F-35 looking more like white elephant

[Tiger Awan]

With 5th generation aircraft starting to poliferate (China, Russia, and India). Countries will consider consider it a national security priority to have a similar ability. Though they may not have them in the numbers that they would like.

again agree


In that case more buyers for F-35 must be ensure to generate more funds

 

[LeGenD]

I think that US should try to keep a low profile in media regarding its defence related programs in research stages.

Reports like these can be demoralizing and cause unexpected hurdles in the path of progress.

Here is an update regarding F35 program:-

Lockheed F-35 Testing Exceeded 2010 Goals, Tester Says

By Tony Capaccio - Jan 12, 2011 Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-35 fighter

jet “slightly exceeded” its flight-test goals last year, according to the Pentagon testing office in a new report.

The three variants of the program’s aircraft flew a total of 427 test sorties, or 37 more than planned, says Michael Gilmore, Pentagon director of operational test and evaluation, in his annual report released today.

Cumulatively, the test program also accomplished 4,614 “test points,” or individual objectives, within those flights, or 210 more than planned, Gilmore wrote.

Goals were met by the Air Force and Navy versions but not the Marine Corps short-takeoff and vertical landing version, said Gilmore. That model flew 216 sorties out of a planned total of 254. Lockheed Martin officials have acknowledged throughout the year that the Marine model was behind schedule.

Purchases through 2016 of the Marine Corps version were cut to 50 from 110, reflecting two years of additional development testing, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last week. He directed that aircraft be put on a two-year “probation.”

The Marine model “is experiencing significant testing problems” that “could lead to a redesign of the aircraft’s structure and propulsion -- changes that could add yet more weight and more cost to an aircraft that has little capacity to absorb,” Gates told reporters on Jan. 6.

Overall, the test report indicated progress over 2009, when all three models flew only about 10 percent of their planned test flights because of delays in delivering aircraft.

Sixteen of 168 planned flights were completed in fiscal 2009, the second year of flight testing.

Last year, through Dec. 10, the Air Force version flew 155 sorties, or 46 more than planned, and the Navy version flew 24, or three more than planned.

Lockheed spokesman John Kent, asked to comment on the report, said, “We are pleased with the overall performance of each F-35 variant and the progress we’ve made with flight testing over the past year.

“The type of component-level problems we’ve identified in the F-35 short-takeoff and vertical landing variant are typical of early test aircraft in a development program,” Kent said. “This slowed down flight testing for this variant, but we developed and implemented solutions that have allowed us to accelerate the flight tempo of our STOVL jets, and we have made significant progress over the last few months,”

Source: Lockheed F-35 Testing Exceeded 2010 Goals, Tester Says - Bloomberg

Their are 3 versions of F35. Among these, only the STOVL version is facing some problems. This does not means that its problems cannot be addressed or that the entire F35 program is an utter failure.

 

[logic]

In the days of the cold war the US overestimated the MIG-25 and innovated there way to the remarkable and still in service the legendary F-15 Super fighter.

Fast forward to today US has been caught off guard to a certain extent with the dawn of J-20 (it is still under development). JSF-35 a formidable Aircraft clearly a first rate aircraft for any Air force of the world does pose minimal impact as compared to the MIG-25 F-15 scene.

 

[unicorn]

I sense Kopp's hand here

Even after googling the whole post you still failed to justify your answer

1) How often do u need more than 4 AA missiles? - Once in 100 years.

Yes you don't often need more than 4 AA missiles,but without it you also cannot be termed as an Air Dominant Fighter.

2) Both have over 15 km ceiling. Max speed is 1.6 mach and 2 mach.

None of the above matters if you cannot sustain 28 degree/sec turn which only and only F22 Raptor can execute.We still don't have any evidence that F35 can move like Raptor.

3) F-22 makes less than 1/4 of route is supercruise mode, thats gives only 10-15% in time response advantage. And combat radius of F-22 is even smaller. Ability to detect, classify, identify, target mobile targets of F-22 is very poor compare to F-35.

And these wikipedia data about the combat radius of Raptor only newbies like you can take those as a final word.

4, 5) Baseless numbers.

The information on the internet about F35 capabilities is completely nill as far as I have seen.Any verdict on F35 based on these information is just a speculation.
To me the only thing in which F35 could beat Raptor is its price.There has to be a significant difference between the two but unfortunately it is not.