Posted on Aug 23, 2015
Is it necessary to spend $400 Billion + to develop and build the new F35 series fighter jets?
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Lockheed Martin has been working on the F35 Lightening II project since 1997. They will eventually produce a total of 2457 planes at the cost of $400 billion dollars. I agree these planes will be technologically advanced and will replace some of our aging fighter planes and that we need to always be moving forward. It's just that it is hard to accept that price tag especially when we are hearing that there are issues with the engine reliability and they are already looking at design changes. This new jet will fire 3300 rounds per minute, have vertical take off and landing capabilities, be undetectable by radar systems, extended range and have the capability to fly at 50,000 ft. Is it possible that what we are seeing is the same as we have seen in many other cases where our government is paying over the amount it should to develop this system? Is Lockheed martin finding new ways to increase the development time? Or is all of this justified? What bothers me most is that there doesn't seem to be a end point for sending money to this project.
http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2015/06/29/f-35-us-joint-strike-fighter-jet-profile-orig.cnn/video/playlists/military-technology/
http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2015/06/29/f-35-us-joint-strike-fighter-jet-profile-orig.cnn/video/playlists/military-technology/
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Development Technology
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
This is a duplicate discussion and the contents have been merged with the original discussion. Click below to see more on this topic...
It’s tough being the world’s most expensive weapon system. Years behind schedule and billions over-budget, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program has had to absorb its fair share of critiques. Over the past several years, it’s been described as too complex, too reliant on high-tech sensors and software, and—at $400 billion for development and procurement—far too costly.
A spate of recent program milestones—including being declared operational by the U.S. Marine Corps last month—seemed to suggest the program might be turning a corner this summer. But a scathing report published Monday by a D.C.-based think tank indicates otherwise. To paraphrase analysts at the progressive National Security Network (NSN): The F-35 Lightning II fighter jet will perform horrendously against “near-peer” enemies, and the Department of Defense should rethink its proposed buy of nearly 2,500 F-35s.
“The F-35 will find itself outmaneuvered, outgunned, out of range, and visible to enemy sensors,” the NSN report reads. “Going forward, full investment in the F-35 would be to place a bad trillion-dollar bet on the future of airpower based on flawed assumptions and an underperforming aircraft. To avoid such a catastrophic outcome, Congress and DOD should begin the process of considering alternatives to a large-scale commitment to the F-35.”
That’s a fairly damning assessment of an aircraft designed to be the workhorse multirole fighter jet for the U.S. and its allies for the next few decades. The Lockheed-Martin-built F-35 is slated to replace a number of jets across the American service branches, including U.S. Air Force F-15s and F-16s, and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps F-18s. Several foreign militiaries have also pledged to purchase the F-35, including Canada, Australia, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
Read more at ...
http://fortune.com/2015/08/14/f-35-joint-strike-fighter/?xid=ob_rss
========================================
TSgt Hunter Logan
SFC Mark Merino
SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4"
LTC Stephen C.
MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca
COL Mikel J. Burroughs
Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS
Capt (Join to see)
LTC Bink Romanick
COL Jean (John) F. B.
COL Vincent Stoneking
Capt Christopher Mueller
LTC Stephen F.
CPT (Join to see)
A spate of recent program milestones—including being declared operational by the U.S. Marine Corps last month—seemed to suggest the program might be turning a corner this summer. But a scathing report published Monday by a D.C.-based think tank indicates otherwise. To paraphrase analysts at the progressive National Security Network (NSN): The F-35 Lightning II fighter jet will perform horrendously against “near-peer” enemies, and the Department of Defense should rethink its proposed buy of nearly 2,500 F-35s.
“The F-35 will find itself outmaneuvered, outgunned, out of range, and visible to enemy sensors,” the NSN report reads. “Going forward, full investment in the F-35 would be to place a bad trillion-dollar bet on the future of airpower based on flawed assumptions and an underperforming aircraft. To avoid such a catastrophic outcome, Congress and DOD should begin the process of considering alternatives to a large-scale commitment to the F-35.”
That’s a fairly damning assessment of an aircraft designed to be the workhorse multirole fighter jet for the U.S. and its allies for the next few decades. The Lockheed-Martin-built F-35 is slated to replace a number of jets across the American service branches, including U.S. Air Force F-15s and F-16s, and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps F-18s. Several foreign militiaries have also pledged to purchase the F-35, including Canada, Australia, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
Read more at ...
http://fortune.com/2015/08/14/f-35-joint-strike-fighter/?xid=ob_rss
========================================
TSgt Hunter Logan
SFC Mark Merino
SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4"
LTC Stephen C.
MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca
COL Mikel J. Burroughs
Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS
Capt (Join to see)
LTC Bink Romanick
COL Jean (John) F. B.
COL Vincent Stoneking
Capt Christopher Mueller
LTC Stephen F.
CPT (Join to see)
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