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That said, legitimate journalism is required to keep military programs under check, as DoD has proven it can't police itself.

I don't disagree, the issue however is the next generation of journalists and "new media"

More for Kei lau:

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s most recent estimate for the F-35 joint strike fighter’s total acquisition cost shows a drop of $12.1 billion since 2014, according to a government watchdog.

As of March 2016, the Pentagon’s estimate for the total acquisition cost of the F-35 program is $379 billion, down from $391 billion projected in 2014, the Government Accountability Office’s Michael Sullivan noted in his March 23 written testimony before the House Armed Services subcommittee on tactical air and land forces. This includes research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E), procurement and military construction funds.

Not including inflation, that translates into an approximately $7 billion drop, according to F-35 Joint Program Office chief Lt. Gen Christopher Bogdan.

“We are coming down the learning curve and the price curve a little steeper,” Bogdan said March 23 after the hearing. “We are coming down the price curve faster than we anticipated years ago.”

The Pentagon will officially announce the new estimate on March 24 as part of the annual release of its Selected Acquisition Report.

The JPO and contractor Lockheed Martin are currently negotiating about $15 billion worth of contracts for the ninth and tenth batches of F-35s. The JPO is “very close” to finalizing an agreement for lot nine, but lot 10 may take longer, Bogdan said

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/air-space/2016/03/23/f-35-acquisition-cost-drops-12-billion/82182106/

ARLINGTON, Va. — The F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter program is steadily improving, program officials said, and is proving to be very popular with the Marine Corps crews that fly it.

“Marines pilots love this plane,” Sean J. Stackley, assistant secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition, said in March 23 testimony on Capitol Hill before the House Armed Services tactical air and land forces subcommittee.

Stackley appeared before the subcommittee with Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher C. Bogdan, program executive officer, F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office; Michael Sullivan, director, Acquisition and Sourcing Management Issues, Governmental Accountability Office; and Michael Gilmore, director, Operational Test & Evaluation for the Department of Defense.

“Overall, the F-35 program is executing fairly well across the entire spectrum of acquisition, to include development and design, flight test, production, fielding, stand up, maintenance and support, and building the global sustainment enterprise,” Bogdan said. “The program is at a pivot point, and is now rapidly changing, growing and accelerating. We will be finishing our 15-year development program in late 2017 and beginning to transition to a leaner, more efficient, follow-on modernization program.”

Bodgan said the program delivered 45 aircraft in 2015 and was on track to deliver more than 100 in 2018 and up to 145 in 2020.

“In the course of this past year, cost, schedule and technical performance of the joint strike fighter have steadily improved across each variant of the aircraft in each phase of the program: development, production and sustainment,” Stackley said. “Known technical issues are being drive to closure and the aircraft’s capabilities, measured in terms of flight envelope, mission systems and weapons delivery, are being steadily expanded in support of each service’s requirements for initial operating capability.”

Regarding the F-35’s fifth-generation capabilities, Bogdan countered the notion that the nation can get by with fourth-generation fighter capability by saying that “you can only do so much with our fourth-generation fighters today. You can add so many upgrades and structurally improve them to last a certain period of time. … Our legacy airplanes now and in the future will not survive the threat environments we know we’re going to have to face. … [The F-35] will survive for decades to come.”

“The F-35 is not being designed and built for the fight today; it is being designed and built for the fight in the future against the high-end threat,” Stackley said. “We’re not willing to take risk in terms of maintaining air superiority that we will need in the 2020s, 2030s and beyond. The capabilities that are being brought to this aircraft are what we envision today as [those] necessary to overcome that threat in the future.”

Sullivan said the cost estimates for the program had actually decreased since the re-baselining in 2010, but it still posed affordability challenges. He said the program expects to spend “$14 billion per year [in acquisition costs] over the next decade and will average about $13 billion per year over the next 22 years ‘til all planned purchases are completed in 2038,” which will pose challenges in view of the funding needs of large acquisition programs such as the B-21 bomber and the Ohio Replacement ballistic-missile submarine.

He said the program faces risk in getting all of its development activity completed on time. The F-35 has completed 80 percent of its developmental flight testing and the first three blocks of software and is working to complete Block 3F, the full combat capability block. He said the delay in the Block 3F could be as long as six months.

The engine seal problems discovered last year and the problems with the helmet-mounted display have been solved, he said, and the program is working to solve the problems with the ejection seat and also the wing structure of the F-35C. The Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) still pose challenges. He said that the manufacturing processes show progress, with labor time continuing to decline, with quality increasing, and part deliveries increasing...

