# Could a modern jet fighter missile track & shoot down a WWII fighter or dive bomber? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 12, 2009, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798 "2009-04-12T02:15:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![IAmNotSpartacus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@IAmNotSpartacus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IAmNotSpartacus)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/21 "2009-04-13T05:54:28Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > FLEASWTRACENPAC What ---
**Author:** ![Amblydoper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@Amblydoper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amblydoper)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/22 "2009-04-13T07:54:31Z")
FLEASWTRACENPAC = Fleet Antisubmarine Warfare Training Center, Pacific ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/23 "2009-04-13T12:57:24Z")
There was a SciFi story quite a while beck named “A Hawk Among the Sparrows” by Dean McLaughlin. > [@](#): > > In “Hawk Among the Sparrows,” a fighter jet carrying nuclear-missiles is thrown back through time and pitted against World War I airplanes. What chance do wood and cloth planes have? You’ll be surprised. from [here](http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/dean-mclaughlin/hawk-among-sparrows.htm). A good read and makes the point that the radar guided missiles could not lock on to the small amount of metal in the WW I aircraft. Additionally he was hindered by the enormous amount of kerosene required to fuel his craft for even one short flight. A story, sure, but based on the missiles of perhaps the early 60, plausible. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/24 "2009-04-13T13:34:09Z")
> [@GaryM](#): > > There was a SciFi story quite a while beck named “A Hawk Among the Sparrows” by Dean McLaughlin. > > from [here](http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/dean-mclaughlin/hawk-among-sparrows.htm). > > A good read and makes the point that the radar guided missiles could not lock on to the small amount of metal in the WW I aircraft. Additionally he was hindered by the enormous amount of kerosene required to fuel his craft for even one short flight. > > A story, sure, but based on the missiles of perhaps the early 60, plausible. Radar reflects against anything, not just metal - how do you think British huff-duff installations picked up German air raids during WW2 ? Modern air control radars routinely pick up birds, meteo balloons and so on ; although normally civilian air control radars automatically filter out anything that doesn’t have a transponder broadcasting “Hello, I’m an airplane !” The same is true of a fighter’s onboard radar : in normal operation it’ll only display echoes that are bigger than size X, go faster than speed Y and are between altitudes X and Z to limit cluttering, but the pilot can adjust the settings if need be. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/25 "2009-04-13T13:49:49Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Apparently, early versions of the missile commonly locked on the Sun itself, or reflections of it on the ground. Wonder how exactly they managed to tweak that behavior out, while still keeping such a hair-trigger seeking mechanism. My WAG is that the missile might have a spectral filter tuned to block out certain wavelengths like sunlight and sunlight reflections. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/26 "2009-04-13T14:03:03Z")
> [@Amblydoper](#): > > FLEASWTRACENPAC = Fleet Antisubmarine Warfare Training Center, Pacific What he needs is [DICNAVAB](http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/1660237/used/Dictionary%20of%20Naval%20Abbreviations) (Dictionary of Naval Abbreviations). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/27 "2009-04-13T14:15:37Z")
And ASAP! ---
**Author:** ![Amblydoper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@Amblydoper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amblydoper)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/28 "2009-04-13T15:03:54Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > My WAG is that the missile might have a spectral filter tuned to block out certain wavelengths like sunlight and sunlight reflections. My WAG is that the sun gives off a particular heat signature based on the time of day and location of launch, and the guidance system knows to look for, then ignore it. Anyone know some facts about this? ---
**Author:** ![telebox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7ea924/32.png) [@telebox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/telebox)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798/29 "2009-04-13T16:34:03Z")
> [@Amblydoper](#): > > My WAG is that the sun gives off a particular heat signature based on the time of day and location of launch, and the guidance system knows to look for, then ignore it. > > Anyone know some facts about this? Not sure if it is what you’re interested in, but you might want to see here : > **[Heat-Seeking Missile Guidance](https://www.ausairpower.net/TE-IR-Guidance.html)** > > Heat-Seeking Missile Guidance, infrared, reticle, conscan seeker [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-modern-jet-fighter-missile-track-shoot-down-a-wwii-fighter-or-dive-bomber/492798.md?page=1)