A Senior Air Force Officer Made A Comment About Britain’s Use Of The Airplane Saying That It May Be No Better Than What They Already Have

ANN recently reported on the flight activity of the Air Force F-35 in its various model forms. We reported that flight hours are building up and testing continues on its vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. But, is the right plane?

In an article published on Businessinsider.com, it seems not everybody is happy about the airplane. It’s reported that a senior Air Force officer made a comment about Britain’s use of the airplane saying that it may be no better than what they already have.

While the airplane is costly, that doesn’t seem to be the only concern. The article points out that in a critique in the US Air Force’s own Journal it is concluded that the F-35 may have “substantially less performance” than some existing aircraft. The article also pointed to an analysis in the Air and Space Power Journal that states: “Even if funding were unlimited, reasons might still exist for terminating the F-35. Specifically, its performance has not met initial requirements, its payload is low, its range is short, and espionage efforts by the People’s Republic of China may have compromised the aircraft long in advance of its introduction”

The author, Col Michael Pietrucha, suggests the F-35 program should be put on hold and the US Air Force should instead look at a mix of fighters for the future.

It appears the issue is whether or not it is wise to rely heavily on an aircraft like the F-35 or to divide defense and attack capabilities with a mixture of high-end stealth fighters and lower-cost more conventional aircraft.

The article quoted the British Ministry of Defense as saying that the F-35 is the “Most advanced combat jet in the world, designed to be updated … so it can benefit from new technology to counter emerging threats.”

While all this talk is going on, Britain is continuing with its plan to buy 138 of the fighters but is currently only committed to 48 of the vertical takeoff and landing versions of the F-35. It is reported that the various branches of US military plan to order more than 2,400 of the F-35 variants.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.airforce.com