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Mighty F-35 Lightning 2 Engine Roars To Life
SpaceWar.com ^ | Sep 21, 2006 | Staff Writers

Posted on 09/21/2006 9:28:10 PM PDT by nametrader

Mighty F-35 Lightning 2 Engine Roars To Life by Staff Writers Fort Worth TX (SPX) Sep 21, 2006 The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II completed its first series of engine runs on Monday afternoon, culminating in a full-afterburner test that unleashed 40,000 pounds of thrust - the most ever from a jet-fighter engine. The testing began on Friday, Sept. 15, when Chief Pilot Jon Beesley moved a cockpit switch to the "run" position and brought the Pratt and Whitney [NYSE: UTX] F135 engine to life.

(Excerpt) Read more at spacewar.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: f35; f35lightning2; jsf; lockheedmartin
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To: jazusamo

Because it was a republic design.nuff said


61 posted on 09/21/2006 10:50:42 PM PDT by HANG THE EXPENSE (Defeat liberalism, its the right thing to do for America.)
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To: Stayfree

That and too expensive for ground attack.we used liquid cooled mustangs in korea instead of thunderbolts which were aircooled.And yes we had plenty of guard units with t-bolts.lost alot of mustangs in the ground attack role during korea.


62 posted on 09/21/2006 10:56:08 PM PDT by HANG THE EXPENSE (Defeat liberalism, its the right thing to do for America.)
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To: Iris7

Thanks for the link. I had read about that before and it seems like International Defense Weekly or one of the other trade magazines had an article on remotely piloted vehicles in the future and the possibility that an airframe similiar to the ARES would be the wave of the future for close air support.

It might even (gasp) be possible for the Army to fly the thing instead of USAF. Not that I do not love my Air Force brethren....

I think the ultimate replacement for the A-10 will be more like the Predator than the F-35. I want to keep the A-10 until that day comes (probably sooner than we all think).

It makes sense to have the F-35 but it does not make sense to risk an F-35 for a target that is worth 1/10000 value of the F-35. I posted this on a previous thread on my first day on this site and being interested in the topic I have read up on it since. We are faced with a long term conflict in this new war and economy will have to be factored in at some point as long as it does not pose undue risks to our personnel.

The ARES does look wicked though! There is just something about the GAU gun that comforts a guy who dug a few fox holes. :)


63 posted on 09/21/2006 11:00:03 PM PDT by volunbeer
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To: nametrader
Original Lighting... the fork-tailed devil

64 posted on 09/21/2006 11:02:22 PM PDT by Kirkwood
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To: NormsRevenge
Yes, but it will also be a shared one as this is a joint effort so many nations, all allies, will be flying this aircraft for many years.

Do we know who our REAL friends are? I believe there are a couple of allies that are borderline.

65 posted on 09/21/2006 11:09:18 PM PDT by BaylorDad (I avoid everything French except French Dressing and French Fries.)
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To: Stayfree
Does this advance our air superiority over everyone?

Only slightly. The F-22 is the air superiority fighter. The F-35 is a multi-purpose aircraft that will be sold to a number of countries. The F-35 is competitive with anything out there except the F-22 in an air superiority role.

66 posted on 09/22/2006 2:20:55 AM PDT by PAR35
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To: Prost1
Can anything replace the Warthog? Not even!

After watching two do figure eights around a c-130 east of Nellis one day, I doubt it! Awesome maneuverability--with firepower to boot. I have a hard time seeing how anything going Mach 1+ is going to be able to put a load of doom on a target like they can--and flip around and do it again!

67 posted on 09/22/2006 2:25:44 AM PDT by Smokin' Joe (How often God must weep at humans' folly.)
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To: NormsRevenge
The stealthy F-35 is a supersonic, multi-role, 5TH Generation fighter designed to replace a wide range of existing aircraft, including AV-8B Harriers, A-10s, F-16s, F/A-18 Hornets and United Kingdom Harrier GR.7s and Sea Harriers.
I never reconciled to the fact that the F-18 (and for that matter the F-16 as well) was designed as a "slow racehorse" (as Winston Churchill described a plan to save money on naval destroyers by building less capable ones). The F-18 replaced the F-14 but without offering similar speed or range/endurance or armament. And, its intention to save money notwithstanding, it has been a sinkhole for money because it went through three full scale developments: first as the F-17 and twice as the F-18 (the E/F model being about 90% incompatible with earlier models; a whole new plane designed to look like its predecessor).

