Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning and F-22 'Raptor' : News & Discussion

63% is not good at all especially when you don't have enough of them and face a bigger threat to the north with a massive flanker/4th gen fighter fleet.


No. Should could doesn't cut it. India would be boasting if their Flanker fleet MCR was close to US F-15's but they don't because they are not. India is an importer of fighters and parts depending on other nations to keep their fleet fly worthy this is why India's flanker fleet MCR is likely still in high 50% to low 60%.


Where does it say Flanker? Doesn't even say how many flankers took part if any.
The line which says 80% availability across all aircrafts much bigger achievement than just for the flanker fleet..
 
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Lets try this again since Indian mods are a little touchy about the facts.

India is not satisfied with your french plane or they would have bought the 120+ planned instead of 36. Why would they settle for 36 of this so-called "advanced fighter" when they have a huge threat to their north and west? Especially the north where CCP has stealth fighters and hundreds of 4th gen flankers. I'd understand buying 36 if India was some small Euro country with no real threats like Swiss and many Euro F-35 nations but 36 french fighters when you have CCP next to you says a lot about your plane, bub.
I anwered your previous question here :
To avoid being off topic.
 
The line which says 80% availability across all aircrafts much bigger achievement than just for the flanker fleet..
No. Having non fighter aircraft at a 80% MCR during exercise is not some great achievement especially when you have one of each or maybe two. USAF does it all the time in exercises having a squadron size of stealth fighters at 90% MCR in actual combat OVERSEAS is an achievement. Your article doesn't even specify how many fighters took place. Where they squadron size or 4-5 each?

Deployed F-35s Raise Mission-Capable Rates, Help Form New Logistics System​

March 9, 2020 | By Brian W. Everstine
Airmen and F-35s deployed to the Middle East from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, increased the jet’s mission-capable rate during combat operations while helping guide the future of the jet’s complex maintenance logistics system.
F-35s from Hill’s 4th Fighter Squadron deployed to Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, for six months last year. The jets almost instantly began conducting airstrikes while 70 percent of the fleet was able to conduct its mission, said Brig. Gen. David Abba, director of the Air Force’s F-35 Integration Office. By the end of the deployment, that rate had climbed to more than 90 percent.
The jets flew 1,300 combat sorties over about 7,300 combat hours, and employed about 150 weapons. All bombs worked as planned without aircrew errors or weapon system malfunctions.
“The numbers are pretty remarkable,” Abba said.
The squadron was able to increase the mission-capable rate with a cadre of inexperienced maintainers. Hill AFB is has more than it needs of the most junior maintainers, so that those Airmen can spread across the operational units as they hone their skills, Abba said.
“They brought a truly representative set of maintainers that finished that deployment over 90 percent,” Abba said at a Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies event in Arlington, Va.

The 4th Fighter Squadron has been replaced in theater by the 34th Fighter Squadron, which “will not be the last” F-35A deployment to the region, Abba said. The 34th’s time in the region came amid heightened tensions surrounding Iran’s attack on Americans at bases in Iraq. In response to these attacks, F-35s “were ready to respond on a moment’s notice, should the order have been given for any additional missions to be executed,” he added.
Deployed F-35s Raise Mission-Capable Rates, Help Form New Logistics System - Air Force Magazine
 
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I anwered your previous question here :
To avoid being off topic.
So India is not satisfied with their french planes? 70% is what India said no to... 70% of the planned 120+ french planes they said no. Don't sound like satisfaction to me. :sneaky:
 

I wonder who these 3-4countries are? Likely former Soviet blocs?

Can't help to chuckle that France will be surrounded by EU nations flying F-35's. It's possible if Spain gets its economy together they may be the one of the nations.
 
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So India is not satisfied with their french planes? 70% is what India said no to... 70% of the planned 120+ french planes they said no. Don't sound like satisfaction to me. :sneaky:
The pbl contract for the 36 Indian Rafales guarantees 75% availability, i.e. if at any time there are less than 27 aircraft available Dassault will incur penalties.

To avoid this event, Dassault's objective is to ensure 90% availability. And the experience of the Indians so far is that the 90% has been assured. It is in view of this result that the Indians have said that one squadron of Rafale can fly as many missions as 2.5 squadrons of SU-30 MKI.

For me this is a clear sign of satisfaction.

To day the Rafale disponibility in France is 76 % (Full mission capable) but it can be increased if needed. For exemple we reach 97% on the Charle de Gaulle Carrier.
 
