It is ok if someone is like pretzel or french-fry
, it is in their personal life. Here we should b cool. 
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning and F-22 'Raptor' : News & Discussion
- Thread starter Nick
- Start date
, it is in their personal life. Here we should b cool. "The Pentagon requested USD11 billion for 61 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighters for fiscal year (FY) 2023"
The US are buying at a less interesting price than Finland.
It's a budget of 181 millions per F-35. Fatch .... It's not given and it's only for block3F and without any weapons ...
Pentagon budget 2023: USAF reduces F-35 procurement, but grows combat air funding
The US are buying at a less interesting price than Finland.
It's a budget of 181 millions per F-35. Fatch .... It's not given and it's only for block3F and without any weapons ...
Pentagon budget 2023: USAF reduces F-35 procurement, but grows combat air funding
Canada to buy 88 f-35
Le Canada compte acheter 88 avions de combat F-35 à Lockheed Martin (ministre) - Challenges (in french)
What a surprise!
Le Canada compte acheter 88 avions de combat F-35 à Lockheed Martin (ministre) - Challenges (in french)
What a surprise!
They would also likely buy the P8A for their ASW needs as well. Good choice overall. NATO nations who can afford, should choose F35.
Must be party all night long at trailer park , sweetie. Plenty of friend chicken , water melon & moonshine flowing like water .
Air Force would cut 150 aircraft, including A-10s, buy fewer F-35s in 2023 budget
WASHINGTON — The Air Force’s budget for fiscal 2023 calls for cutting 150 aircraft, including older A-10 Warthogs, F-22A Raptors, T-1 Jayhawks, and KC-135 Stratotankers.The Air Force would also buy fewer F-35As and HH-60W Jolly Green II combat rescue helicopters under the proposed 2023 budget released Monday.
And it would provide more funding for the B-21 Raider bomber, hypersonics, the Next Generation Air Dominance program and the replacement for the aging E-3 Sentry, known as the Airborne Warning and Control System.
The Department of the Air Force’s proposed budget, including both the Air Force and Space Force, would grow to $194 billion, a nearly 7% increase from the approximately $182 billion approved for 2022. The Air Force’s portion of that budget would be about $169.5 billion.
The bulk of that growth would go to increased spending on research, development, testing and evaluation; procurement; and operations and maintenance, as part of the Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown’s directive to “accelerate change or lose.”
The requested RDT&E spending alone would increase by $9 billion, including funding for the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent, NGAD and the B-21 family of systems.
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said in a March 25 briefing with reporters this budget shows the “transformation that we’re trying to achieve,” to deal with the changing threat environment.
While Russia remains an “acute concern” and North Korea, Iran and violent extremist groups are still a threat, Kendall said, the budget is primarily focused on China and its rapidly modernizing military as the “pacing challenge.”
And the Air Force aims to lay the groundwork for further changes in the 2024 budget, he added.
‘Hard choices’ on retirements
Kendall said the Air Force had to make “hard choices” about slimming down its aircraft fleet, although the proposed retirements are not as steep as the more than 200 the service asked for last year.“We have to get rid of, what I’ll call legacy equipment in order to have the resources to modernize,” Kendall said.
The Air Force is taking another swing at retiring some A-10 Thunderbolt II attack planes. The proposed 2023 budget aims to cut 21 Air National Guard A-10s at Fort Wayne, Indiana, and transition that squadron to the same number of F-16s.
Kendall said he hopes retirement will not be controversial — but the A-10 has survived past attempts to trim its fleet. The service sought to cut 42 A-10s in 2022, but Congress ultimately blocked those retirements in the National Defense Authorization Act, while allowing all other retirements the Air Force sought.
While some have called for transferring A-10s — originally designed to destroy columns of Russian tanks invading Europe during the Cold War — to Ukraine, Kendall said that war has indirectly shown how the Warthog is outdated and due for retirement.
Ukraine’s ground-based tactical air defenses have proven to be devastatingly effective against Russia, Kendall said, keeping them from achieving air superiority and conducting aerial operations. The A-10, while rugged, is slow and vulnerable to those types of defenses.
