F-35 Joint Strike Fighter News, Videos and pics Thread

[timepass]

Britain's F-35B aircraft will be ready to use its weapons system by the end of this year, say manufacturer Lockheed Martin. They are promising software upgrades will be made to allow the jet to work with its AMRAAM - an air-to-air missile. James Hirst has been speaking to the Chief Executive of Lockheed Martin in the UK....

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=871929052977590

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

It is saying exactly what I've been saying since I've been on this forum the 4 does have one advantage it didn' take 30 years to deploy

X35 First flew in 2000, unless my last nap was of Rip Van Winkle scale of deep sleep it's only been 18 years. Since then with the actual first F35 roll out in 2006. Or 12 years.

now I skimmed over what The National Interest had to say June 2, 2018:
Could the F-35 Stealth Fighter Be the 'New' F-4 Phantom?

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Alot of this is based on maybes and trying to argue based off events that are now almost 50 years old. It's also forgetting that F35 has some similar capabilities of its own in terms of radar, Electro optics, helmet mounted Cueing and off no desire. In practice it is true that BVR is rare mostly because of Rules of engagement between coalition forces worried about Blue on Blue attacks. However the same electro optics mean that WVR is not nessisarily true WVR as the optics can be used to identify targets beyond human eyesight.
Additionally the radars of fighters like the F35 are harder to figure on. RWRs have to be programmed to identify threats. The F22 and F35 are harder to identify due to there frequency hoping.

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

Finally everyone making this argument forgets that the F4 Phantom II was a very Successful aircraft, that although it did suffer early on in a poorer win to loss rate those were corrected by late Vietnam for the Navy and marines by better aircrew and pilot training

 

[Air Force Brat]

Finally everyone making this argument forgets that the F4 Phantom II was a very Successful aircraft, that although it did suffer early on in a poorer win to loss rate those were corrected by late Vietnam for the Navy and marines by better aircrew and pilot training

Yep, and the F-4 is still serving as a front line aircraft in several Air Forces around the world, the F-35 on the other hand will do things the poor old F-4 jockeys could have NEVER even dreamed, the F-35, like the F-22 haunts the night visions of the bad boys... honestly, every Air Force in the world NOT flying the F-22 or the F-35 is in a bad way..

Yep there's the J-20, and maybe even the F-31, and then there's the SU-57,, how will they stack up, the J-20 is looking good, the other two are on "life support", my point is that even the J-20 production is lagging behind, so before you begin to whine and cry about the F-35, you really ought to look at the competition, really, when you begin to open up the envelope, it doesn't really happen on a schedule!

You can make plans, and develop time tables and you should, but those are just to give you a Kick in the Butt!

 

[Deleted member 13312]

At this point of time, the US Armed Forces better hope that the F-35 is a F-4 miracle waiting to happen. Because unlike back in Vietnam, there is no good fallback if the F-35 flops. So much funding and maintenance for legacy fighters have been deferred for it that the USN F-18s are literally cannibalizing each other for parts.
China and Russia on other hand are still building and maintaining 4th gen fighters, and that is a smart move.
The F-35 is like a coin flip, heads you win tails you lose. No sane establishment could have acquiesced to such a procurement procedure to begin with.

 

[Jura The idiot]

...

Alot of this is based on maybes and trying to argue based off events that are now almost 50 years old. It's also forgetting that F35 has some similar capabilities of its own in terms of radar, Electro optics, helmet mounted Cueing and off no desire. In practice it is true that BVR is rare mostly because of Rules of engagement between coalition forces worried about Blue on Blue attacks. However the same electro optics mean that WVR is not nessisarily true WVR as the optics can be used to identify targets beyond human eyesight.
Additionally the radars of fighters like the F35 are harder to figure on. RWRs have to be programmed to identify threats. The F22 and F35 are harder to identify due to there frequency hoping.

for me it was interesting to see what fanbois are told these days by The National Interest about F-35; I think in the past there were "jaw-dropping" articles about the helmet etc. instead

 

[Jura The idiot]

...