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Lets try this again since Indian mods are a little touchy about the facts.

India is not satisfied with your french plane or they would have bought the 120+ planned instead of 36. Why would they settle for 36 of this so-called "advanced fighter" when they have a huge threat to their north and west? Especially the north where CCP has stealth fighters and hundreds of 4th gen flankers. I'd understand buying 36 if India was some small Euro country with no real threats like Swiss and many Euro F-35 nations but 36 french fighters when you have CCP next to you says a lot about your plane, bub.

When the time came to ink the contract, we couldn't afford it.

So we are buying them in batches for now and then start a tender when we can afford it. We need 200+.
 
When the time came to ink the contract, we couldn't afford it.

So we are buying them in batches for now and then start a tender when we can afford it. We need 200+.
No reports about India buying more if anything due to corruption it looks like 36 will be the final number.

What is the India-France Rafale fighter jet deal all about?​

France is set to deliver more fighter jets to India, as allegations of corruption and cronyism continue to overshadow one of New Delhi's biggest defense deals.

Modi's 2015 deal came years after India's United Progressive Alliance (UPA), led by the opposition Congress party, led negotiations with Dassault after the French company was chosen as the winner in 2012 of India's Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition, which was intended to supply 126 aircraft to the Indian military.

However, negotiations between the UPA and Dassault stalled over disagreements that 108 of the planes would be produced in India by the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Dassault had concerns over technology transfer to the Indian aerospace company, along with doubts over HAL's capacity to produce the complex aircraft.
What is the India-France Rafale fighter jet deal all about? | Asia | An in-depth look at news from across the continent | DW | 03.08.2021

It's a mess but that's India in a nutshell. CCP air force right now has total advantaged over India. chicoms aren't afraid of Indian flankers in any capacity since chicom flankers are better armed with longer range missiles and aren't worried about India's flanker WVR fighting capability since they fly flankers themselves and have a lot more of them. Then you have their J-10 fleet and J-20... what the hell is India thinking?

Air forces around the world are getting smart and know the only solution for todays advanced threats is the F-35 and not 4th gen fighters which the french plane is. Only the F-35 can drastically change India's disadvantaged over chicom air force and be a real serious threat that can send chills down the spine of chicom air force generals.

IAF needs to get it through their heads that there won't be any tech transfer if they want the F-35. Seems they would rather be at a disadvantaged to the chicoms then to fly F-35 as is with no tech transfer.
The pbl contract for the 36 Indian Rafales guarantees 75% availability, i.e. if at any time there are less than 27 aircraft available Dassault will incur penalties.

To avoid this event, Dassault's objective is to ensure 90% availability. And the experience of the Indians so far is that the 90% has been assured. It is in view of this result that the Indians have said that one squadron of Rafale can fly as many missions as 2.5 squadrons of SU-30 MKI.

For me this is a clear sign of satisfaction.

To day the Rafale disponibility in France is 76 % (Full mission capable) but it can be increased if needed. For exemple we reach 97% on the Charle de Gaulle Carrier.
Lol. If that were true french air force would be boasting that their plane MCR is at 70+% but there's nothing that indicates that. You have a source?
 
Lol. If that were true french air force would be boasting that their plane MCR is at 70+% but there's nothing that indicates that. You have a source?

MCO : Dassault Aviation veut encore faire mieux

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

MCO: Dassault Aviation wants to do better

On 17 October 2020


The implementation of the verticalization of the Rafale MCO has enabled Dassault, the DMAé and the Forces to ensure a better than expected availability of combat aircraft.

The Dassault Rafale in the hands of RAVEL


The progress report drawn up by the Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, on the reform of the maintenance in operational condition (MCO) of the Forces' equipment is an opportunity for Dassault Aviation to underline that the implementation of the verticalization of the MCO of the Air Force's Rafale fighter aircraft has made it possible to ensure an availability of 76% of the Rafales, better than the 73% planned by the contract known as Ravel. To this contract, which has been in place for 18 months, has just been added the contract for the ATL2 maritime surveillance aircraft.

A digital tool to come


Dassault Aviation announces that "the quality of this service will be further improved over time, as planned, notably with the implementation of an information system built in cooperation with the operational staff by Dassault Aviation; a tool that relies on Dassault Systèmes' expertise in data management/analysis and that will be based on its Cloud technology and its EXALEAD software".

