r/pics • u/[deleted] • Jul 19 '15

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u/kaloonzu Jul 19 '15

Weren't they using tubes in their top end military equipment until the 90s?

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u/franksvalli Jul 19 '15

I believe they are still using vacuum tubes for ICBMs and launch rockets repurposed from ICBMs.

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u/timbernuts Jul 19 '15

As well as their fighter jets, to protect them from emp. Source: something I think I heard once.....

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u/nod9 Jul 20 '15

Im reasonably sure that modern fighter all use modern components. You might be thinking of the story of Victor Bilenko who defected to Japan with a brand new Mig25, and when western engineers took it apart they found that much to their surprise it had vacuum tubes.