Bodgan said the current risk in the F-35 program involves the stability of the Block 3 software, the ALIS, the ejection seat and the aircraft modifications.

Gilmore said the F-35 with Block 3F software would not be ready for testing until this summer and, therefore, the F-35 would not be ready for operational testing until calendar mid-2018.

“We’re confident that the current risks and issues that we face can be resolved and we will be able to overcome future problems and deliver the full capability that we have committed to,” Bogdan said. “The program is moving forward, sometimes slower than I’d like, but moving forward and making progress nonetheless … continuing to drive cost out of the program.”

http://www.seapowermagazine.org/stories ... 3-f35.html

In the meantime the latest Super Hornets are $77 million flyaway... The price gap is closing, Super Hornets are getting more costly and F-35s are getting less costly.

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...In the meantime the latest Super Hornets are $77 million flyaway...The price gap is closing, Super Hornets are getting more costly and F-35s are getting less costly.

I know its written in this thread somewhere, but how much longer is the SH supposed to be in production? Obviously if someone comes along and places a significant order for more SH's then production will continue as needed. But if things remain pretty much as they are now what is the projected timeline for the last SH delivery?

:cheers:

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I know its written in this thread somewhere, but how much longer is the SH supposed to be in production? Obviously if someone comes along and places a significant order for more SH's then production will continue as needed. But if things remain pretty much as they are now what is the projected timeline for the last SH delivery?

:cheers:/>

Its a good question. Kuwait deal looks to be on hold?? the last order for the USN is I believe FY18.

The company either has to get a firm offer to build new jets or self-fund the building of the Super Hornet to keep the production line open and save jobs in the hope that overseas deals do come eventually or the U.S. Navy is able to find money to buy past 2018. The current Pentagon plan is to buy two jets in 2017 and 14 in 2018.

http://www.ibtimes.com/amid-trudeau-white-house-visit-canada-deal-boeing-fa-18-super-hornets-could-save-2334235

but it gets complicated because building fewer aircraft means the cost of those aircraft increase, so its not just keeping the line open but keeping the price down, which is dependent on keeping the line humming with large and not small orders. 36 per year I believe was the norm, but that has fallen to 24 with Boeing trying to keep the cost the same but 2 and 14? Those are going to be some expensive super hornets. and cost is what the SH has had going for it all along, without that...

Canada punting until 2020 really takes some wind out of the sails. If Canada was going to decide for the Super Hornet, urgency was needed. it may not be around at all in 2020, or might be around but at an inflated cost that put its on or near JSF level. There are also issues with Canada buying the Super Hornet a full 15-20 years behind Australia and the US. when its time for major maintenance on them, the facilities to support such things will be long gone. Super Hornet is a 6000 hour jet, JSF 8000 hour. JSFs are expected to serve for the next 50 years, Super Hornets the next 20

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In todays news, the price goes down, then goes up (but not how you expect), Israel talks about capability and hints at STOVL, and the JSF goes until most of you are dead.

“The Fiscal Year 2015 Selected Acquisition Report (SAR 2015) for the F-35 program demonstrates the continued improvement of the program’s total affordability and reflects increasing confidence by the US Services in the program. Compared to last year’s SAR the program’s Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) costs have remained steady other than a transfer of funds from the procurement account. There has also been a reduction of $7.5B in base year 2012 dollars to the program’s total procurement costs and annual Operating and Support (O&S) costs and cost per flying hour have been reduced between 2 to 4 percent for all variants. The Services have also added 1.6 million flight hours and six additional years to the program overall, extending the operational life of the F-35 from 2064 to 2070, reflecting confidence in the F-35 weapons system.

The 2015 F-35 SAR shows an increase in Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) costs of approximately $300M (BY12$). Real RDT&E costs did not go up; the Joint Program Office (JPO) transferred funds from the procurement account to the RDT&E account in order to better align funding for modifications to Operational Test aircraft at the recommendation of our Service comptrollers. This had zero net impact on program costs since there was a commensurate decrease in the procurement funds captured in SAR 2015.

The estimate for procuring F-35 aircraft over the life of the program for the US Services decreased by $7.5B (BY12$). This is consistent with the continuing trend of price reductions lot over lot and reflects continued cost reductions due to increasing quantities (economies of scale) and improving manufacturing costs. Compared to the 2014 SAR, the cost of an F-35A dropped $1.8 million per jet and the F-35B and F-35C by about $1 million per jet.

