Article

2018-09-02 Science & Technology

The US military is quietly talking about a new hybrid fighter jet that could kill the F-35

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Posted by Fred 2018-09-02 00:00|| || Front Page|| [2 views ] Top

#1 ...This idea was originally pitched to the Japanese, and I gather aside from some cost issues (natch) they're quite interested. I'm hearing USAF and USN are also quietly looking into this - it might be a practical workaround for the F-22 shutdown and puts more and more capable birds on flight decks. Stay tuned...

Mike

Posted by Mike Kozlowski 2018-09-02 06:23|| 2018-09-02 06:23|| Front Page Top

#2 The problem is that the F35 is a bit of a flying camel; i.e. a horse designed by a committee.
One Size Fits All actually fits none.

Posted by ed in texas 2018-09-02 09:18|| 2018-09-02 09:18|| Front Page Top

#3 At least the f35 is modular so you can take out some of the good bits and put them in proper planes.

Posted by Bright Pebbles 2018-09-02 10:44|| 2018-09-02 10:44|| Front Page Top

#4 ...It goes back to two things:

1) The only - ONLY - aircraft that has ever served equally well with the USAF and USN/USMC is the F-4 Phantom II....and that was a happy accident.

2) The insistence on a Swiss Army knife airplane didn't start growing until the mid-90s, when the last corporate knowledge of what a clusterfark the USN/USAF F-111 had been went away from DOD. Along with it went the knowledge that the F-4 working out had been a fluke. But the beancounters - and let there be no mistake, that's where the blame lies - insisted that "the F-4 could serve two masters, therefore the JTF shall as well, selah."

And this is where our troubles began.

Mike

Posted by Mike Kozlowski 2018-09-02 11:56|| 2018-09-02 11:56|| Front Page Top

#5 I think the last of the Phantoms was used as a QF drone (except for museum and privately owned few) There are more people who believe if all the Tomcats at AMARC were returned to flight worthy status and a new A-10 line were built we would be at "the end of history." Everyone knows how that story played out.

Posted by M. Murcek 2018-09-02 19:24|| 2018-09-02 19:24|| Front Page Top

#6 Not gonna happen. An F-35A is $90 million going on $80 million. An F22 hybrid will be over $200 million + R&D that could buy another 800 F-35s. The F-35 is already the scariest warplane out their and numbers matter.

Posted by Sonny Dribble1184 2018-09-02 23:43|| 2018-09-02 23:43|| Front Page Top

#7 buy another 80 F-35s.

Posted by Sonny Dribble1184 2018-09-02 23:44|| 2018-09-02 23:44|| Front Page Top

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