F-35A "Lightnig II"

[Dr Mordrid]

Named for the legendary P-38 Lightning of WW-II fame. The F-35 is stealthy, fast & nimble and it's to replace the F-16 (F-35A), Harrier (F-35B) and F-18 (F-35C). Below is the F-35B, which is the STOVL replacement for the Harrier. The first test aircraft, an F-35A (land based) model AA-1 had its formal rollout on July 7, 2006.

The F-35B STOVL's forced redesign for weight reasons has led to F-35 AA-1 being a unique airframe used to validate design, manufacturing, assembly and test processes. The first optimised-airframe F-35B STOVL is being assembled by Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and BAE Systems; it is scheduled to fly in February 2008. The first optimised-airframe F-35A will follow in August 2008, and the first F-35C carrier variant is scheduled for flight in Januray 2009. A total of 23 test aircraft are scheduled to be built for various purposes (15 flight, 7 non-flight, 1 radar signature) - see Flight International article for details re: "Option 9".

The JSF program is 'tiered,' with 4 possible levels of participation based on admission levels and funding commitments for System Design & Development (SDD). Note that all totals below are in US dollar equivalents:

* Tier 1 Partners: The USA (majority commitment), Britain ($2 billion)

* Tier 2 Partners: Italy ($1 billion); The Netherlands ($800 million)

* Tier 3 Partners: Australia ($150M), Canada ($150M), Denmark ($125M), Norway ($125M), Turkey ($175M)

* Observer status: Israel ($35M), Singapore.

At present, production is slated to take place in Lockheed's Fort Worth, TX plant. Italy has expressed an interest in a Lockheed-Martin Final Assembly and Check Out (FACO) plant for European orders, The Netherlands wants to be a center for engine heavy maintenance, and Britain is examining a FACO of its own. The issue of the JSF's security-sensitive stealth enhancing coatings and how their application will be managed remains to be decided.

During the FY 2006 period, the JSF program has seen two other major developments. One interesting twist is that the F/A-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) may also excel in reconnaissance and electronic eavesdropping. The aircrafts' combination of powerful phased array AESA radars, passive electromagnetic antennas and sensors embedded throughout their frames, powerful onboard computer processing, and secure high-bandwidth communications will give them capabilities once available only to dedicated electronic attack aircraft.

At the same time, the F-35's AN/APG-81 AESA radar may also be able to function as a secure, ultra-high bandwidth communications link with other AESA-equipped aircraft (thus far, only american aircraft use AESA radars), allowing much more information to be shared than Link-16 or other current options could handle.

Dr. Mordrid

[degrub]

Hell, just another stealthy crotch rocket for flyboys

[Nowhere]

Heh, funny - it seems Poland will be getting its first F-16s when its succesor already flies.

[lowlifecat]

wonder how many we'll be getting up here.

got a couple questions though;
i thought all the f-18s where replaced with the f/a-18 super hornet?
second will they replace the central fan with a frikken laser beam on the non-stvol flavours?
how does it compair to the eurofighter? can it kick an f-22s ass?
will there be a f-35d (canadian winter)?

[Dr Mordrid]

wonder how many we'll be getting up here.

got a couple questions though;
i thought all the f-18s where replaced with the f/a-18 super hornet?

They were. I Gradually the F-35 will become the carrier strike fighter, but the Super Hornet will be around quite a while. They'll be joined by pilotless UCAV drones that can dogfight @ G's that would kill humans.

Future US air wings will look a lot more like the one in the movie 'Stealth' (mixed manned and UCAV) than some are willing to admit, especially once the new generation of supercarriers come into service in the next decade.

The first ones keel (CVN-78) gets laid down in ~2009, about when the USS George H W Bush is finished, though steel cutting has already started. Name? The USS Gerald R. Ford is favored by the US Senate. Others prefer USS America, USS Constitution or the ship it replaces; USS Enterprise.

second will they replace the central fan with a frikken laser beam on the non-stvol flavours?

Plans are for the removal of the fan in an STOVL version, replacing it with a tactical 50-100 kw fiber solid state laser. The fiber laser has already achieved 50 kw in the lab. It's small, powerful, efficient, runs on electricity (LED pumped) & supposedly can be radar or lidar targeted. Look for these to also appear in gunships & other aircraft as well as ships like the next-gen supercarriers, destroyers etc.

how does it compair to the eurofighter? can it kick an f-22s ass?
will there be a f-35d (canadian winter)?

Nothing can 'kick an f-22s ass' if it can't be seen on radar first. By the time you know it's there a missile is halfway up your pipe, and it carries a huge ordinance load...~2-3 times that of the F-35...and all of it internally.

F-35 is similarly stealthy (radar signarure of a bumblebee) but lacks thrust vectoring, supercruise and other F-22 tricks like supersonic stand-off bombing runs using JDAM's. Basically it's an air dominance weapon that clears the way for other aircraft.

ex: in Exercise Northern Edge 2006 against 40 aircraft in simulated battles it scored 108 kills to 0 for the opposition fighters. It can also do air-to-air and ground attack simultaneously.