Both the US Air Force and the Department of the Navy steady state annual O&S costs have been reduced by 2-4% from last year’s estimate. These O&S reductions were the result of improved maintainability and sustainability as the weapon system matures, the design stabilizes, and maintenance of the aircraft becomes more efficient and effective. However, these O&S cost reductions were overshadowed by the US Services' changes to aircraft life expectancy and beddown assumptions which added about $45B to the 2015 estimate. Without the additional 1.6 million hours and six years of operations, F-35 life cycle O&S costs would have decreased by about $22B from last year's estimate.

The F-35 is now a 60-year program, with production through 2038 and operations through 2070. Although there is a tendency to focus on the large projections six decades from now, many of the assumptions used to estimate costs that far into the future are beyond the JPO’s control. The JPO is focused on reducing real, near term costs through many affordability initiatives that will have lasting impacts. There is still much work to do, but the F-35 Joint Program Office continues to make significant progress in reducing the cost of designing, buying, fielding, operating, and sustaining F-35s for the warfighter.”"

More:

Current F-35 Costs Drop, But Total Costs Go Up

24 Mar 2016 Colin Clark

"...The Air Force, Bogdan said, extended the life of each F-35A jet by two years. Those six years will cost more because they will add 1.6 million hours and six years of operations. (He didn’t have the Department of Navy numbers with him). What does that mean? The old Selected Acquisition Report (SAR) estimate for the 55 years of expected F-35 service to 2064 was $1016.5 million. The now 60-year estimate out to 2070 is $1123.8 million.

And that number will probably be used, no matter how dishonestly or inappropriately or guilessly, by critics to argue the program is just too damn big.

That, as Bogdan argued today, would obscure the very real and important progress that the general has helped drive...."

http://breakingdefense.com/2016/03/current-f-35-costs-drop-but-total-costs-go-up/

Israel:

The Golden Eagles are on their Way to Israel [PROBABLY BEST READ AT SOURCE!]

24 Mar 2016 Dan Arkin

"...It will take place on Monday, December 12, 2016. In the presence of Israel's national leaders, two F-35 fighters, IAF designation 'Adir', will land at Nevatim IAF base. According to international law, once the aircraft wheels have touched the ground, the aircraft is officially transferred to the possession of the Israeli Government. A technical flight team will approach the aircraft and attach the emblem of the newly-established IAF squadron – the Golden Eagle Squadron....

...the Golden Eagle Squadron already exists. It has a commander and functionaries, and the set-up team, made up of both air crew and ground crew personnel, is already hard at work. A demonstration simulator has already been installed at Nevatim in order to provide an initial introduction to the new aircraft. The real simulator, capable of simulating the entire range of the Adir's performance, will be delivered in early 2017. In the summer of 2016, the first IAF pilots selected for the first Adir squadron will arrive at Lockheed Martin's training facilities in the USA. Ahead of them, the men and women of the technical flight will arrive at the same facilities in order to study the maintenance secrets of the F-35. So, 2016 will become the Adir training year.

All of the preparations at the Golden Eagle Squadron are progressing under unprecedented confidentiality restrictions imposed by IAF, whose history has included the assimilation of quite a few new fighter aircraft types. IAF sources explained that the strict confidentiality requirements were presented by the Americans, who are apprehensive about industrial espionage. Accordingly, the squadron buildings and the deep underground pens at Nevatim IAF base are all being erected by teams from the US Corps of Engineering. The secrecy of the aircraft systems and everything associated with it are kept strictly under wraps....

...Like any other new aircraft, the F-35 had its share of 'childhood diseases'. This was further inflated by reports, rumors and slander by competitors regarding delays in the project timetable and malfunctions identified in the various systems. Shiki Shani, CEO of Lockheed Martin Israel, assured us that "The project has safely negotiated the labor pain stage. The delivery timetable vis-à-vis all of the various air forces is being adhered to very strictly. The manufacturer won a difficult and prolonged competition over others, and it is normal for competitors to try and subvert the winner. The bottom line is this: there is no other aircraft like the F-35 anywhere in the western world today.

"Why does IAF need the F-35? The fourth-generation aircraft, F-16 and F-15, are becoming obsolete. IAF decommissions some of its aircraft and needs to fill the ranks. The first F-16 aircraft are already being decommissioned and the first F-15 aircraft have reached the end of their service life. In the theater of operations surrounding us there are, and there will be, the latest surface-to-air anti-aircraft batteries like the S-300 and S-400. IAF must have the ability to shoot down without being shot down, hence the importance of stealth. Another characteristic that is important to the theater: the ability to take off and land using short, 100-200 meter long runways. Short take-off and vertical landing. All of these capabilities are offered by the 'Adir'."