You can make plans, and develop time tables and you should, but those are just to give you a Kick in the Butt!

pardon me? I didn't get you last sentence

 

[dtulsa]

Ok every one now knows I am NO fan of the 35 here are some simple reasons 1. It's not a dogfighter it doesn't claim to be in the sense the we think of 2. It simply lacks the overall thrust to weight necessary for dogfighting 3. It loses energy turning to fast in actual dogfight 4.all the radars in the world can never take the place of those two eyes in the cockpit 5. It really lacks all around pilot view due to the normalised cockpit 6.The U.S. practices aircraft identification before fire this simply takes away one huge advantage 7. The lack of a internal gun really hurts the Navy and Marine models 8.Its internal missile loadout is way to small for a turning type of battle 9. It's system are really to unreliable to be trusted

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

Ok every one now knows I am NO fan of the 35 here are some simple reasons 1. It's not a dogfighter it doesn't claim to be in the sense the we think of

It's not a Super maneuverable dog fighter but then American Fighters have not focused on super maneuvering, a few can do it. However time and time again The US has faced enemy fighters that are far superior in Turning battles The Classic Dog fighting, Yet with proper tactics have come out ahead. The F35 is used for CAP would be more an Interceptor

2. It simply lacks the overall thrust to weight necessary for dogfighting

Not true. Remember that only 1 American fighters can do the vaunted Pugachev's Cobra the the F22A. The legacy series fighter the F16, F15, F14. F18, F/A18 don't. yet these are still very maneuverable fighters. Thrust to weight is good but it's not the end all be all. Back in World war 2 the Japanese Had a fighter with far better thrust to weight then American Naval fighters, And yes there were cases where the Navy took losses from this but there were also cases where in Smart tactics were employed and the fight was changed. Any well trained pilot will use the advantages of there machine vs the enemy's. In the F4 Case it fought the Mig 21. This is a perfect example because F4 was an intercepter not a Dog fighter where Mig 21 was more the classic dog fighter. yet F4's could come out on top with tactics.
Finally your reason 1 and Reason 2 are really the same complaint. And both boil down to F35 being used as an Interceptor.

3. It loses energy turning to fast in actual dogfight

No evidence of this and again Tactics.

.all the radars in the world can never take the place of those two eyes in the cockpit

True, And these pilots will be well trained for there machines. Radar is a enabler. it allows detection of possible targets far beyond the Eye. The EOTS is also an augmentation to give the pilot a better chance of making the kill.

It really lacks all around pilot view due to the normalised cockpit

Which is where the Distributed appiture system comes in as it augments the pilots vision potential in essence the helmet and system mean that the F35 pilot has eyes in the back of his fighter. Farther more the F35 is not the Worst bubble canopy in the world for a fighter there are far worst in service. The Mig 21 being an example.

6.The U.S. practices aircraft identification before fire this simply takes away one huge advantage

That practice is done but mostly in conditions where in there is uncertainty of identification. Especially for coalition operations. This is not a limitation for the F35 this is across the board. and by the Way Visual range is not always as close as you might think it can mean miles away.

7. The lack of a internal gun really hurts the Navy and Marine models

An internal Gun is mission equipment and not a absolute need. The E/F18G lacks a Gun. Only some models of the F4 had a internal gun, the Harrier never had an internal gun. There has been the claim that the F4 in Vietnam suffered because of lack of a internal gun. Yet this is'not the case. The Service with constant the worse loss rate of that war was the USAF And USAF F4 had an Internal gun. When F4 Kill rates improved it was for Navy and MArine Corps Pilots and most of those kills were with Air to Air missiles. farther more the F35 has a gun pod for the Navy and Marines. it's simply a matter of weight. The gun remember is not made of paper it adds weight to the fighter and that weight has to be traded off for something else. If you are being escorted for a strike mission why carry the gun?

8.Its internal missile loadout is way to small for a turning type of battle

Where in the hell did you get that? being honest it's backwards. When you see a fighter loaded up with all kinds of missiles and bombs that is a fighter looking for BVR fights. all that ordinance drags down the machine. No one acutally wants to get into a Flying Knife fight. Dog fights in the World wars were the way that the kill was made with no other option. by Korea the Air to Air missile changed the traditional dogfight. by Veitnam the dogfight was more making sure that the missile locked on and worked to kill the target. the Turning battles is more dangerous and not a actual mission aim for a pilot It's the last resort. And as I have pointed out above you don't need to get into a turning battle.
Now as yet Block 4 carry 4 internal weapons internally. Block 5 are supposed to be able to pack in 6 internally. That's not Raptor but fair.Most of the mission set of the Lightning is strike though in which case the internal load would be 2 bombs and 2 air to air missiles not to kill an enemy but to fend on off. If you are Flying Lightning as an Interceptor or CAP you are probably going to be using external stores. Which can load out pretty well.

9. It's system are really to unreliable to be trusted

It's systems are continuing to improve. This happens with Every new machine. And this complaint can be used for any new system. It's a catch all.

