F/A-181 Black Wasp II

Black Wasp II
Faction	NATO
Type	Stealth Air Superiority Fighter
Seats	1 seat: 1× Pilot
Item capacity	500 mass
Top speed	~ 1,213 km/h
Fuel capacity	1550 fuel units
Weight	11000 kg (all variants)
Can be slingloaded	Yes (all variants)
Primary armament	Main: 1× M61 Minigun 20 mm 2× BIM-9X AA [Default] 4× AMRAAM D AA [Default] 4× Macer II AGM [Default] 2× GBU-12 LGB [Default]
Secondary armament	Targeting: 1× Laser Designator Defensive: 240× Countermeasures (Flares/Chaff)
Variants	Standard, Stealth
Games

The F/A-181 Black Wasp II is a carrier-based, multi-role/air-superiority fighter jet used exclusively by NATO's naval aviation wings in ArmA 3. It was added as part of the Jets DLC.

Overview

• Roles:
  • Air superiority
  • Close air support
  • SEAD

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The F/A-181 Black Wasp II is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter aircraft. The aircraft was designed primarily as an air superiority fighter, but also has ground attack capabilities. This aircraft is fitted with required equipment for carrier operations. Additional external hardpoints allow this aircraft to carry a large variety of weapons configurations. Field Manual

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Design

This is a premium asset that requires ownership of the Jets DLC.

The Black Wasp is a twin-engined stealth fighter that uses a clipped delta wing design with a reverse sweep on the rear.

It has both conventional and fully-stealthed variants; the latter can only store up to eight weapons internally and does not have any external hard points.

Minimally-stealthed F/A-181 pylon configuration

Armament
By default, the Black Wasp is armed with a 20 mm minigun that is loaded with 450 rounds of high-explosive (HE) ammunition.

The Black Wasp's twelve (eight for the stealth variant) pylons all support dynamic loadouts.

• The two small side-mounted internal bays (1-2) support:
  • BIM-9X (1×)
• The two ventral-mounted pylons closest to the centre in the internal bays (7-8) support:
  • AMRAAM D (1×)
  • GBU-12 (1×)
  • CBU-85 (1×)
  • BL778 (1×)
• The other two ventral pylons directly next to the centre pylons (4-5) support:
  • AMRAAM D (1×)
  • GBU SDB (4×)
• The final two outermost ventral pylons (3-6) only support:
  • AMRAAM D (1×)

NOTE: The following pylons only apply to the minimal-stealth variant of the Black Wasp:

• The centre pylon on both wings (9-10) support:
  • AMRAAM D (1×)
  • AMRAAM D (2×)
  • BIM-9X (1×)
  • BIM-9X (2×)
  • Macer II (1×)
  • Macer II (2×)
  • GBU-12 (1×)
  • GBU-12 (2×)
  • CBU-85 (1×)
  • CBU-85 (2×)
  • BL778 (1×)
  • BL778 (2×)
  • AGM-88C HARM (1×)
  • GBU SDB (4×)
• The outermost wing pylons (11-12) only support:
  • AMRAAM D (1×)
  • AMRAAM D (2×)
  • BIM-9X (1×)
  • BIM-9X (2×)
  • Macer II (1×)
  • GBU-12 (1×)
  • BL778 (1×)

Both variants of the Black Wasp also have targeting cameras with integrated laser designators that are located in the EOTS module just beneath the cockpit/nose. The designator can be used to provide self-designation capability when used in conjunction with guided munitions like the GBU-12.

Landing on the flight deck of the USS Freedom. Note the barely retracted tailhook at the rear of the fuselage.

Features
Like the UCAV Sentinel, the Black Wasp has a retractable tailhook that can be lowered or raised to assist in performing carrier landings, and can have its wings folded to allow for easier storage and transportation aboard aircraft carriers.

Compared to the CSAT To-201, the Black Wasp is slightly better when it comes to avionics and Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air combat. The fully-stealthed Black Wasp can also carry one extra missile in its internal bay. The majority of these pylons, both on the baseline and stealthed variants, support long-range AAMs in addition to glide bombs in the form of SDBs.

The minimally-stealthed Black Wasp is also technically capable of carrying more weapons for close air support despite having fewer external pylons, as most of its air-to-ground munitions have an alternate double-racked variant (like Macer II AGMs).

Drawbacks
However, its flight model is slightly more sluggish and is unable to match the To-201's agility in close-range dogfights. Arming the Black Wasp for CAS also means that most of its BVR advantages will have to be sacrificed, since it will need to utilise all of its (already limited) number of pylons for ground attack weapons instead of AAMs.

Last but not least, the stealthed variant is unable to carry anti-radiation missiles (as opposed to the To-201), which prevents it from being able to engage SAM batteries at stand-off distances like its CSAT counterpart.

Crew Capacity
The Black Wasp has a maximum seating capacity of one for just the pilot. It is unable to transport any additional passengers.

