How do you feel about your airframe and mission?

[Biff_T]

2 hours ago, HuggyU2 said:

 

Didn't you guys fly with a M9 or a pocket knife or something of the like?   That's all you need to be armed and dangerous.  

[tac airlifter]

7 hours ago, HuggyU2 said:

 

Agree to disagree Huggy; if US troops or citizens are in danger and ISR is watching, that platform should be armed.  
 

Great as the U2 is, it's not helpful if you need a shooter.  

[HuggyU2]

3 hours ago, tac airlifter said:

Great as the U2 is, it's not helpful if you need a shooter.  

And a shooter isn't helpful if there is no good intel/recce to get them where they are needed. 
 

Or better yet, to get the intel so early that you don't need the shooter after all. 

You appear to have a very myopic view of what "ISR" is. We don't operate in a vacuum, and we are often able to integrate with bomb droppers. 
 

It's been proven time and again that attempting to bills an aircraft that "does it all" is foolish. 
 

Yes, there are some ISR platforms that can go kinetic. And there are a lot that those platforms cannot do, WRT ISR. 

Had they weaponized the U-2 when they considered it many decades ago, the political implications would have been very limiting:  there are a lot of sovereign nations that likely would have never allowed us access to their airspace. 
 

No one aircraft does it all. The U-2... still... has some very unique capes that other ISR platforms don't have. 
 

There are numerous instances where a non-kinetic U-2 was the only ISR platform over Americans, and it resulted in great success. 
 

One of our smart WIC grads could certainly explain this better than I, but I completely reject your assertion that we should be armed to be effective. 

Edited 31 minutes ago by HuggyU2

[Boomer6]

Quick, arm all of the ISR satellites!