“While the A-10, from a point of view of delivering munitions, would be terrific for killing Russian tanks, etc., its survivability would be in question,” Kendall said. “That’s one of the reasons that we need to move beyond the A-10, because we’re worried about high-end threats now. We’re not worried about the same threats we were worried about, at least to the same degree, when we were doing counterinsurgencies or counterterrorism.”
The Air Force also plans to cut 33 Block 20 F-22 fighters, which Kendall said are now mainly being used for training purposes and aren’t combat-capable.
Maj. Gen. James Peccia, the Air Force’s deputy assistant secretary for budget, said it would take $1.8 billion over eight years to get those F-22s ready for combat, making it prohibitively expensive. The Air Force will instead take $1.5 billion that would have gone toward those F-22s and redirect it to modifying F-35s and modernizing other F-22s, he said. The Air Force said some of those funds will also go toward the NGAD family of systems.
“We will take operational jets and use them for training, but we can also take them and use them in the fight,” Peccia said. “It’s really using every dollar as smart as we can in our fighter portfolio, when we’re trying to modernize that portfolio.”
The Air Force now has 186 F-22s, of which 36 are Block 20s. The Raptor fleet would end up at 153 if all retirements are approved. Kendall said he doesn’t anticipate further F-22 retirements in the future until the NGAD is ready to replace it.
The Air Force asked for almost $1.7 billion for NGAD in 2023, including $133 million in RDT&E funding.
The Air Force is also planning to transfer 100 of its more than 300 MQ-9 Reapers to “another government organization,” Kendall said. Such language is typically used to describe the CIA or other clandestine government organizations.
The MQ-9s are physically staying where they are, Peccia said; he would not specify to whom they are being transferred.
AWACS replacement coming
The steepest cuts to individual fleets, as a percentage, will come to the aging E-8 Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System, or JSTARS, and E-3 Sentry. The Air Force would retire eight of its JSTARS at Robins Air Force Base in Georgia in 2023, and the final four JSTARS would be retired in fiscal 2024, completing the fleet’s divestment. The first four JSTARS retirements are planned for this fiscal year.The Air Force would also retire 15 E-3s from Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma.
This would be about half the service’s 31 E-3s, and the Air Force would use that funding to procure and field a successor. The budget would provide $227 million in new funding for the E-3 recapitalization.
Kendall said the Air Force will make a decision “within the next several months” on which aircraft will replace the E-3, but acknowledged Boeing’s E-7 Wedgetail is “the leading candidate, quite obviously.” Before the service makes a decision, Kendall said it will have to look at its requirements and conduct market research to do its “due diligence.”
Both the AWACS and JSTARS fleets are “aging out” and need to be replaced, Kendall said.
The Air Force said the proposed 2023 funding for an E-3 replacement would pay for a rapid prototype aircraft, once a choice has been made, that would be delivered in fiscal 2027. The Air Force also hopes to get funding for a second prototype in 2024, and a decision on production in fiscal 2025.
Peccia added that both aircraft would be extremely vulnerable in a future, high-end fight, and need to be replaced with more survivable planes.
The Air Force also wants to retire 10 older C-130H Hercules transport aircraft at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama. With the arrival of four new C-130J Super Hercules, that would bring the service’s entire C-130 fleet from 279 to 271.
Those retired C-130Hs would be replaced with MC-139 Grey Wolf helicopters, of which the Air Force hopes to buy five in 2023.
And the Air Force wants to retire 50 of the service’s 177 T-1 Jayhawk twin-engine jet trainers because, Kendall said, the service is changing its approach to multi-engine training.
The Air Force said new training concepts such as Undergraduate Pilot Training 2.5 — which uses more technology like immersive virtual reality training, virtual instruction and remote learning — will allow the service to phase out the T-1 for students learning to fly mobility aircraft.
And the service said advancements in the T-6 Texan will make it possible for students to learn on a single aircraft, allowing it to mothball some of the least-capable T-1s instead of replacing their engines.
As the Air Force brings on more KC-46 Pegasus tankers, it hopes to retire 13 Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard KC-135s in 2023. Four of those would come from March Air Reserve Base in California, and nine would come from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey.
The service wants to add $222 million to procure 15 KC-46 Pegasus tankers, up one from the 14 in last year’s proposed budget.