Paul Poitras, a senior executive at Lockheed Martin, had this to say about the importance of the aircraft's stealth capabilities: "The integration of stealth and the other systems of the aircraft and its performance characteristics yield a result that is greater than the sum of its parts. Stealth does not make the F-35 completely invisible, but it disrupts the enemy's ability to spot and destroy you. The aircraft is built so as to push away Radar energy. The energy will slide off the surface of the aircraft frame just as water slides off a smooth pebble."

Airborne Surveillance Station

The stealth characteristic determined the external shape and geometrics of the F-35. Admittedly, its Radar signature is not nil, but it is very small, which makes it difficult to lock onto it in order to launch munitions against it. The aircraft frame is made from special materials painted with layers of coating and Radar-absorbing paints. This special airframe structure calls for maintenance methods that are different from those used on previous-generation fighter aircraft: drilling or riveting through the aircraft frame are impossible, so as not to damage the paintwork layers and composite materials that provide the aircraft with its stealth characteristics. This was the reason for the Americans' aspiration to have the maintenance of all F-35 aircraft performed centrally at maintenance centers deployed around the world, manned by Lockheed Martin specialists and containing their own stores.

IAF does not like this method – and that is an understatement. It has always preferred to service and maintain its aircraft on its own. Lockheed Martin assured us that agreements were already reached with the Pentagon, and that this controversy will be resolved. IAF will become a part of the global maintenance system, but some maintenance procedures will be performed at home....

...The cockpit of the F-35 has been defined as an airborne surveillance station. The information available to the pilot regarding targets for attack in real time is more extensive than in any other fighter aircraft. The pilot can determine which blips on his Radar screen represent 'good guys' and which ones represent 'bad guys', as the various software packages on board the aircraft synthesize the information and prioritize it for the pilot, telling him which targets are 'friend' and which are 'foe'.

Such an extensive range of software might one day prove tempting to computer hackers and destructive aviation hackers. The designers had taken this into consideration, and the F-35 is fitted, as part of its super computer, with a highly rigid cyber security system to prevent cyber warfare attacks against the aircraft while it is in the air, on the ground or even at sea (on board an aircraft carrier). Mike Panchenko, cyber warfare engineering chief at Lockheed Martin, adds that "To ensure the safety of the F-35, we employ the Cyber Kill Chain – a special kit for suppressing threats, including cyber warfare threats."

http://www.israeldefense.co.il/en/content/golden-eagles-are-their-way-israel

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The IAF ruled out the STOVL a long time ago, not sure why that article brought it up that way. They can barely afford the As they want; a mixed fleet is financially a pipe dream

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via Fightersweep

On 25 March at approximately 1830 local time, Lieutenant Austin Hornsby was the recipient of the first-ever F-35A Lightning II drop out of Undergraduate Pilot Training at Columbus, or any other AETC base, for that matter.

We don’t want to spread any bad gouge, but our understanding is Hornsby will now compete with a very select group of students to be named in later drops. It appears to be a very similar to the situation to when the first Raptor B-Course started in November of 2008. Four students got Raptor drops and attended special lead-in training prior to checking in at the 43rd Fighter Squadron at Tyndall.

We’ve heard rumors about the status of the B-Course development process, but we’re not sure where all of that is at the current time. It stands to reason the goal would be to grab the “best of the best” students out of UPT and the follow-on IFF curriculum to determine what the optimal learning curve and pace would be for a new guy or gal straight out of UPT.

There are a lot of unknowns, but it’s still very exciting news for Lieutenant Hornsby and Team Blaze at Columbus. Congratulations to all, and a special thanks to our friends in the “FAIP Mafia” for the skulls-up.

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kd63syF.jpg

Panel lines along the fuselage spines of those Hornets doesn't look realistic with such heavy handed pre-shading and/or wash... :whistle: .

I jest.

Nice picture Trigger :thumbsup: !

:cheers:

Don.

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F-35 stealth fighters to deploy to Japan next year

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — The U.S. is planning to send F-35B stealth fighters to Japan next year, according to a Japanese media report.

Plans are to deploy the jets in January to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Assistant Secretary of the Navy Sean Stackley announced at a House Armed Service Committee hearing Wednesday.

“Marine pilots love this plane and the capability it brings to the air-ground task force,” Stackley said.

Japan is one of eight countries jointly developing the high-tech fighter, which has become America’s most costly weapon with a price-tag of $1 trillion over the next four decades.

Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force plans to acquire 42 F-35s. Stackley told the committee that the first of those jets is expected to roll off the assembly line in November.

U.S. Forces Japan spokesman Lt. Col. Kenneth Hoffman said in an email Friday that the deployment of the aircraft would not proceed without an authorization from the Japanese government.

The Marine Corps will eventually replace all of its F/A-18 Hornet jets stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni with F-35B Lighting IIs, Hoffman said.

“The government of Japan is aware that the U.S. intends to replace the F-18 with the F-35 in the future. The specific timeframe for this replacement remains to be determined,” he said.

The effort to exchange aircraft will take place in close coordination with the government of Japan, Hoffman said.

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Great pics with the F-21 :woot.gif:

Air Force F-35 Trains Against Russian, Chinese Air Defenses

31 Mar 2016 Kris Osborn

"The Air Force F-35 is using “open air” ranges and computer simulation to practice combat missions against the best Chinese and Russian-made air-defense technologies – as a way to prepare to enemy threats anticipated in the mid-2020s and beyond. The testing is aimed at addressing the most current air defense system threats such as Russian-made systems and also focused on potential next-generation or yet-to-exist threats, Harrigian said.

Air Force officials have explained that, looking back to 2001 when the JSF threat started, the threats were mostly European centric – Russian made SA-10s or SA-20s. Now the future threats are looking at both Russian and Chinese-made and Asian made threats, they said.

“They have got these digital SAMS (surface-to-air-missile-systems) out there that can change frequencies and they are very agile in how they operate. being able to replicate that is not easy,” Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, Director of the F-35 Integration Office, told Scout Warrior in an interview.

Surface threats from air defenses is a tough problem because emerging threats right now can see aircraft hundreds of miles away, service officials explained. Furthermore, emerging and future Integrated Air Defense Systems use faster computer processors, are better networked to one-another and detect on a wider range of frequencies. These attributes, coupled with an ability to detect aircraft at further distances, make air defenses increasingly able to at times detect even stealth aircraft, in some instances, with surveillance radar.

While the Air Force aims to prepare for the unlikely contingency of a potential engagement with near-peer rivals such as Russia or China, Harrigian explained that there is much more concern about having to confront an adversary which has purchased air-defense technology from the Russians or Chinese. Harrigian emphasized that, while there is no particular conflict expected with any given specific country, the service wants to be ready for any contingency.

Harrigian explained that the F-35 is engineered with what developers call “open architecture,” meaning it is designed to quickly integrate new weapons, software and avionics technology as new threats emerge.

“One of the key reasons we bought this airplane is because the threats continue to evolve - we have to be survivable in this threat environment that has continued to develop capabilities where they can deny us access to specific objectives that we may want to achieve. This airplane gives us the ability to penetrate, deliver weapons and then share that information across the formation that it is operating in,” Harrigian explained.

While training against the best emerging threats in what Harrigian called “open air” ranges looks to test the F-35 against the best current and future air defenses – there is still much more work to be done when it comes to anticipating high-end, high-tech fast developing future threats. This is where modeling and simulation play a huge part in threat preparation, he added.

“The place where we have to have the most agility is really in the modeling and simulation environment - If you think about our open air ranges, we try to build these ranges that have this threats that we expect to be fighting. Given the pace at which the enemy is developing these threats - it becomes very difficult for us to go out and develop these threats,” Harrigan explained. The Air Force plans to bring a representation of next-generation threats and weapons to its first weapons school class in 2018.

In a simulated environment, F-22s from Langley AFB in Virginia could train for combat scenarios with an F-35 at Nellis AFB, Nevada, he said. The JSF’s Active Electronically Scanned Arrays, or AESA’s, the aircraft is able to provide a synthetic aperture rendering of air and ground pictures. The AESA also brings the F-35 electronic warfare capabilities, Harrigian said.

Part of the idea with F-35 modernization is to engineered systems on the aircraft which can be upgraded with new software as threats change. Technologies such as the AESA radar, electronic attack and protection and some of the computing processing power on the airplane, can be updated to keep pace with evolving threats, Harrigian said...."

http://www.scout.com/military/warrior/story/1656513-f-35-trains-for-russian-chinese-air-defenses

This seems like a generally neutral and somewhat informative article, with virtually no hyperbole either way:

That was refreshing :thumbsup:

"US Air Force plans to insert a “brain” into current-generation fighter jets to create autonomous flying wingmen paired with the Lockheed Martin F-35 were given a bump today, with the Pentagon’s second-in-charge saying he expects to see “unmanned wingmen in the air” before convoys of driverless Humvees.