 

[dtulsa]

It's not a Super maneuverable dog fighter but then American Fighters have not focused on super maneuvering, a few can do it. However time and time again The US has faced enemy fighters that are far superior in Turning battles The Classic Dog fighting, Yet with proper tactics have come out ahead. The F35 is used for CAP would be more an Interceptor

Not true. Remember that only 1 American fighters can do the vaunted Pugachev's Cobra the the F22A. The legacy series fighter the F16, F15, F14. F18, F/A18 don't. yet these are still very maneuverable fighters. Thrust to weight is good but it's not the end all be all. Back in World war 2 the Japanese Had a fighter with far better thrust to weight then American Naval fighters, And yes there were cases where the Navy took losses from this but there were also cases where in Smart tactics were employed and the fight was changed. Any well trained pilot will use the advantages of there machine vs the enemy's. In the F4 Case it fought the Mig 21. This is a perfect example because F4 was an intercepter not a Dog fighter where Mig 21 was more the classic dog fighter. yet F4's could come out on top with tactics.
Finally your reason 1 and Reason 2 are really the same complaint. And both boil down to F35 being used as an Interceptor.

No evidence of this and again Tactics.
True, And these pilots will be well trained for there machines. Radar is a enabler. it allows detection of possible targets far beyond the Eye. The EOTS is also an augmentation to give the pilot a better chance of making the kill.

Which is where the Distributed appiture system comes in as it augments the pilots vision potential in essence the helmet and system mean that the F35 pilot has eyes in the back of his fighter. Farther more the F35 is not the Worst bubble canopy in the world for a fighter there are far worst in service. The Mig 21 being an example.

That practice is done but mostly in conditions where in there is uncertainty of identification. Especially for coalition operations. This is not a limitation for the F35 this is across the board. and by the Way Visual range is not always as close as you might think it can mean miles away.
An internal Gun is mission equipment and not a absolute need. The E/F18G lacks a Gun. Only some models of the F4 had a internal gun, the Harrier never had an internal gun. There has been the claim that the F4 in Vietnam suffered because of lack of a internal gun. Yet this is'not the case. The Service with constant the worse loss rate of that war was the USAF And USAF F4 had an Internal gun. When F4 Kill rates improved it was for Navy and MArine Corps Pilots and most of those kills were with Air to Air missiles. farther more the F35 has a gun pod for the Navy and Marines. it's simply a matter of weight. The gun remember is not made of paper it adds weight to the fighter and that weight has to be traded off for something else. If you are being escorted for a strike mission why carry the gun?

Where in the hell did you get that? being honest it's backwards. When you see a fighter loaded up with all kinds of missiles and bombs that is a fighter looking for BVR fights. all that ordinance drags down the machine. No one acutally wants to get into a Flying Knife fight. Dog fights in the World wars were the way that the kill was made with no other option. by Korea the Air to Air missile changed the traditional dogfight. by Veitnam the dogfight was more making sure that the missile locked on and worked to kill the target. the Turning battles is more dangerous and not a actual mission aim for a pilot It's the last resort. And as I have pointed out above you don't need to get into a turning battle.
Now as yet Block 4 carry 4 internal weapons internally. Block 5 are supposed to be able to pack in 6 internally. That's not Raptor but fair.Most of the mission set of the Lightning is strike though in which case the internal load would be 2 bombs and 2 air to air missiles not to kill an enemy but to fend on off. If you are Flying Lightning as an Interceptor or CAP you are probably going to be using external stores. Which can load out pretty well.

It's systems are continuing to improve. This happens with Every new machine. And this complaint can be used for any new system. It's a catch all.

As too the answers now thrust is pretty important in a turning twisting dogfight and it also helps when it comes time to break off the attack if you can outrun the other guy ie. Faster you stand a better chance this something the 4 almost always had the advantage in 2. The f4 did not have a internal gun till the R model arrived later in the war the Navy or Marines 4's never had one the barrier has a Aden gun sling underneath the fuselage not familiar with the Growler 3.I will give ya fair due as to the Migs don' have real great visibility 4. The current 35 and I might say the f22 only carry 2 AIM 9X internally there the 4 has a complete advantage she carried 4 Sparrow amdc4 Sidewinder granted they not have been as good 5. I do not see the US relaxing it' NVR restrictions regarding IFF that much if like you say we are in a coalition which 9 put of 10 times we will be 6. The pilots helmet display has had a rough time of being too heavy to bulky and actually dangerous in times of egress if I remember right it pretty much had to be redesigned to allow for certain pilots to egress safelyas to the much vaunted software issue it remain to be seen how much of it can actually be fixed so it does not crash this needing to be rebooted not a good thing to do in the middle of a fight and please don' forget about the ALIS sysem of maintenance Mo plane is very good when it' grounded for spare parts you may be right in a lot of your points but if y'll are wrong it's not your life sitting up there in that seat would you like to try? Or would want to be in a 22 insyrad