Kendall suggested the Air Force might buy more KC-46s for its KC-Y bridge tanker procurement. The service is still a few months away from deciding how to proceed on acquiring its future tanker, he said, and needs to do more research.
But as the service looked closer at what it needs for the tanker of the future, Kendall said the requirements “started to look like a modified KC-46, more than they do a completely new design.”
“I think that there’s still a possibility of a competition out there,” Kendall said. “But as we’ve looked at our requirements, the likelihood of a competition has come down.”
The Air Force wants $2.7 billion to add 24 F-15EX fighters in 2023, twice the number of fighters it originally asked for in 2022. Congress eventually authorized the Air Force to buy 17 F-15EXs this year.
Peccia said the Air Force hopes to continue the accelerated purchase of F-15EXs over the next few years, as it retires the older C and D models of the fourth-generation fighter by fiscal 2026.
Fewer F-35s
And the Air Force wants to buy 33 F-35As, fewer than the 48 the service asked for last year.Kendall said the Air Force trimmed its F-35A purchases to free up funds for developing NGAD, continue working on an advanced engine for the F-35 and roll out the F-15EX as quickly as possible.
Adding more F-15EXs will allow the service to more quickly replace aging F-15Cs, Kendall said. The F-15EX can carry more weapons than the F-35, making it well-suited to homeland defense and some defensive counter-air missions overseas.
Kendall expressed disappointment with the F-35′s recent development, and said he wants to get Block 4 done and to “see that real progress is being made in the development side.” He singled out the performance of Technology Refresh 3, an upgrade to the F-35′s computing systems, and said it “has not been what we wanted.”
But he stressed the F-35A will remain a central part of the Air Force’s fighter fleet for years to come, and that the Air Force’s goal of buying 1,763 of the fighters remains unchanged.
“Of course we’re committed to the F-35,” Kendall said. “We’re 15 years into production, and we’ll be building F-35s probably another 15 years. It’s going to be a cornerstone of the [tactical air] fleet for the foreseeable future.”
Kendall said the Air Force will continue R&D on the Adaptive Engine Transition Program, which could result in a new, cutting-edge engine for the F-35A. He said developing such a new engine is expensive, and the Air Force is looking to partner with other services to share the cost.
The Air Force’s requested budget for AETP would increase to nearly $273 million, to complete scheduled testing of engine prototypes, make progress on reducing the engine’s weight, and work on F-35 integration, among other efforts.
And the budget contains $113 million for the Air Force’s Autonomous Collaborative Platform effort to develop autonomous drones to team up with piloted NGAD and B-21 aircraft.
That will help pay for initial research and development, including preliminary design, defining requirements, and possibly technical risk reduction, Kendall said. If successful, he said that could pave the way to one day moving the manned-unmanned teaming concept into a program of record and full-scale development.
“We’re starting down that road,” Kendall said. “We haven’t fully defined the products yet. And as we get to do that, then we’ll be able to put budget-quality information together into future budgets.”
Kendall said the Air Force won’t be able to afford a combat fleet comprised entirely of expensive aircraft such as the F-35, F-15EX and the “very expensive” NGAD family of systems, and that it has to start incorporating lower-cost platforms such as the autonomous drone wingmen concept.
The budget would increase spending on nuclear command, control and communications by $162 million, which will help pay for projects, equipment and facilities for locations that will in the future host the B-21 and Ground Based Strategic Deterrent missions.
The 2023 budget would add $1.7 billion in procurement funds for the B-21′s low-rate initial production, bringing B-21 procurement spending to nearly $1.7 billion, though Peccia could not comment on how many B-21s the service will seek to buy. In all, the Air Force wants to spend more than $5.2 billion on the B-21, including for continuing its engineering and manufacturing development phase.
The Air Force is also planning to cap the number of HH-60W combat rescue helicopters it plans to buy at 75, down from about 113. The final 10 Jolly Green IIs the Air Force plans to purchase in 2023 would be the last, Peccia said.
Kendall said the changing threat environment prompted the Air Force to reconsider its combat rescue helicopter needs.