68 posted on 09/22/2006 3:12:02 AM PDT by conservatism_IS_compassion (The idea around which liberalism coheres is that NOTHING actually matters except PR.)
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To: Prokopton

"However, the F-35 cost about $35-$40 million per plane while the F-22 costs somewhere between $130 million and $240 million per plane, depending on options and how many are purchased."

I think the F-35 is going to cost closer to $90 million per plane. I'm really wondering if spending money expensive toys for the airforce is really what is needed. On the F-22 the development costs are already spent, so why not order more of those? I'm not sure the F-35 will be cost effective as a bomb truck.


69 posted on 09/22/2006 3:24:56 AM PDT by cicero106
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To: nametrader

The Lightning rises from the grave again!!


70 posted on 09/22/2006 3:26:56 AM PDT by ZULU (Non nobis, non nobis, Domine, sed nomini tuo da gloriam. God, guts, and guns made America great.)
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To: nametrader
It will be interesting to see if the F-35 can live up to the hype and can do its various jobs as well or better than its competition or the aircraft it is to replace.

Personally, I'll be glad when it's operational and the pilots and crews re-name it. Lightning II? Is the best they could come up with?

71 posted on 09/22/2006 3:35:07 AM PDT by GBA
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To: volunbeer

Yes.


72 posted on 09/22/2006 3:50:02 AM PDT by rlmorel (Islamofacism: It is all fun and games until someone puts an eye out. Or chops off a head.)
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To: bellevuesbest

The F-22 will still be used. Like with the F-15 and F-16, the 22 and 35 have different roles, the 22 is big and expensive, we need a cheap, small, quick plane to replace the 16s. Although I disagree with the USAF retiring the Warthog.


73 posted on 09/22/2006 4:59:53 AM PDT by gafusa
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To: Proud_USA_Republican

"More american engineering greatness shines through."

True, and we need to get some of this greatness into our politicians before the Islammunists take us over. These F-35 type weapons won't be very effective agasinst smuggling suitcase nukes across the Mexican border into Los Angeles, or sucide bombers strapped with explosives. Or even against the propaganda films such as the Hezbollah supplied our newspapers with.

This war we're in requires some new thinking and we don't have long. Our engineers are smart. How do we get smart statesmen and -women?


74 posted on 09/22/2006 5:00:56 AM PDT by RoadTest (- as he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit - so it is now.)
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To: RoadTest

What 'suitcase nukes'?


75 posted on 09/22/2006 5:25:09 AM PDT by xrp (Fox News Channel: MISSING WHITE GIRL NETWORK)
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To: Prost1

Agreed. The Warthog is essential. It's like a big, nasty slobber knocking, mauling guard in football. Sure the QB is a pretty boy, but you need the big uglies to get the job done.


76 posted on 09/22/2006 5:29:30 AM PDT by MattinNJ (The West has been fighting the war on terror for 1300 years.)
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Comment #77 Removed by Moderator

To: volunbeer

>>>>>"The A-10 is cheap to operate and the guard/reserve guys love it so no reason we cannot have both"<<<<<

That is called "common sense" and it is a rare commodity at the Pentagon.


78 posted on 09/22/2006 6:37:12 AM PDT by TexasTransplant (NEMO ME IMPUNE LACESSET)
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To: Stayfree
Does this advance our air superiority over everyone?

I once read that three squadrons of these could take on all of the rest of the world's air forces, combined, and splash them all.

79 posted on 09/22/2006 7:07:14 AM PDT by ccmay (Too much Law; not enough Order)
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To: jazusamo

The warthog can take an amazing pounding and stay in the air... So could the old WWII bombers.

One of the projects a place I worked for was working on was software to "nutral stick" for fighters... so that even after sustaining heavy damage, the pilot could still fly the craft with stick neutral.... IE: If the damage caused a hard left ya, the software would compensate for it, and the pilot could fly with stick in middle position to stay level, instead of having to keep the stick hard right to compensate for the yaw....

Basically he didn't have to fight to keep the craft level, but fly as he normally would.


80 posted on 09/22/2006 7:18:44 AM PDT by HamiltonJay
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