• superkret@feddit.org
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    2 months ago

    Wouldn’t most US military equipment become pretty useless without jet fuel (also needed for tanks), the Internet and GPS?

    • Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
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      2 months ago

      Jet fuel is basically kerosene, which was invented in 1846 and available from refineries long before diesel (1894) and gasoline (1892). Refineries were producing fuel that jets could burn long before jets existed. Most military aircraft can burn diesel or ordinary kerosene if jet fuel isnt available, they just need to be careful to avoid gelling, which can occur in the cold air at high altitude.

      GPS is needed for a certain degree of precision in standoff weapons. Without it, they have to rely on laser or TV guidance, or dead reckoning. The ring laser gyros and accelerometers they use in their inertial guidance systems are far more accurate than the guidance systems used aboard V1 and V2 rockets, which were themselves surprisingly effective.

      GPS is not required for navigation of manned aircraft: they can rely on terrestrial radio beacons or dead reckoning with their own inertial navigation systems.

      I can’t think of a weapons system that actually requires Internet access.