Variants

• F/A-181 Black Wasp II
• F/A-181 Black Wasp II (Stealth)

Minimal stealth variant.

Has a total of twelve pylons (four external) that support dynamic loadouts. It is configured to use a multi-role loadout by default.

Dedicated stealth variant which cannot mount external munitions.

Only has a total of eight internal pylons that support dynamic loadouts, and is also configured to use a multi-role loadout by default.

Camouflage

• Dark Grey
• Dark Grey (Camo)
• Dark Grey - Stealth
• Dark Grey (Camo) - Stealth

1/4

• Dark Grey: Pattern-less scheme that uses a dark ghost grey paint colour.
• Dark Grey (Camo): Two-tone dark grey/ghost grey paint scheme designed for low observability.

Protection

Both variants of the Black Wasp have base armour values of 60.

Hull

The jet's hull can withstand 210 points of damage. Will result in a total loss if the hull's "health" is depleted.

Engines

Both engines can take up to 180 points of damage before they suffer from failure. They take 450% additional damage from high-explosive (HE) munitions.

Destroying the engines will not result in a total loss, though 80% of damage is still inflicted against the Black Wasp's "health" pool. It can however, potentially cause it to blow up if the hull's integrity is already at critical.

If damaged: Decreases thrust output and can prevent the Black Wasp from attaining its top speed.
If destroyed: Total engine failure; jet will lose its ability to maintain power completely.

Instruments

The Black Wasp's flight instruments, Head Mounted Display (HMD) and Multi-Functional Displays (MFD) can take up to 90 points of damage before they fail. All instruments take 400% additional damage from HE-type munitions.

If damaged: Causes periodic flickering of MFD screens and the pilot's HMD. Instruments remain fully functional.
If destroyed: Both the MFD and HMD will be disabled. Instruments will malfunction and do not provide proper readings.

Fuel tanks

The Black Wasp's twin fuel tanks and fuel lines can withstand up to 240 points of damage before they rupture. They takes 500% additional damage from HE-type weapons, and 60% of incoming damage is also inflicted onto the Black Wasp's "health" pool.

If damaged: Gradual fuel leaking; will lose up to a maximum of 60% of the remaining fuel supply.
If destroyed: Rapidly lose entire fuel supply over the course of several seconds.

Control surfaces

The Black Wasp's control surfaces consist of six components:

• Ailerons (left/right)
• Elevators (left/right)
• Rudders (left/right)

All six components can resist 108 points of damage before they begin failing (individually). Each component takes an additional 350% increased damage from HE-type munitions.

Depending on which specific control surface is hit, the jet's handling and agility will be degraded based on the severity of the component's damage. If multiple parts are hit, it may become impossible for the Black Wasp to perform any high-G manoeuvres.

Stealth

Both variants of the Black Wasp retain electronic stealth capabilities against active radars, though they have no masking against infrared/visual-based sensors:

RCS

The standard Black Wasp with external wing pylons has a radar cross-section rating of 0.8, which lowers the maximum detection range of active radars by 20%. The dedicated stealth variant however, has an RCS rating of 0.4 (a reduction of 60%).

IR

The Black Wasp provides no stealth capabilities against infrared-based sensors.

Visual

The Black Wasp can be tracked at full range by visual-based sensors.

Sensors

The Black Wasp has an array of sensors designed to allow it to operate effectively in both ground attack and air superiority roles:

Sensor type	Max range (Air/Ground)	Min range (Air/Ground)	Affected by environment?	Target max speed (km/h)	Azimuth coverage (°)	Elevation coverage (°)	Friendly identification range (m)
Active	A: 15,000 m G: 8,000 m	A: 15,000 m G: 8,000 m	Terrain clutter (200 m)	1e+10 km/h	45°	45°	8,000 m
Anti-Radiation	A: 16,000 m G: 16,000 m	A: 16,000 m G: 16,000 m	Nothing	216 km/h	60°	180°	12,000 m
Infrared	A: 2,500 m G: 2,000 m	A: 500 m G: 500 m	Fog (0.005%)	1,440 km/h	360°	90°	2,000 m
Laser	A: 6,000 m G: 6,000 m	A: 6,000 m G: 6,000 m	Nothing	1e+10 km/h	180°	180°	0 m
NV	A: 6,000 m G: 6,000 m	A: 6,000 m G: 6,000 m	Nothing	1e+10 km/h	180°	180°	0 m
Passive	A: 16,000 m G: 16,000 m	A: 16,000 m G: 16,000 m	Nothing	1e+10 km/h	360°	360°	12,000 m
Visual	A: 4,000 m G: 3,000 m	A: 500 m G: 500 m	Fog/Light (6%)	360 km/h	26°	20°	2,000 m

Active Radar

The Black Wasp's Active Radar is forward-facing only. Targets will only become lockable once they get within the bounds of the sensor cone (represented by the teal cone on the SENSORS panel).

