[bill1952]

Each F-35 is expected to cost $80 million to $90 million, about four times the cost of a new F-16...

So, is each one of these birds worth 4 F-16s equipped with the latest electronic gear?

I know what the Pukin Dog would have said.

[PAR35]

I know what the Pukin Dog would have said.

According to him, it would have been canceled several years back. He bailed from FR before he had to eat his words.

[coloradan]

My understanding of these planes is that they consistently win dogfights when outnumbered 9-1 by F-15s or F-16s.

[Proud_USA_Republican]

The F-16 was introduced over 30 years ago and is still scheduled to be in service of the US Air Force until 2025.
But a next generation replacement needs to be there to takeover eventually.
The F-35 also has vertical takeoff & carrier based versions and stealth capabilities that the F-16 lacks.

[flowerplough]

Each F-35 is expected to cost $80 million to $90 million, about four times the cost of a new F-16...

So, is each one of these birds worth 4 F-16s equipped with the latest electronic gear?

Short answer: No. Long answer: No f'ing way.

This mega-tech, mega-mega priced, fifth-gen, jack-of-all-trades fighter is little more than a magnificent anachronism, a Noble Steed for today’s Chivalrous, Frivolous Knight of the Air - ready, willing, and able to re-win World War II, but too expensive, valuable, vulnerable, and rare to actually forward-deploy to the same continent that my National Guard daughter now inhabits.