Deputy defence secretary Robert Work touted the long-considered “loyal wingman” concept at a forum hosted by the Washington Post in Washington DC on 30 March, where he explained that the air force will pair unmanned Lockheed F-16s with F-35s in future battles.

"You take an F-16 and make it totally unmanned,"Work says. "The F-16 is a fourth-generation fighter, and pair it with an F-35, a fifth-generation battle network node, and have those two operating together.”...

...The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), however, is now moving ahead with the development of autonomy algorithms to control pilotless fighter jets. Those algorithms would be hosted in “one or more line-replaceable units" or "brain" that could be transferred between aircraft with minimal effort.

“The onboard autonomy must be sufficient for the Loyal Wingman to complete all basic flight operations untethered from a ground station and without full-time direction from the manned lead,” the laboratory explains in a request for information (RFI) notice published in March.

A formal programme will be launched in fiscal year 2018 with flight demonstrations running through 2022. These demonstrations will culminate in a capstone proof-of-concept demonstration in 2022, when paired warplanes will conduct a ground strike mission in a hostile, well-defended environment, AFRL says. It did not nominate which fighter platform would be selected for the demonstration...."

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/pentagon-touts-loyal-wingman-for-combat-jets-423682/

Loyal Wingman will probably be better received than the previous ill-fated "Blue Falcon" program :rofl:

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Is the dark grey on this 35 here the same as the grey on the 'dark' harriers?

its different:

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=281331&st=0&p=2677657&hl=f-35&fromsearch=1entry2677657

Tony Stark had a bunch of stuff on it too:

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af147/Anthony_E_Stark/FS595B-58_zpsbed3b9a2.png

Edited by TaiidanTomcat
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"...Testing scenarios varied, from coordinating ground strikes with JTACs to flying joint missions with the F-15E against opposing aerial forces and surface to air missiles. Maj. Chris White, the 59th Test and Evaluation Squadron F-35 project manager, explained that the training followed a building block approach, with combat scenarios steadily increasing in difficulty throughout the week. As the simulations progressed, pilots and maintainers had to immediately integrate each day’s lesson into future training plans.

“We ramp-up the scenarios, and we see how (the F-35) does in actual fights,” White said. “Modeling and simulation is great, but until you actually go up against another human flying another jet, where you don’t know exactly what he’s going to do, that result really can’t be valid. That’s the beauty of operational tests; you really put (the jet) through the wringer, see what happens, and then you take those lessons learned … rinse and repeat a couple times, and now you’ve got a new tactics manual.”

The test scenarios were created to highlight the new aircraft’s combat abilities and limitations. Beyond recognizing needed improvements to the airframe and software, the information gathered during each test can provide Air Combat Command a clearer idea as to how the F-35 should be utilized in battlefield operations....

...One modernizing transformation to the new generation of aircraft is an upgraded approach to the aspect of stealth. According to the F-35’s developers at Lockheed Martin, because of the aircraft’s overall design – “its external shape, internal carriage of weapons and fuel, embedded mission systems sensors” and manufacturing process – the F-35 has unique abilities when it comes to evading detection from adversaries. “The difference in the learning process that we face in operational tests is taking that fourth-generation fighter mentality of having an aluminum jet — a jet that can be seen by radar — and crafting and molding our tactics in a fifth-generation aircraft that is low observable,” Sabin said. “We can hide from certain enemy radars; it’s pretty awesome.”...

...Regardless of the public climate toward the airframe – good or bad — Hayes is not inclined to make the aircraft look “more shiny” to justify the cost. Ensuring the safety and optimal operational capability of any aircraft before it is delivered to combat squadrons is the bedrock goal of every operational flight test. Test pilots, like Hayes, do their job with intensity and focus in order to deliver the best aircraft to the nation’s warfighters. Pushing an aircraft to its limits and beyond and delivering an uncompromising assessment of its performance, is a not just a job, but a responsibility to their fellow pilots, some of whom are friends. “As a fighter pilot and an operational test pilot, I will never make something look good that’s not,” Hayes said. “I don’t want anybody ever to call me back and say, ‘Why didn’t you catch this?’ or, ‘Why didn’t you find this one problem on the airplane?’ I’m usually one of the first guys to raise my hand and say something is not right about this, and we need to get it fixed. “My pay is not affected one bit by the end result of a test report or a test flight,” he added. “My sole charge in life is to go out and either find ways to break the airplane or find ways to make the airplane break the thing on the ground that it’s supposed to.”...

