Future Battlespace Emerges as F-35 Variants, F-22 Train Together - Defensetech

Two of the three variants have reach full FOC meaning all the weapon system have been proven in flight. It is a Swiss Army knife because of the number of platforms it replaces. While it has an air to air role like the F-16 the battle space dominance is intended to be achieved with the presence of F-22 while the F-35 provide escort, enemy anti-air suppression, and CAS. The F-35 program is a success just in the fact that it replaces the Harrier which is junk. Add, to the rest of the US aircraft that it now holds a 20:1 kill ration against that it is set to replace, it is now assembled in three countries with components in all eight partner countries. The F-35 will be the most prolific multi purpose air combat fighter in the history of aviation.

LCDR (Join to see) - ideally, yes. I'm just worried about all the issues that come with having it piecemeal from so many different places (and I use that term because it fits, not as a slander against the frame). The fuel boom was placed in alignment with the canopy frame, making it "invisible" to the pilot. They have found issues w/ the helmet HUD, as well.
I would love to see it perform, given how much time & money have been dumped into it. However, I cannot agree to trying to make it a do-all. That is why you have different variants, which they did. I think the AF finally realized this, which is why they decided the A-10 isn't going anywhere anytime soon, and are finding smaller birds to put in place to support the A-10 in CAS enviornments.

SSgt (Join to see) - First, you will never have another air-frame that matches the A-10's payload capacity for CAS. Second, the A-10 will not have the survivability in contested airspace that the F-35 will enjoy. I have debated this subject with one of my closest friends Lt Col Chewy Johnston a A-10 jokey that ended up in F-16s at ACC, and yes he disagrees with me on the F-35 also. Some old timers just hate new things like LCS. A note on your other topics is that for the last three red flags the F-35 has participated in they have achieved 100% mission readiness proving many of these issues have been addressed and overcome.

LCDR (Join to see) - oh, I don't disagree that the A-10 would not survive in contested air. I think it is an escorted "ground asset" that would need to have it's path cleared by fighters. The way I look at the 5th Gens is that the F-22 was the replacement for the F-15 & the F-35 is the obvious replacement for the F-16.