Posted on 05/22/2018 9:32:04 AM PDT by Simon Green
Nobody likes the F-35’s real name. Nobody.
Some of the best defense news in weeks—or maybe even months—is that U.S. Air Force pilots have nicknamed the F-35A fighter the “Panther.” This follows a long history of American warplanes receiving nicknames that become much more popular than their official names, and is a nice switchup from the plane’s poorly received official name “Lightning II.”
According to The War Zone U.S. Air Force pilots at Nellis Air Force Base refer to the F-35A as the “Panther.” The article features a patch from the service’s 6th Weapons Squadron with the words “Panther Tamer”, referring to the F-35A. Of course, everyone knows the official name of the F-35A is the Lightning II, but at Nellis it’s “Panther.”
One of the most understated problems with the F-35—a plane with many problems—is the name. The F-35 was named after not one but two planes: the Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter of World War II, and the English Electric Lightning jet fighter of the Cold War. Like the F-35, the fork-tailed P-38 was also built by Lockheed Martin, and the United Kingdom would be one of the largest overseas customer of the Joint Strike Fighter.
The resulting name, “Lightning Two” is a nice gesture to history, but it’s also deeply unpopular. Nobody other than the Pentagon uses it. Reporters writing about the F-35 often go entire articles without using the name, preferring F-35 or the older "Joint Strike Fighter." Many people with a casual interest in the F-35 may not even be aware of the official name.
Why is it unpopular? For one, the name is too long. The best warplane names are short and sweet: Sabre and Viper are examples. A nice cadence can make a longer name, like Tornado or Phantom, roll more easily off the tongue. A long but mighty name like Strike Eagle can force acceptance from sheer coolness. Lightning Two has none of these qualities.
Another reason Lightning Two is so disliked is because it is a sequel name. People dislike sequels, which are often uninspiring messes piggybacking off the popularity of the original. Many outside observers would have said the same thing about the F-35 in the late 2000s, and some would still say so now. Original names fare much better: the F-22 Raptor is the first jet bearing the name Raptor and, for the sake of originality, hopefully the last for a very long time.
Fortunately, the pilots who fly any given planes ultimately get the final say. In the late 1970s, Air Force pilots flying the first F-16s became enamored of the show “Battlestar Galactica,” which featured “Viper” space fighters. The name stuck, and today nobody calls the F-16 by its real name, the Fighting Falcon.
The A-10 is another plane that was struck by a bad case sequelitis. The tank-killing jet is technically named the Thunderbolt II, after the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter of World War II fame. The official name never took off however, and the A-10 is today known as the Warthog, a name the Air Force would have never, ever officially given the plane but which is so perfectly suited to the A-10 it’s hard to imagine anything else.
The emergence of the name Panther comes along just as the F-35 program is clearing the worst of its hurdles. The trillion-dollar plane is years late to enter service, costs much more than original projections, and has had a raft of technical problems. Still, the jet is undeniably making slow but steady progress. What’s in a name? In the case of the F-35 Panther, maybe the airplane’s second, better act.
They should call it the Donald, that would be awesome.
Heh, Grumman rarely had THAT problem...Wildcat, Hellcat, Bearcat, Tigercat,Tomcat...:)
Trump could have gotten them to double to production at the same price. Like he did for Air Force One.
It takes $millions to create such an aircraft. Making 2 of them is not much additional cost.
F-35 stealth fighter sees first combat, in Israeli operation - BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44210403
You beat me to it! Love the Wildcat and Hellcat.
There was a naval jet fighter the Grumman F9F also named Panther. It saw combat during the Korean War.
Naming it the Panther would be a repeat of the Navy’s F9F Panther fighter. The Grumman F9F Panther was the manufacturer’s first jet fighter and the U.S. Navy’s second. The Panther was the most widely used U.S. Navy jet fighter of the Korean War. It flew 78,000 sorties and was responsible for the first air kill by the US Navy in the war—the downing of a North Korean Yakovlev Yak-9 fighter.
And Panther.
I must admit I could not remember what the F 35 was called.
As is true of ANY cutting-edge war plane, the first name to mind will always be "EXPENSIVE!"
Wait...what? A RETREAD from a NAVY plane???????????
Hehehehehehehe...take THAT you zoomies!
I’m a Tomcat guy myself...love affair, though the engines were dogs! (at least for THAT plane)
Heh...Ted Williams flew those for the USMC!
Here's my favorite ...
In the Navy, the increasing use of politician’s names for capital ships is disgusting. Knock it off, eh? And GHW Bush is still alive, for crissake.
The Panther
by Ogden Nash
The panther is like a leopard,
Except it hasn't been peppered.
Should you behold a panther crouch,
Prepare to say Ouch.
Better yet, if called by a panther,
Don't anther.
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