Jojomanrul3z
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Of course fuel is a limitation for missiles, that's why ships have to get close 'enough' to make sure their weapons, which in this case are missiles, actually hit their target or else they'll just dodge it in the next few minutes or seconds and the missiles run out of fuel because the target is too far away.Drakkith said:While this is all correct, we already use missiles and piloted fighters, so it's not nearly as simple as you're implying. One major, major limitation to both fighters and missiles in space combat is fuel. Unlike missiles used in the atmosphere that burn all their fuel very quickly after launch and then use the air to maneuver, missiles in space MUST use fuel for any maneuvering. This puts a pretty strict limitation on them in terms of effective range. Put simply, the longer the range is, the less fuel the target has to burn to force a large burn of the missile. And the faster the closing velocity the more this is exacerbated.
Fighters have similar problems in addition to requiring enough fuel to make it back to their mothership/carrier/base and having more mass in the first place.
I'm not convinced either are 'impossible' in space combat, but both have serious limitations at
Distance is the greatest friend and enemy you can have in any space battle because you can stay away from the effective firing range of your enemy, but could also limit YOUR effective range of your weapons so if you or the enemy vessel gets too close, you're fighting in point blank range. So if all you have to do is keep your distance and have advanced weapons that have more effective range than your enemy does, why have one or two man fighters get even closer? Its suicidal, stupid, and makes no sense in a strategic or tactical perspective. Your enemy's PDC, CIWS, any weapon specifically designed for close combat and point defense will rip a small fighter to shreds unless your objective is to board the enemy vessel that you have crippled earlier and the said fighter is just a space tug with guns carrying a container with troops inside.
Fighters are impossible in space not because we can't build them, but because we will never be using them because of strategic and tactical reasons. And why have a fighter when you can have more missiles at the same cost of a fighter?
BTW I am using the expanse and choldren of a dead Earth as my reference here being one of the only shows and games that uses real world physics and plausible technologies. The only ships the equivalent of a fighter would be the, morrigan class patrol destroyer and corvette class frigate/rocinante. They can be carried by a Donnager class battleship to trick the enemy that only one ship is sent to destroy them when in truth there are 7 or 13 ships and they don't go in closer they keep their distance. Get in too close to the enemy their dead.
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