The DMAé's permanent physical platform


In the interview granted to Air & Cosmos by the director of the DMAé, senior engineer general Monique Legrand-Larroche, (see the special MCO issue of 18 September 2020), she indicated that the first returns from the Ravel contract were "positive since the number of aircraft awaiting decision has been reduced by two". And to underline the efficiency of the "permanent plateau model" set up for the MCO of the Airbus A400M but also of the Dassault Rafale.
 
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So the french finally got their 4th gen fighter availability rate to current USAF F-35 availability rates? Congrats... sorta. I say sorta because the fench don't use/fly their fighter like the USAF does. Because of wars (unfortunately) and overseas bases USAF uses their F-35's a lot more than french air force. USAF had F-35 squadron (24 F-35 per squadron) deployed for combat with a 90% MCR.

French don't have to worry about stealth coating and advanced tech on their fighters or worry about patrols and wars so they should have MCR of at least 80%. Which btw USAF will have a F-35MCR of 80+% by early next year. :)
 
No reports about India buying more if anything due to corruption it looks like 36 will be the final number.

What is the India-France Rafale fighter jet deal all about?​

France is set to deliver more fighter jets to India, as allegations of corruption and cronyism continue to overshadow one of New Delhi's biggest defense deals.

Modi's 2015 deal came years after India's United Progressive Alliance (UPA), led by the opposition Congress party, led negotiations with Dassault after the French company was chosen as the winner in 2012 of India's Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition, which was intended to supply 126 aircraft to the Indian military.

However, negotiations between the UPA and Dassault stalled over disagreements that 108 of the planes would be produced in India by the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Dassault had concerns over technology transfer to the Indian aerospace company, along with doubts over HAL's capacity to produce the complex aircraft.
What is the India-France Rafale fighter jet deal all about? | Asia | An in-depth look at news from across the continent | DW | 03.08.2021

It's a mess but that's India in a nutshell. CCP air force right now has total advantaged over India. chicoms aren't afraid of Indian flankers in any capacity since chicom flankers are better armed with longer range missiles and aren't worried about India's flanker WVR fighting capability since they fly flankers themselves and have a lot more of them. Then you have their J-10 fleet and J-20... what the hell is India thinking?

Air forces around the world are getting smart and know the only solution for todays advanced threats is the F-35 and not 4th gen fighters which the french plane is. Only the F-35 can drastically change India's disadvantaged over chicom air force and be a real serious threat that can send chills down the spine of chicom air force generals.

IAF needs to get it through their heads that there won't be any tech transfer if they want the F-35. Seems they would rather be at a disadvantaged to the chicoms then to fly F-35 as is with no tech transfer.

We are buying more Rafales either in batches or starting a tender, which will be a dog and pony show for the Rafale, or both.

Passive stealth will be useless by the time we buy anything in numbers, so we are going for all-round force accretion. Which means we have the Su-57 option, which will give us passive stealth and other forms of stealth we haven't yet heard about, alongside Rafale's active stealth. So the IAF has publicly said they have no interest in the F-35.


That was in reply to some LM shill who kept saying the IAF is interested in the F-35.

Even if we do go for a foreign stealth jet, we are not looking at tech transfer for either the Su-57 or the F-35 anyway, since the requirement will be too small for local production, at best 40-80 jets. Our main interest today is to buy the Rafale with actual tech transfer, while our main focus for the production of future capability will be based on indigenous capabilities. We are developing a whole line of stuff with better capabilities than the F-35. We have something coming up over the next few years that will help us perform SEAD/DEAD at a higher level than a tactical fighter jet like the F-35 can. So we have our plans in place already. And in our plan, the Rafale's greater performance envelope and alternatives for passive stealth is more important than what the F-35 brings to the table.
 
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Language decorum is mandatory.
Passive stealth will be useless by the time we buy anything in numbers, so we are going for all-round force accretion. Which means we have the Su-57 option, which will give us passive stealth and other forms of stealth we haven't yet heard about, alongside Rafale's active stealth. So the IAF has publicly said they have no interest in the F-35.

Passive stealth will be useless? According to whom? Also the F-22 and F-35 are not just "passive stealth" fighters they have the most advanced EW like the AN/ALR-94 and AN/ASQ-239. These two are better than spectra by far.
That was in reply to some LM shill who kept saying the IAF is interested in the F-35.

IAF is interested just not public. Maybe some day when US offers the F-35 you'll see India jump and say yes.
We are developing a whole line of stuff with better capabilities than the F-35.