...“On this deployment alone, we have representation from the F-16, (F-15E and) A-10,” White said. “We’ve even got a Marine exchange pilot that we brought with us. He’s bringing in some F-18 (Hornet) experience as well. That’s been huge because what that allows us to do is avoid that groupthink mentality; when you think you’ve got the right answer, you always have someone from a different perspective or point of view that can immediately cite fallacies in that argument.” Through open discussion, the diverse group is able to adapt tactics, techniques and procedures for the F-35 from a blend of all the communities’ ideas and practical expertise. The testing squadron hosts not only a wealth of knowledge in other airframes, but also mission sets...."

....As a former A-10 pilot, when Sabin was selected to join the 31st TES, he was keen to bring his CAS experience to the F-35. The new jet has been touted as an eventual replacement for legacy airframes, such as the F-16s and A-10s. This plan has spurred several head-to-head comparisons in the media, especially between the A-10 and the F-35. To Sabin, however, that match up is like comparing “apples to chainsaws.”

Maj. Ethan Sabin, who has 10 years experience flying the A-10 Thunderbolt II, is now at the forefront of testing the capabilities of the Air Force’s newest and most technologically advanced fighter: the F-35. As for the perceived feud between proponents of the A-10 and the F-35, he believes the two platforms are not competitors, but are complimentary, with the F-35’s ability to collect battlespace data and share it with legacy aircraft making the entire force more lethal.

“They are two totally different things that serve totally different purposes,” he explained. “The bottom line is the A-10 does certain things very well. It is very effective as a close air support platform. The F-35 does certain things very well, and when you leverage its capabilities correctly, it can be very effective as a CAS platform.

“I think the important point to note is to find that fine balance between where to use one versus where to use another. I wouldn’t feed myself with a chainsaw. Vice versa, I wouldn’t try to cut down a tree with an apple. They’re just different, and they have different capabilities.”

Even though the two airframes vary in many ways, Sabin believes his new jet can be just as efficient as the A-10 he once flew.

“The biggest thing … is the training of the pilot in the platform,” Sabin said. “We are going to take a lot of the lessons learned that the A-10s have in their close air support experience, apply it to our platform, continue to integrate with those guys on the spectrum of CAS operations, and build our CAS playbook, like they have done for so many years.”

http://airman.dodlive.mil/2016/04/the-perfect-storm/

Much more at the source, including nice pictures and the vid below

Edited by TaiidanTomcat
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Re: VT ANG

Source

THE VERMONT AIR NATIONAL GUARD PREPARES FOR THE F-35: TRAINING INTEL OFFICERS

February 16, 2016

As the F-35A Lightning II prepares to fly north in 2020, the Vermont Air National Guard sent an Airman here to become the first National Guardsman to graduate from the Joint Strike Fighter program’s Intelligence Formal Training Unit.

Capt. Christopher Clements, 158th Operations Support Squadron intelligence officer, graduated Feb. 11, 2016, with seven other Airmen and U.S. Marines qualified in F-35-specific intelligence.

“[The course] was fantastic,” Clements said. “There were a lot of points for discussion for how they’re all going to work together to support the platform in the future.”

The mission of the 33rd Fighter Wing is to train outstanding professionals with a vision to take the F-35A to initial operations capability and beyond. To date, 62 students have graduated from the IFTU, and the school will expand to train an additional 10 students per class from all three military branches, to include the ANG and reserves.

During this five week course, students spend eight hours a day studying intelligence theory, systems and sensors, air to air combat, air to ground combat and mission planning and application specific to the Lightning II.

“The F-35 is an information hungry aircraft,” said Capt. Stephanie Fraioli, 33rd Operations Support Squadron intelligence instructor. “The information burden fifth generation technology places on pilots is significantly larger; therefore, the impetus is on F-35 intelligence support personnel to ensure flyers are prepared.”

The U. S. Air Force selected the 158th Fighter Wing in Burlington, Vermont, as the first Air National Guard unit to fly the Lightning II because of the ideal mixture of infrastructure to support operational training requirements of the jet, airspace and overall cost to the Air Force, according to Timothy Bridges, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations in a 2014 interview.

The VT ANG vision is to be innovative and provident in their approach to mission and resources by professionally developing their airmen and civilians. By sending Clements to the IFTU, the Vermont intelligence community believes they are taking the right step in accomplishing this vision.

