IMO the future of air combat is unmanned stealthy drone fighters.
It drastically lowers cost when you don’t have to design for pilot safety.
It’s also rather easy to send a pilot on a suicide mission if he is half a world away in an air conditioned trailer. :-)
A couple hundred Raptors would be a nice way to tide us over until suitable unmanned stealth drone fighters are developed.
Abandon the F-35 before it bankrupts us all!
IMO the future of air combat is unmanned stealthy drone fighters.
I certainly would not argue against your point, and if there needs to be a manned air combat plane, perhaps more planes, pilots and better tactics, will matter more than technology.
IOW a larger numerical force with somewhat reduced capability, at a far cheaper price.