Lulz. That's funny coming from a nation that has never been able to built anything advanced without outside help. Your so-called "indigenous" Tejas is dependent on US components... take a guess what they are? :)
We have something coming up over the next few years that will help us perform SEAD/DEAD at a higher level than a tactical fighter jet like the F-35 can.

This is also funny. There's no fighter that will ever out SEAD/DEAD the F-35 not even the USN Growler will be able to do what the F-35 can do.
AARGM-ER-F-35Cinfo.jpg

S400/500's were already at a disadvantaged with this it just overkill.
So we have our plans in place already. And in our plan, the Rafale's greater performance envelope and alternatives for passive stealth is more important than what the F-35 brings to the table.
Riiiight. Keep telling yourself that with your 36 french planes. 36 will be the number you can book it!
 
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Passive stealth will be useless? According to whom? Also the F-22 and F-35 are not just "passive stealth" fighters they have the most advanced EW like the AN/ALR-94 and AN/ASQ-239. These two are better than spectra by far.

By all experts.

IAF is interested just not public. Maybe some day when US offers the F-35 you'll see India jump and say yes.

Lol. India was a prime candidate for the modernised F-22, forget the F-35. We said no to both.

Lulz. That's funny coming from a nation that has never been able to built anything advanced without outside help. Your so-called "indigenous" Tejas is dependent on US components... take a guess what they are? :)

In time, you will see it yourself.

This is also funny who knew you Indians were comedians. There's no fighter that will ever out SEAD/DEAD the F-35 not even the USN Growler will be able to do what the F-35 can do.
View attachment 20980
S400/500's were already at a disadvantaged with this it just overkill.

Riiiight. Keep telling yourself that with your 36 french planes. 36 will be the number you can book it!

You are a lost case, aren't you?
 

America’s ‘White Elephant’: Why F-35 Stealth Jets Are USAF’s ‘Achilles Heel’ Amid Growing Chinese Threats

The US Air Force (USAF) in February this year admitted before the government that the highly advanced F-35 is a failure. Riddled with cost overruns, high life-cycle expenses, maintenance issues, and a host of technical deficiencies, the stealth jet – along with other failed projects like the Zumwalt and the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) of the US Navy – have become a liability.

This is amidst a US military revamping fundamental doctrinal concepts that were found wanting in a return to conventional great power rivalry, after decades of fighting non-state actors.

The F-35 evolved as an international Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program spearheaded by the US Department of Defense (DoD) and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, where multiple nations participated in developing components and parts.

The USAF’s primary need was to replace the aging F-16, the F-15C/D, and the F-15E Strike Eagles, with a high-end fighter.

The old airframe of the Fighting Falcons and the Eagles were found to be non-upgradable beyond a point with the latest avionics requirements of the age. On February 22, General Charles CQ Brown, the USAF chief, termed operating the F-35 as “(having to) drive your Ferrari to work every day.”

US Media Flagged Concerns


Earlier in June 2019, the US media had highlighted 13 critical deficiencies of the F-35 that included a deficient cockpit pressure regulation system that caused extreme sinus pain; the night vision camera of the Helmet Mounted Display showing horizontal green lines; the North Grumman AN/APG-81 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar that was unable to scan a wider area; and an “inaccurate” 25 mm gun on some of the variants that also caused “vibration stress” on the airframe.

These were identified as the remaining four ‘Category 1’ deficiencies by the F-35 Joint Programme Office, which had originally listed a total of 13 such defects.

By the beginning of this year, the aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney F-135 engines were “overheating” to crack their fan blade coatings – now assumed to also affect the more complex engine of the F-35B.

The F-35B is the Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant with a variable thrust to operate from aircraft carriers.

Each engine for the F-35A, the Air Force variant, costs approximately $10.8 million; the more complex engine for the F-35B costs $24 million. The plane itself costs a minimum of $80 million per unit, making it the costliest fighter jet in the world so far.

Engine and Equipment Troubles

While Defense News estimates say 5 to 6% of F-35s to lack engines by 2022, Bloomberg has predicted 20 percent of the Air Force’s F-3As to be grounded by 2025. This is not to mention the 850 Category 2 deficiencies that the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) is tracking.

Analysts say that DoD and Lockheed tried to get the F-35 to do too much, making it overly complex, adding to costs, causing delays, and therefore allowing time to add more capabilities that triggered a vicious cycle.