“The technology capabilities of the F-35 require robust, in-depth training for our analysts,” said Lt. Col. Laura Caputo 158th Operations Support Squadron senior intelligence officer. “Captain Clements’ successful completion of this course paves the way and launches our shop down this road, ensuring our readiness when the jets arrive.”

The 18 F-35A’s headed to the VT ANG will replace 18 F-16CM Fighting Falcons assigned to the 158th FW. This exchange will offer joint training opportunities with F-15C Eagles from Barnes Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York, and the CF-18 Hornets at Canadian Forces Base Bagotville in Quebec.

Eglin is one of three F-35 program training centers hosting the latest courseware, electronic classrooms, simulators, flight events and event-based maintenance training. Units at eight U.S. military bases currently fly the F-35 and benefit from these training centers. These installations include Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; Edwards Air Force Base, California; Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada; Hill Air Force Base, Utah; Luke Air Force Base, Arizona; Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina; Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona; and Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.

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The VTANG announced that they're scheduled to get theirs in the fall of 2019. Unless the crybabies win the lawsuit!

Say what you want but I don't think it's an appropriate location. It's a very small, joint-use base in a pretty heavily developed residential area. Nothing in common with most of the bases currently hosting the JSF. Unless the noise issue was just made up by David Axe of course. I am curious how the AF determines which NG units get this aircraft, I could think of many other bases that are probably more appropriate.

Plus, it's VT for god's sake. Not exactly a state know for it's hard core support of the military. Doesn't take a 20 million dollar study to figure out that the AF is going to have a great deal of opposition from the locals.

From the bits I've read, it seems that the lawsuit has some pretty significant support.

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Say what you want but I don't think it's an appropriate location. It's a very small, joint-use base in a pretty heavily developed residential area. Nothing in common with most of the bases currently hosting the JSF. Unless the noise issue was just made up by David Axe of course. I am curious how the AF determines which NG units get this aircraft, I could think of many other bases that are probably more appropriate.

Plus, it's VT for god's sake. Not exactly a state know for it's hard core support of the military. Doesn't take a 20 million dollar study to figure out that the AF is going to have a great deal of opposition from the locals.

From the bits I've read, it seems that the lawsuit has some pretty significant support.

A certain VT senior senator insured it came to Vermont to for the purpose of jobs, and has said as much. He was actually very candid about it.

The noise is not an issue since the F-35 won't need the 'Berner on take off. It will technically be less loud than the F-16 with Berner. With the afterBernie F-35 is indeed louder, but the idea is it will hardly need it unless it's a no joke emergency.

The noise is just an excuse for The NIMBY hippies.

If they don't want it, lots of people will take it. My state would love em

Edited by TaiidanTomcat
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"Plus, it's VT for god's sake. Not exactly a state know for it's hard core support of the military. Doesn't take a 20 million dollar study to figure out that the AF is going to have a great deal of opposition from the locals. "

This broad brush statement is based on what? Your perception that Vermont is up north, and therefore "liberal". For you historical information Vermont is very proud of its patriotism as symbolized by "Green Mountain Boys".

BTW, my brother and nephews live in Vermont and both served bravely in USMC along with many other Vermonters in the area.

This lawsuit is about the environment and noise, and is being lead by a retired Air Force Colonel. It will be thrown out in court under the guise of national security. The Vermont ANG/AFR has a primary task of defending New York City and Boston air space and has deployed overseas to accomplish other assigned missions.

Lets be careful with attacking the patriotism and values of other states that are not Alabama. Ted Cruz learned that lesson last week in New York.

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"Plus, it's VT for god's sake. Not exactly a state know for it's hard core support of the military. Doesn't take a 20 million dollar study to figure out that the AF is going to have a great deal of opposition from the locals. "

This broad brush statement is based on what? Your perception that Vermont is up north, and therefore "liberal". For you historical information Vermont is very proud of its patriotism as symbolized by "Green Mountain Boys".

BTW, my brother and nephews live in Vermont and both served bravely in USMC along with many other Vermonters in the area.

This lawsuit is about the environment and noise, and is being lead by a retired Air Force Colonel. It will be thrown out in court under the guise of national security. The Vermont ANG/AFR has a primary task of defending New York City and Boston air space and has deployed overseas to accomplish other assigned missions.

Lets be careful with attacking the patriotism and values of other states that are not Alabama. Ted Cruz learned that lesson last week in New York.

You should look to your own advice, and find out where someone is from before making the broad assumption that because it was a statement bashing the supposed patriotism of another state that it must have come from a southerner. Our man 11bee is I belive a New Englander.

Edited by rustywelder
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