“The scenarios that we’re most worried about are not the same as they once were,” Kendall said. “When we were doing counterinsurgencies, we were worried about losing pilots in those kinds of situations. The need was different. The acts of aggression like we’re seeing in Europe, or we might see in the Pacific by [China] put us in a very different scenario from a combat rescue point of view.”
At 180 millions $ a piece we can understand that USAF let its place to canada.
Collection of reactions in the pentagone after the very bad FY23 budget for F-35. ANd a threat by Kendall.
www.businessinsider.com
"
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall worked in the Pentagon acquisitions office between 2010 and 2016, when design issues led Kendall to limit F-35 production for two years to put pressure on Lockheed Martin and to avoid buying jets that would need modernization later.
Kendall told Air Force Magazine in August that the current situation "bears some resemblance" that earlier period.
"
The US military is throttling back on the F-35 as other militaries stock up on the stealth fighter
US Air Force officials "remain committed to the F-35," but they don't want to buy as many of them in 2023.
www.businessinsider.com
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall worked in the Pentagon acquisitions office between 2010 and 2016, when design issues led Kendall to limit F-35 production for two years to put pressure on Lockheed Martin and to avoid buying jets that would need modernization later.
Kendall told Air Force Magazine in August that the current situation "bears some resemblance" that earlier period.
"
I leave you this anthology of quotes from very high US officials:
To summarize, the Pentagon will systematically ask for a reduced number of F-35s as long as Block 4 is not perfected. Block 4" is a variable geometry concept. Sometimes it includes the TR3 implemented since 2018, sometimes it refers to part of the 60 software modules that must be delivered. But in the discourse of all these managers, I think that block4 should be understood in the "complete" sense, i.e. according to the new definition which includes the three new engines. The reason for this is simple, it is the under-powering of block 3F and therefore even more so of block 4.
Lieutenant General Eric Fick, executive officer of the F-35 joint program
With the 3F block systems, the F-35 draws 30 kW of power from the engine, more than double the system's design power of 14 kW. This reduces engine life and the time between engine overhauls, Fick says.
AND so all the rest:
Kendall undersecretary of state for the Air Force:
"The numbers go back up after 2023," Kendall said. "We're not changing our focus." He said the Air Force is "15 years into production and we will build F-35s probably another 15 years."
Kendall says the service will increase its annual purchases of F-35s in the future, but adds that the prospects for obtaining adequate funding will become "more difficult" in the coming years.
"We expect Lockheed to make more progress" on the F-35's Block 4 software upgrade, which "has not met our expectations."
the current situation "bears some resemblance" that earlier period
David S. Nahom the service's deputy chief of staff for plans and programs.
"The threat says we have to achieve [future] capability," he said. "In a perfect world, I would like to have the capability and a lot more F-35s and EXs? Absolutely. But right now, we need to focus on getting the F-35s we need. We continue to develop, and then we buy as many as we can."
the Air Force needs to quickly retire the worn-out F-15Cs in favor of the new F-15EXs, and that while the plane is not as stealthy as the F-35, it does have advantages: It can carry large external weapons, more weapons in general, and more fuel, which means it can travel farther.
Rear Admiral John Gumbleton, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget.
and it just reflects the balance of that budget request when you consider that our portfolios are increasing for shipbuilding and [research and development] while focusing on readiness," said the
"We simply chose to reduce those numbers."
Navy Vice Admiral Ron Boxall, director of force structure, resources and assessment at the Joint Chiefs of Staff
"There have been delays in the F-35, and again, those delays have also delayed that capability that we want."
"When we look at the F-35, what do we need? Most of the time it's the Block 4 capability."
the Pentagon "has taken this opportunity" to shape its broader "strike aircraft portfolio," including buying more F-15EXs, a non-stealth jet better suited for some low-end missions than the F-35.
Ortiz Jones. Under Secretary of the Air Force
"But the focus is on modernization and the need to have the Block 4 available as soon as we need it."
"We remain committed to the F-35"
"no change in the final purchase"
Senator Jack Reed
"These aircraft are very capable, but the question we have to ask - and I think the Air Force is asking - is whether they are viable and sustainable."
. "Until they answer those questions, I don't think they're going to rush into acquiring a significant number of them"
"I think once we get to the point of validation, and especially looking at what they're doing in Europe, we can be more confident going forward.