By July this year, the head of the JPO, Lt Gen Eric Fick, reported 46 F-35s worldwide to be in ‘Mission Impaired Capability Awaiting Parts’ (MICAP) status. These included 41 USAF F-35As, one Navy F-35C, one Marine Corps F-35B, and three more international F-35 customers.

The United Kingdom, Italy, Canada, Australia are some of the development partners, while Israel, Japan, South Korea, Belgium, and Singapore being the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Turkey, which was a development partner, was dropped from the program in retaliation to Ankara purchasing the Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile (SAM) system – deemed to compromise the F-35’s stealth capabilities.

This is not to mention spare parts supply issues stemming from database/logs management defects in the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS).

This was further worsened by Turkey’s ouster from the program which led to DoD and Lockheed struggling to find alternative sources for around 900 components that Ankara’s defense industry was contracted to manufacture. This was not just for Turkey’s planes but the entire F-35 fleet worldwide!

The DoD has faced “excess costs” of $300 million since 2015, owing to failure to deliver parts. The ALIS logs detailed data of a part’s history, service life, and location from the manufacturer to the end-user.

However, not every F-35 parts manufacturer used ALIS or maintained data in standardized formats, leading to parts arriving with incomplete or incorrect information, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report in 2019.

The F-35 symbolizes a broader issue with the US Military-Industrial Complex (MIC) itself. If inducing wars through its political influence and threatening domestic security with easy availability of guns were not enough, the MIC’s business interests are now hurting the US’ defense preparedness itself.

It busts the “efficiency” associated with privatization, as America’s traditional rivals, Russia and China, have been found to be more than prepared with world-class military equipment, built by their state-run defense industries.
 

French Rafale Jet 'Downs' Invincible US F-22 Raptor in Aerial Dogfight


F-35 is stealth plane and that is main and only advantage when compared to Rafale, according to Aviatia. Both Planes use same AAM and AGM missiles and their radars are on same level. In close 1-on-1 fight F-35 don't have chance against Rafale.

Rafale is more agile, has better thrust to weight ratio and has lot more chance to win.

Rafale's agility, thrust-to-weight ratio, and maneuverability are likely to prove lethal to the F-35. This would be a case of history repeating itself, for an F-35 vs. Rafale dogfight is likely to be very similar to the exchange that happened between Rafale and the F-22 more than a decade ago, reported, The Eurasian Times.

:ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: 😛
 
By all experts.
Sure buddy. It's funny that it always seems nations with no stealth fighters of their own believe such BS.
Lol. India was a prime candidate for the modernised F-22, forget the F-35. We said no to both.
Lol.
In time, you will see it yourself.

If you're going by India time then I definitely wont be seeing it myself I'll be long dead and I'm still very young.
You are a lost case, aren't you?

Says the guy who thinks India's SEAD/DEAD capabilities (which are almost non existent) will perform at a higher level than US... sometime in the Indian future of course. US wrote the book on SEAD and has just about perfected it. F-35's will be the tip of the spear when it comes to SEAD/DEAD and they are only going to get more capable than they already are.

Lockheed to Retrofit F-35s for Suppression/Destruction of Enemy Air Defenses Role​

-With the 3F version, the F-35 gained capability for the GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb and AGM-154 Stand-Off Weapon—both used for SEAD/DEAD. The Block 4 upgrade will enable the F-35 to carry the in-development Stand-in Attack Weapon (SiAW).

The Navy plans to field its AGM-88E Anti-Radiation Guided Missile, a successor to the HARM anti-radiation missile, and the Air Force is considering the weapon, as well. The ARRGM and HARM home in on the last known emissions of a surface-to-air missile radar at high speed; their presence and success in previous conflicts has dissuaded enemies from turning their radars on in some instances, hence “suppression.”

The F-35’s ASQ-239 electronic warfare system can passively detect an enemy air defense system’s emissions and geo-locate these targets in concert with the F-35’s other systems. Air Force leaders have said the F-35, by virtue of its stealth, will become the main platform for the SEAD/DEAD mission in the coming decade. That role is now primarily performed by the F-16 with the HARM.
Lockheed to Retrofit F-35s for Suppression/Destruction of Enemy Air Defenses Role - Air Force Magazine

Whatever future you think India's SEAD capability will be like in 20-30 years from now the US by that time will likely make IADS useless against US strike aircraft and its UCAV fleet. 20-30 years from now it's more than likely India still won't have a stealth fighter.