Note that although ground targets at distances below 200 metres remain "invisible" to the radar due to terrain clutter, any targets that begin moving at speeds of ~ 100 km/h or greater will immediately become visible on the Black Wasp's radar.

Anti-Radiation Sensor

The Black Wasp's Anti-Radiation Sensor is forward-facing only. Its elevation coverage is specifically three times the circumference compared to azimuth and is therefore optimised to detect ground targets.

Infrared Sensor

The Black Wasp's IR Sensor is located in the EOTS module (represented by the orange cone on the SENSORS panel). Although it is technically affected by heavy fog, the range reduction effect is so miniscule (-0.125 metre reduction) that it will be barely noticeable.

Laser Sensor

The Black Wasp's Laser Sensor is forward-facing only. Any designated targets will become visible on the Black Wasp's SENSORS panel only when the jet is (mostly) facing in the direction of the laser spot.

NV Sensor

The Black Wasp's NV Sensor is forward-facing only. Any IR grenades on the ground will only become visible on the SENSORS panel when the Black Wasp is (mostly) facing in the direction of the grenade.

Passive Radar

The Black Wasp's Passive Radar can detect Active Radar threats in any direction (regardless of the jet's facing direction).

Visual Sensor

The Black Wasp's Visual Sensor is located in the EOTS module (represented by the orange cone on the SENSORS panel). The Visual Sensor can be affected by heavy fog and can lose up to 6% of its range depending on its thickness. The Visual Sensor becomes completely blind at nighttime and very low-light conditions.

It should be noted that the Visual Sensor has an elevation offset of 1 degree.

Armament

NOTE: Only the weapons used on the default loadout for the Black Wasp are listed here. For full details on ordnance that can be mounted on the Black Wasp, refer to the dynamic loadouts article.

M61 Minigun

Base damage value	Aerodynamic friction	Initial velocity (m/s)	Penetration depth (mm)
60	-0.00078	1,036	52.836

20 mm Gatling cannon. Fires high-explosive (HE) type ammunition useful for Within Visual Range (WVR) dogfights.

It can attain a fire rate of up to 4,000 rounds per minute and has a muzzle velocity of 1,036 m/s. Accuracy-wise, it has a dispersion of 0.001 rad at distances of 1,500 metres.

Target Lead Indication is provided on the pilot's Heads Up Display (HUD). Landing hits can be accomplished by pointing the M61's crosshair directly onto the HUD's circle.

BIM-9X

Main article: Dynamic loadouts#BIM-9X

Short range infrared-guided air-to-air missile.

Relies on the Black Wasp's IR Sensor to function.

AMRAAM D

Main article: Dynamic loadouts#AMRAAM D

Medium range radar-guided air-to-air missile.

Relies on the Black Wasp's Active Radar sensor to function.

Macer II

Main article: Dynamic loadouts#Macer II

Air-to-ground infrared-guided missile.

Relies on the Black Wasp's IR Sensor to function.

GBU-12

Main article: Dynamic loadouts#GBU-12

Laser-guided bomb. Relies on the Black Wasp's Laser Sensor to function.

Predicted Impact Point assistance is provided for "aiming" with the GBU-12s if no laser guidance is available.

Achievements

• 
  Get Arrested
  • Land either variant of the Black Wasp on the USS Freedom aircraft carrier and lower the tail hook to catch on the flight deck's arrestor wires. It can be done either manually (not recommended) or with autopilot enabled.

Trivia

• The Black Wasp is based on Boeing's "F/A-18E Super Hornet", but combines its fuselage with additional elements such as the wings, tail assembly, internal weapon bays and engines from Lockheed Martin's "F-22A Raptor".
  • However, the instruments and layout of the cockpit along with positioning of the EOTS module, is also similar to that of the "F-35C Lightning II".
• Prior to Game Update 1.72, the Black Wasp was very fragile and could be critically damaged or outright destroyed by a single hit from almost every kind of medium/heavy anti-aircraft weapon. Its durability was subsequently improved after the patch's release so that it can no longer be instantly blown up by AA fire.
  • The patch also disabled the ability to mount ordnance externally on the dedicated Stealth variant (dynamic loadouts were still available on the wing pylons).
• The Black Wasp's flight model was improved after the release of Game Update 1.76. Before the patch, the Black Wasp was susceptible to stalling at specific angles of attack and had stability issues even in level flight.

Gallery

Cockpit view. Promotional image released as part of the so-called "Legendary Assets" series.

Video

Arma 3 - Jets - Dslyecxi's Arma 3 Guides

External links

• Wikipedia: Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
• Wikipedia: Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
• Wikipedia: Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II

See also

Aircraft of comparable role and configuration

• To-201 Shikra (CSAT counterpart, ArmA 3: Jets only)
• A-149 Gryphon (AAF/LDF counterpart, ArmA 3: Jets only)
• F-35 Lightning II (USMC predecessor, ArmA 2 only)