Fighter's delay 'won't hurt Australia'

Nine News ^ | March 3, 2010

[myknowledge]

A two-year delay in the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) entering service in the US Air Force won't adversely affect Australia, the government says.

The fighter isn't scheduled to become operational with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) until 2018.

A spokesman for Defence Minister John Faulkner said Australia has always adopted a cautious approach to the issues of what the JSF would cost and when it would be delivered.

He said Australia's plans to acquire the JSF featured cost and schedule buffers to deal with the program restructuring recently announced by US Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

"If the USAF IOC (initial operational capability) date is deferred from 2013 to 2015, Australia retains considerable schedule buffer as IOC for the RAAF is planned for 2018," he said.

"This allows additional time for the JSF to mature before it enters RAAF service."

US Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said in Washington on Wednesday that the JSF, scheduled to be in US service by 2013, would not be ready until the end of 2015.

Senator Faulkner's spokesman said the delay hadn't been officially confirmed.

The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning JSF is an advanced fifth generation combat aircraft that will replace Australia's ageing F-111 strike bombers and F/A-18 Hornet fighter-bombers.

The JSF project has faced frequent criticism along the lines that the aircraft will be expensive, will arrive late and won't be as good as promised.

Under current plans, Australia will buy a 14 JSF aircraft plus the infrastructure required for initial training and testing, at an estimated cost of about $3.2 billion.

Australia's first two aircraft are scheduled to be delivered in the US in 2014 for initial training and operational testing.

In 2012 the government will decide on additional aircraft to make up three operational and a training squadron, totalling 72 aircraft. The first squadron will be ready for operations in 2018.

A fourth squadron, taking total aircraft to about 100, will be considered later.

Australia Defence Association executive director Neil James said the JSF program had been in trouble for some time, with considerable technical, schedule and financial risk.

"This will push back its introduction into Australian service probably by the same amount of time, if not longer," he said.

"It was originally supposed to have been in Australian squadron service in the 2013-15 period.

"We have said all along we'd be surprised if it occurred before 2017-2018 and that appears to be a more realistic assessment now by the Americans."

[myknowledge]

OMG. The F-35 has been delayed for two years.

In actual fact, it could potentially hurt Australia air warfare capabilities, because there would not be a fighter potent enough to replace the aging F/A-18A/B Hornets (Australia should also have bought F-15 Eagles a long time ago, given the country's strategic position in the world).

Like the APA website, I strongly preferred the F-22 Raptor as a 5th Gen replacement fighter for the RAAF, but the Obey Amendment export ban stands in the way.

Decades ago, the RAAF enjoyed a technologically qualitative edge in the Asia Pacific region, but with the procurement of the Flanker family of air superiority fighters, and the retirement of the F-111 'Pigs', the advantage has shifted to Australia's neighbors.

The Raptor is clearly a more suitable fighter for Australia than the Lightning II (look how big Australia is and where it is placed).

Reincarnation of the 2nd Gen F-105D Thud?

[revo evom]

The F-35 may or may not be as good as the 105 was in combat, but I’ll bet it can get off the ground fully loaded using less runway...assuming it ever gets off the ground production-wise.