America’s ‘White Elephant’: Why F-35 Stealth Jets Are USAF’s ‘Achilles Heel’ Amid Growing Chinese Threats

The US Air Force (USAF) in February this year admitted before the government that the highly advanced F-35 is a failure. Riddled with cost overruns, high life-cycle expenses, maintenance issues, and a host of technical deficiencies, the stealth jet – along with other failed projects like the Zumwalt and the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) of the US Navy – have become a liability.

This is amidst a US military revamping fundamental doctrinal concepts that were found wanting in a return to conventional great power rivalry, after decades of fighting non-state actors.

The F-35 evolved as an international Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program spearheaded by the US Department of Defense (DoD) and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, where multiple nations participated in developing components and parts.

The USAF’s primary need was to replace the aging F-16, the F-15C/D, and the F-15E Strike Eagles, with a high-end fighter.

The old airframe of the Fighting Falcons and the Eagles were found to be non-upgradable beyond a point with the latest avionics requirements of the age. On February 22, General Charles CQ Brown, the USAF chief, termed operating the F-35 as “(having to) drive your Ferrari to work every day.”

US Media Flagged Concerns


Earlier in June 2019, the US media had highlighted 13 critical deficiencies of the F-35 that included a deficient cockpit pressure regulation system that caused extreme sinus pain; the night vision camera of the Helmet Mounted Display showing horizontal green lines; the North Grumman AN/APG-81 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar that was unable to scan a wider area; and an “inaccurate” 25 mm gun on some of the variants that also caused “vibration stress” on the airframe.

These were identified as the remaining four ‘Category 1’ deficiencies by the F-35 Joint Programme Office, which had originally listed a total of 13 such defects.

By the beginning of this year, the aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney F-135 engines were “overheating” to crack their fan blade coatings – now assumed to also affect the more complex engine of the F-35B.

The F-35B is the Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant with a variable thrust to operate from aircraft carriers.

Each engine for the F-35A, the Air Force variant, costs approximately $10.8 million; the more complex engine for the F-35B costs $24 million. The plane itself costs a minimum of $80 million per unit, making it the costliest fighter jet in the world so far.

Engine and Equipment Troubles

While Defense News estimates say 5 to 6% of F-35s to lack engines by 2022, Bloomberg has predicted 20 percent of the Air Force’s F-3As to be grounded by 2025. This is not to mention the 850 Category 2 deficiencies that the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) is tracking.

Analysts say that DoD and Lockheed tried to get the F-35 to do too much, making it overly complex, adding to costs, causing delays, and therefore allowing time to add more capabilities that triggered a vicious cycle.

By July this year, the head of the JPO, Lt Gen Eric Fick, reported 46 F-35s worldwide to be in ‘Mission Impaired Capability Awaiting Parts’ (MICAP) status. These included 41 USAF F-35As, one Navy F-35C, one Marine Corps F-35B, and three more international F-35 customers.

The United Kingdom, Italy, Canada, Australia are some of the development partners, while Israel, Japan, South Korea, Belgium, and Singapore being the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Turkey, which was a development partner, was dropped from the program in retaliation to Ankara purchasing the Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile (SAM) system – deemed to compromise the F-35’s stealth capabilities.

This is not to mention spare parts supply issues stemming from database/logs management defects in the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS).

This was further worsened by Turkey’s ouster from the program which led to DoD and Lockheed struggling to find alternative sources for around 900 components that Ankara’s defense industry was contracted to manufacture. This was not just for Turkey’s planes but the entire F-35 fleet worldwide!

The DoD has faced “excess costs” of $300 million since 2015, owing to failure to deliver parts. The ALIS logs detailed data of a part’s history, service life, and location from the manufacturer to the end-user.

However, not every F-35 parts manufacturer used ALIS or maintained data in standardized formats, leading to parts arriving with incomplete or incorrect information, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report in 2019.

The F-35 symbolizes a broader issue with the US Military-Industrial Complex (MIC) itself. If inducing wars through its political influence and threatening domestic security with easy availability of guns were not enough, the MIC’s business interests are now hurting the US’ defense preparedness itself.

It busts the “efficiency” associated with privatization, as America’s traditional rivals, Russia and China, have been found to be more than prepared with world-class military equipment, built by their state-run defense industries.
Eurasian times?!? :ROFLMAO:
 
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