Canada Cancels F-35 Order To Buy This Fighter Instead

[gambit]

1) F35 has a greater payload and range than the F16, only if external stores are carried. If it flies with external stores, it is no longer a "stealth aircraft". It only can use internal carriage if it wants to remain a stealth aircraft. Which brings a major range and payload penalty.

This is a meaningless critique.

In a situation where the F-16 would be survivable, then the F-35's low radar observability would not be needed, therefore, its greater capabilities, from battlespace management to payload, would be an advantage.

In a situation where the F-16 or any other older platform would be vulnerable, then the F-35's low radar observability would be an advantage despite lower payload because of that need for 'stealth'.

Do you understand ?

Let us take a critical mission call 'runway denial' where the enemy is deprived of his own runway. Here is an example from WW II...

In the above example, the Luftwaffe attacked RAF St. Eval on 18 Jul 42. Note the many bomb craters, and yet the runways were hardly scratched. Similar examples can be found where it took armadas of bombers delivering hundreds of bombs just on the fortune that a few bombs can do enough damage to the runway in order to deny the airfield its use, no matter how temporarily.

Now a more recent example...

One 'stealth' bomber and six bombs.

In both cases, there were reconnaissance missions for each airfield. Runways do not move. All it takes is a single pass by an aircraft with a camera or an overhead satellite. So in both cases, the attackers knew exactly what to look for. And yet, only one runway denial mission was successful: Obvra.

In Obvra, the bombs were precisely on the intersections of the runways and pathways. The segments between the craters were too short for use except for the lightest of the light aircrafts. Yes, the Serbs can repair the runways in a day or even within a few hrs, but those hrs were critical for something else, something greater.

So just because the F-35 by necessity of 'stealth' may carry a couple of bombs, that pair of bombs can create consequences the enemy may not, and probably would not, expect.

You posted as if you have vast personal experience in military aviation, particularly planning with low radar observable platforms, while we are amateurs.

Har...Am willing to guess you can barely tell the difference between a hammer and a screwdriver.

RAF St. Avel is one extreme and Obvra is the other extreme. But here is an illuminating fact: No one outside of the US of that kind of experience.

Neither Russia nor China have it. Russian heavy bombers were negligible contributors and China had nothing.

But for US ? We ranged from B-17 to F-117. From mass to precision deliveries. You think we are amateurs at this ? You think we do not and cannot use the F-35 to its fullest ? I came from two jets, F-111 and F-16, and I pity anyone who is going to be on the receiving end of the F-35.

2) As for WVR/BVR debate, lets just say that airpower advocates have been saying that dog fighting is obsolete for about 50 years, yet actual warfare seems to give lie to that. AIM-7 Sparrow had a 13% lifetime kill rate and the USAF/USN suffered due to their reliance on it. The AIM-120 AMRAAM has a combat record of 10 kills v 17 shots, of which two kills were friendly fire against own unsuspecting Helicopters. Not exactly impressive, the other kills have been against a Galeb and a MiG-23 and 6 Mig-29's. So actual combat kill rates are less than promised, and this is before considering the fact that the Russians are coming up with some really high level ECM's which can make BVR difficult. Also Rules of Engagement might well make BVR unfeasible, when the enemy is filling the air with electronic noise, you need to know whether you are actually shooting at people as opposed to blips on a RADAR.

No Soviet/Russia or Chinese missiles. Funny how the only air-air combat missiles available to criticize are US, as if somehow that make the other guys' missiles better.

3) The F35 has a worse TWR than the Su-35 (by far) and worse ECM. The only advantage it has is stealth, and that comes with perhaps unaffordable penalty.

And the 'stealth' advantage proved to be scary enough that the Russians and the Chinese are scrambling to develop their own. Against the F-35 ? The Su-35 will be mid morning snack, pal.