To summarize, the Pentagon will systematically ask for a reduced number of F-35s as long as Block 4 is not perfected. Block 4" is a variable geometry concept. Sometimes it includes the TR3 implemented since 2018, sometimes it refers to part of the 60 software modules that must be delivered. But in the discourse of all these managers, I think that block4 should be understood in the "complete" sense, i.e. according to the new definition which includes the three new engines. The reason for this is simple, it is the under-powering of block 3F and therefore even more so of block 4.
Lieutenant General Eric Fick, executive officer of the F-35 joint program
With the 3F block systems, the F-35 draws 30 kW of power from the engine, more than double the system's design power of 14 kW. This reduces engine life and the time between engine overhauls, Fick says.
AND so all the rest:
Kendall undersecretary of state for the Air Force:
"The numbers go back up after 2023," Kendall said. "We're not changing our focus." He said the Air Force is "15 years into production and we will build F-35s probably another 15 years."
Kendall says the service will increase its annual purchases of F-35s in the future, but adds that the prospects for obtaining adequate funding will become "more difficult" in the coming years.
"We expect Lockheed to make more progress" on the F-35's Block 4 software upgrade, which "has not met our expectations."
the current situation "bears some resemblance" that earlier period
David S. Nahom the service's deputy chief of staff for plans and programs.
"The threat says we have to achieve [future] capability," he said. "In a perfect world, I would like to have the capability and a lot more F-35s and EXs? Absolutely. But right now, we need to focus on getting the F-35s we need. We continue to develop, and then we buy as many as we can."
the Air Force needs to quickly retire the worn-out F-15Cs in favor of the new F-15EXs, and that while the plane is not as stealthy as the F-35, it does have advantages: It can carry large external weapons, more weapons in general, and more fuel, which means it can travel farther.
Rear Admiral John Gumbleton, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget.
and it just reflects the balance of that budget request when you consider that our portfolios are increasing for shipbuilding and [research and development] while focusing on readiness," said the
"We simply chose to reduce those numbers."
Navy Vice Admiral Ron Boxall, director of force structure, resources and assessment at the Joint Chiefs of Staff
"There have been delays in the F-35, and again, those delays have also delayed that capability that we want."
"When we look at the F-35, what do we need? Most of the time it's the Block 4 capability."
the Pentagon "has taken this opportunity" to shape its broader "strike aircraft portfolio," including buying more F-15EXs, a non-stealth jet better suited for some low-end missions than the F-35.
Ortiz Jones. Under Secretary of the Air Force
"But the focus is on modernization and the need to have the Block 4 available as soon as we need it."
"We remain committed to the F-35"
"no change in the final purchase"
Senator Jack Reed
"These aircraft are very capable, but the question we have to ask - and I think the Air Force is asking - is whether they are viable and sustainable."
. "Until they answer those questions, I don't think they're going to rush into acquiring a significant number of them"
"I think once we get to the point of validation, and especially looking at what they're doing in Europe, we can be more confident going forward.
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So, all this info posted above basically reveals that for all it's capabilities LM is also running a side hustle promising more than can be delivered immediately but seeking to milk the DoD dry over it.
Frankly, I hope all those massive game changing technologies that both LM & Pentagon have been tom tomming are actually true & the US doesn't need to have an Ukraine like moment to discover that the USAF paid for a dud.
We already know the F-35 costs a bomb to operate on a / hour basis & this includes training / hour costs which LM & Pentagon have managed to circumvent by promoting the ridiculous notion that training on a 5th Gen FA of this kind ought to be minimal & training on a simulator suffices.
I see sweetie has gone awfully quiet on this thread & the French contingent is back again with a vengeance. Perhaps sweetie is having what non penis owners have every 20 - 30 days . @WHOHE
Frankly, I hope all those massive game changing technologies that both LM & Pentagon have been tom tomming are actually true & the US doesn't need to have an Ukraine like moment to discover that the USAF paid for a dud.
We already know the F-35 costs a bomb to operate on a / hour basis & this includes training / hour costs which LM & Pentagon have managed to circumvent by promoting the ridiculous notion that training on a 5th Gen FA of this kind ought to be minimal & training on a simulator suffices.
