[GonzoGOP]

New fighter will complement the F-35

That statement assumes that the F-35 actually enters service. Since it turns out the carrier version of the F-35 can't actually land on a carrier that is going to be a problem. With its massive budget overruns and no planes in squadron service the F-35 looks like a prime candidate to get it's budget cut to 0 by either a Romney or second term Obama administration.

They should have built both the built the X-32 along with the F-35. Sure the F-35 was the only one with VTOL capability, but if, as it turn out it did, Lockheed Martin can't build the F-35s at least there would have been a fall back position for land bases and big deck carriers. Kind of like how the F6F Hellcat was a fallback for the F4U Corsair.

[freedumb2003]

>>That statement assumes that the F-35 actually enters service.<<

The F-35 JSF is the perfect example of the old adage that a camel is a mouse built to government specifications.

It was a great idea — combine the F/16 and F(A)/18 into a single low cost homogeneous platform — basically make a Southwest Airways maintenance model. Make it better than the rest but not the best of the best (that was supposed to be the F-22).

And I was its biggest fan.

They screwed that up so badly that the F-35 being built doesn’t even resemble what was envisioned. Billions of dollars thrown away with no discernible ROI.

As I said before, the stalwart F/16 and FA/18 are good for another 20 or 30 years until the US Government decides it really wants a real MRF platform. I don’t think this “search” will result in one.

[Tallguy]

Kind of like how the F6F Hellcat was a fallback for the F4U Corsair.

Different era. Aircraft now are built by consortia to spread the risk. Back in those days and with a major war going on Grumman could offload the Wildcat production to the Eastern Aircraft Group (General Motors) and begin re-tooling for the Hellcat all while the Hellcat's design was still being worked out (testing the Zero captured in the Aleutians).

The Brits taught us how to use the Corsair on a carrier flight deck, but by then the Hellcat was beginning to supplant the Wildcat. I don't think that there was a plan there. Just the way it worked out.

I'm skeptical about semi-autonomous drones and their capabilities in A2A and Close-Air Support. But I'm thinking that another manned 'bridge' between the drones and 4th/5th generation fighters may be redundant given that we're talking about 2030 as a target date -- and that will undoubtedly slide to 2040 or later.