[Jessterw]

Must be a rather impressive flyer for them to be replacing the F-16 with it. Granted the F-16 is getting long in the tooth, but I've met nary an Air Force pilot who would rather fly anything else for sheer speed and maneuverability in a fighter jet. Then again, the USAF alternatives until recently weren't all that impressive.

[Dr Mordrid]

Missions:

F-35A: air-to-ground strike aircraft to replace the F-16 Falcon and A-10 Thunderbolt II; complement the F-22 Raptor

F-35B: STOVL strike fighter to replace the F/A-18 B/C and AV-8B Harrier 'Jump Jet'.

F-35C: first-day strike fighter to replace F/A-18 B/C and A-6 Intruder; complement the F/A-18 E/F

F/A-18 E/F: replacement for F-14D Tomcat (Retired 2006)

[lowlifecat]

thanks doc. sweet they are gonna have lasers... although i was thinking more along the lines of a small fish tank with a small shark in it... you know the kind

what happened to all the Fs between 22 and 35?

[Dr Mordrid]

The "next in sequence" would indeed be F-23, but F-35 was chosen instead. IMO the most likely reason would be several operational 'black' aircraft & failed prototypes in between, most developed during the late 1980's on to today.

Rumors: hypersonic spy and attack craft using plasma to interrupt the boundary layer between air and the leading edges, drastically reducing drag and skin friction. This combined with advanced engines could allow speeds of MACH 15 or more. Engines: pulse detonation wave, scramjet etc.

Here in the US most tests have been based at Groom Lake (Area 51), Papoose Lake and later Edwards AFB, flying out over the Pacific. There have been many sightings of unusual craft (typically triangular) by trained observers (former military spotters, aeronautical engineers etc.) and numerous 'skyquakes' over California that were strong enough to leave identifiable traces on earthquake sensors. These skyquakes when traced on a map lead right back to Groom/Papoose Lakes and are very distinct from those created by the shuttle.

Also interesting is an air control transmission recorded by several California radio amatures back in 1996;

"Controllers were directing the unknown "Gaspipe" aircraft to a runway at Edwards, using advisories similar to those given space shuttle crews during a landing approach. The monitors recorded two advisories, both transmitted by Joshua Control to "Gaspipe":

"You're at 67,000, 81 mi. out," and "Seventy mi. out, 36,000. Above glide slope."

In 1995 a guy in Cornwall, UK took this picture (image: globalsecurity.org);



Russia's version, AJAX - which they're co-developing with China, has been tracked by European radars for years at MACH 6-12. India has said they'll be testing a prototype in 2007.

Dr. Mordrid

[Nowhere]

Is the thing above called "Aurora" by some? I seem to remember rumors about it, supposedly replacement for SR-71...

[Dr Mordrid]

Aurora was an item accidently left in a published 1986 budget. Most experts now think it was part of the B-2 program or the cancelled A-12, a carrier strike fighter akin to the F-22. Whatever the US hypersonic program is doing "Gaspipe" seems more likely the craft seen/heard in the 1990's.

What some believe is that several 'white' programs that have been publically "cancelled" have really gone 'black'. The X-33 single-stage to orbit using linear aerospike engines is one of these. The story was that it was cancelled because of fab problems with the fuel tank. Yeah, right

All of this is Area 51 (Groom Lake) stuff, but how many know about Area 19? It's ostensibly an abandoned underground test facility, but many doubt it. One oddity is a 34.5 KV "powerline-to-nowhere" that terminates right in the middle of Area 19.

An airline pilot once related that there is also a "Chesire runway". Normally it's covered with sand, but when it's needed sprayers wash away the sand. Voila! Other reports say that the hills in Area 19 are actually disguised buildings, hangars etc.

[GT98]

I've read that Area 51 out in NV has been abandoned due to all the pubisity its been getting over the years...but everything is second hand info or whatnot

[Dr Mordrid]

It's definitely not abandoned. Janet Airlines is still running daily flights

Area 51

An Area 51 parking lot



Areas 19 and 20

[DGhost]

The "next in sequence" would indeed be F-23, but F-35 was chosen instead.

YF-23 was the Northrop / McDonnell Douglass competetor to the YF-22 during the
US Air Force's Advanced Tactical Fighter selection program. YF-22 was picked to be developed into a product.

According to wikipedia, Lockhead Martin decided to name it X-35 in accordance with the Air Force's X Plane naming conventions. However, when the DoD named it they broke tradition and named it the F-35 instead of the F-24 (next plane after the YF-23). This is, however, consistant with their decision to name the Raptor the F/A-22 (consistant with Naval naming conventions) instead of the F-22.

Go figure...

[GT98]

This is, however, consistant with their decision to name the Raptor the F/A-22 (consistant with Naval naming conventions) instead of the F-22.

Go figure...

The F/A-22 is now called the F-22A

They dropped the A in it since it stupid to even have it to start with, it was just to make the plane more attractive sale to congress

Offical News website

http://www.f22-raptor.com/