I see sweetie has gone awfully quiet on this thread & the French contingent is back again with a vengeance. Perhaps sweetie is having what non penis owners have every 20 - 30 days . @WHOHE
It is more about a great history I like to follow.
F-35 can have a lot of very cool stuffs but without electrical power all this stuffs can't work correctly. That's all.
Fick said Block3F is short of 50% in its electrical power with the F-135
Bloc4 is short of how much electrical power ?
Only considering this reason, nothing can be implemented in the bloc4 if it adds more needs in electrical power. Then every things rely on the three new engines. 2 AETP and one evolution of the F-135. ANd 2027 is the real timeline to start to deliver these new engines if things goes correctly.
Why haven't this done before ? It must be because of the hight tranformation of the program after 2015 where the whole architecture has be reviewed and modified without any consideration for volume needed to put a better electrical power box on the F-135.
OF course LM, PW and GE can achieved the goal but it doesn't mean there're no risk. Integrated three new engines is at very high risk.
NATO Commander Increases Prediction to 550 F-35s in Europe by 2030
March 30, 2022 | By Greg HadleyF-35s in Eastern Europe have been performing some “elegant” intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions as part of the NATO response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the head of U.S. European Command told lawmakers March 30—and he expects the fighter’s presence on the continent to expand dramatically by the end of the decade, exceeding earlier predictions.
Air Force Gen. Tod D. Wolters, who also serves as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, added to members of the House Armed Services Committee that getting more F-35s delivered to Europe, either as part of the U.S. Air Force or for other nations, is “critical.”
“They’ll deliver a tremendous improvement in our strategic ability, in indications and warnings, command and control, and mission command, as already demonstrated by U.S. F-35s that are contributing in the assure and deter mission at this time,” Wolters said.
In mid-February, just before the start of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the U.S. deployed F-35s from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, to enhance NATO’s defense posture. Those jets were later sent to Romania and Poland to bolster the eastern flank, arriving on Feb. 24.
At the time, U.S. Air Forces in Europe said six of the fifth-generation fighters were being deployed. More than a month later, Wolters told Congress that four are still being used in the region, to great effect.
“The U.S. F-35As, the four that we have right now, are in use, and they’ve been very effective doing some elegant ISR activities. And it just reveals to us how much greater capability we’re going to have once we get our full fleet on board,” Wolters said.
USAF has deployed more F-15s and F-16s to Eastern Europe during this crisis, but the performance of the F-35s is being closely watched by many—Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has said their success could go a long way in building his confidence in the program.
Wolters declined more discussion on the importance of the F-35’s capabilities in Europe to a classified setting on March 30, but it appears more and more likely that the fighter will play a key role in the continent’s future defense.
In June 2021, Wolters predicted during an Atlantic Council discussion that by 2030, there could be 450 F-35s in Europe. Since then, Finland and Germany have said they will buy the fighter as well, joining the U.S., Belgium, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the U.K., and Switzerland as European nations and partners who have either started fielding the F-35 or have plans to do so.
The response to Russian aggression has helped to drive that demand, and Wolters told the HASC that he was upping his prediction.
“The disposition of the NATO nations with respect to the F-35 is dramatically growing,” Wolters said. “And our hope is, we have 100 on the continent right now, and we anticipate in 2030, growing to 550, and that’s a good fleet.”
NATO Commander Increases Prediction to 550 F-35s in Europe by 2030 | Air & Space Forces Magazine
Gen. Tod D. Wolters, head of US European Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, said getting more F-35s in Europe is crucial.
www.airforcemag.com
The Poles are going to have a better air force than the French?!?
By 2030 French will be the only EU nation with an air force that won't be flying a 5th gen fighter. Spain will go F-35 and even the Swedes will eventually have no choice. I think France won't have a choice either by 2030 as their 4th gen fighter just won't cut it for the modern battlefield I think the EU nations themselves will pressure France to join them... Come on frenchies join your EU masters and be under the boot of zee US imperialist!!
ONE OF US! GOOBLE GOBLE! ONE OF US!
