How Stealth Works

[Zaphod58]

To Zaph
I was having an issue with directly quoting a very specific statement.
Anyways you mentioned that a F-117 that as far as the public knows was downed and that it was ambushed.
Could you expand on that or is that a no no?

It's fairly well documented. A Serbian missile battery commander noticed that they were using the same route on multiple nights. So he used donkeys and trucks over several nights to move his radar and missile battery, only loading a pair of missiles, instead of the full six that it could hold. They used a P-18 radar, set to the lowest frequency to detect the F-117, at about 15 miles. 

The day of the shoot down, VEGA31 (82-0806) launched even though the Prowlers were grounded due to weather. The Serbs had spotters in Italy around the base, so they knew when they launched and that there were no Prowlers with them. They detected VEGA31, and used the S-125 radar, in extremely short sweeps to locate where he was, and caught him with the bay doors open as he released weapons, and were able to hit him.

[Blackfingers]

Naval aircraft have a hell of a time with RAM coatings and sea air enviroments.Things changed as well after the Bin Laden raid as well when one of the Stealth Hawks crashed on landing and the Seal team didnt fully destroy the remains.Tail was very quickly passed around the axis nations.

[Avicula]

If I remember correctly, didn't the one we lost get shot down because they knew exactly when and where to look?

And credit where credit is due: The man running that SAM battery, Lt. Col. Zoltan Dani was about as close to being a SAM savant as one could be in his situation. He has given some interviews over the years and to call the man “creative” would be a gross understatement. 

And the best part? Dani and the F-117 pilot he shot down, Lt. Col. Dale Zelko are now legit buddies. Dani is running a bakery and apparently they are in regular contact with one another and have nothing but high praise for the other guy.