that they'd park a (still) classified aircraft out in the middle of a desert with minimal security. Maybe a Russian spy could sneak onto the base and try these dastardly techniques out on a defenseless aircraft?

From what I've read, they're inside a climate-controlled hanger.

Oh look, at least one is still flying http://www.aroundtherange.blogspot.com/

[Nightowl]

This is apparently a joke about how to kill an F-117. A BSL is short for "Большая сапёрная лопата" or as far as my poor Cyrillic translates it to as "bolsazha sapyehrnaya lopata". Translation- entrenching tool. So it's about whacking the F-117 in indicated places with a shovel to kill it.

I don't get it though.

I'd say they consider the shovel the most useful thing in their inventory, in part because it is actually darn handy, and in part because soviet material I guess. The joke here is inflating the functionality of the shovel to absurd levels. No doubt this one was preceded by lists of actual unexpected uses of a shovel, then probably impractical but possible stuff, and from there onwards to moreludicrous stuff and ending up here. Next up will be using the shovel as a baseball bat to smash a nuke back to the states or something.

Bet hey, I'm just speculating.


Edit: Explaining a joke is like disecting a frog, you learn more about it, but it dies in the process.

[Josh]

The Bone Yard...

Did the F-117's go to AMARC, or somewhere more secure? I find it hard to believe that they'd park a (still) classified aircraft out in the middle of a desert with minimal security. Maybe a Russian spy could sneak onto the base and try these dastardly techniques out on a defenseless aircraft?

...only serves planes in active service, by and large. If the US or one of its allies doesn't use it, or it can't be converted into a Q, I think they generally get the axe and are moved off. I believe the F-111s are being/were liquidated once RAAF disowned them as there were no users to support and no other uses for the airframe. Though apparently B-52Gs were still being disdected there until a week ago, but in that case the ruins have to be left in place for satellite verification, so that's a different process. I assume the F-117s were all broken down after retirement; maybe a couple were saved for future museum use when none of its classified.

EDIT: Apparently not. Though I can't imagine what they save them for.

[Stitch]

Oh look, at least one is still flying The F-117A Nighthawk flies on at Groom Lake!

Sounds like they're using them for DACT?

[Jimmy]

Sounds like they're using them for DACT?

If it were me, I'd use them for testing detection systems and training crews, and DACT. I had no idea they were still flying though, I thought they were being kept in their own little climate-controlled version of AMARC until complete obsolescence (like everything at DM).

Edit: It would be badass if they were being used as a low-observable aggressor squadron.

[Stitch]

Edit: It would be badass if they were being used as a low-observable aggressor squadron.

I'm guessing the RCS of the -117 is comparable to a Chengdu J-20/Shenyang J-31, so they would make excellent adversary aircraft (though they obviously can't manuever like a fifth-gen aircraft).

Wonder what one of those things would look like in camo out on the range?