You may not believe this. France is saying they are flying the Rafale till 2070 or more. Dassault is saying the next gen might be IOC ready in 2050. France is a second tier air force now and is only going to get worse, before 2050. That's if their next gen is up to the then standard.NATO Commander Increases Prediction to 550 F-35s in Europe by 2030
March 30, 2022 | By Greg Hadley
F-35s in Eastern Europe have been performing some “elegant” intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions as part of the NATO response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the head of U.S. European Command told lawmakers March 30—and he expects the fighter’s presence on the continent to expand dramatically by the end of the decade, exceeding earlier predictions.
Air Force Gen. Tod D. Wolters, who also serves as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, added to members of the House Armed Services Committee that getting more F-35s delivered to Europe, either as part of the U.S. Air Force or for other nations, is “critical.”
“They’ll deliver a tremendous improvement in our strategic ability, in indications and warnings, command and control, and mission command, as already demonstrated by U.S. F-35s that are contributing in the assure and deter mission at this time,” Wolters said.
In mid-February, just before the start of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the U.S. deployed F-35s from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, to enhance NATO’s defense posture. Those jets were later sent to Romania and Poland to bolster the eastern flank, arriving on Feb. 24.
At the time, U.S. Air Forces in Europe said six of the fifth-generation fighters were being deployed. More than a month later, Wolters told Congress that four are still being used in the region, to great effect.
“The U.S. F-35As, the four that we have right now, are in use, and they’ve been very effective doing some elegant ISR activities. And it just reveals to us how much greater capability we’re going to have once we get our full fleet on board,” Wolters said.
USAF has deployed more F-15s and F-16s to Eastern Europe during this crisis, but the performance of the F-35s is being closely watched by many—Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has said their success could go a long way in building his confidence in the program.
Wolters declined more discussion on the importance of the F-35’s capabilities in Europe to a classified setting on March 30, but it appears more and more likely that the fighter will play a key role in the continent’s future defense.
In June 2021, Wolters predicted during an Atlantic Council discussion that by 2030, there could be 450 F-35s in Europe. Since then, Finland and Germany have said they will buy the fighter as well, joining the U.S., Belgium, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the U.K., and Switzerland as European nations and partners who have either started fielding the F-35 or have plans to do so.
The response to Russian aggression has helped to drive that demand, and Wolters told the HASC that he was upping his prediction.
“The disposition of the NATO nations with respect to the F-35 is dramatically growing,” Wolters said. “And our hope is, we have 100 on the continent right now, and we anticipate in 2030, growing to 550, and that’s a good fleet.”
NATO Commander Increases Prediction to 550 F-35s in Europe by 2030 | Air & Space Forces Magazine
Gen. Tod D. Wolters, head of US European Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, said getting more F-35s in Europe is crucial.
The Poles are going to have a better air force than the French?!?
By 2030 French will be the only EU nation with an air force that won't be flying a 5th gen fighter. Spain will go F-35 and even the Swedes will eventually have no choice. I think France won't have a choice either by 2030 as their 4th gen fighter just won't cut it for the modern battlefield I think the EU nations themselves will pressure France to join them... Come on frenchies join your EU masters and be under the boot of zee US imperialist!!
ONE OF US! GOOBLE GOBLE! ONE OF US!
What's your problem with France ?
It's tiny country, with very few people.
F35 will be a marvelous machine no doubt about that. Many countries buys it. This is fine.
The Rafale was sold in many numbers last year, more than any other fighter in the world.
I think this is not a very good thing for the french. They tend to sell planes and forget the french army. This is very bad. the priority should be: FAF first.
A thing is true, though. The entire french defense doctrine is about to be totally rewritten with the upcoming elections. I bet the new president will be the left party (Union Populaire). They wrote detailed plans about that doctrine. Here's the Defense book
I think it's time to have a look at it to know exactly what is it about.
Total exiting from NATO. "opt out" policies within UE.
There is even a game that is available : laec-est-toi.fr
Have a nice weekend
It's tiny country, with very few people.
F35 will be a marvelous machine no doubt about that. Many countries buys it. This is fine.
The Rafale was sold in many numbers last year, more than any other fighter in the world.
I think this is not a very good thing for the french. They tend to sell planes and forget the french army. This is very bad. the priority should be: FAF first.
A thing is true, though. The entire french defense doctrine is about to be totally rewritten with the upcoming elections. I bet the new president will be the left party (Union Populaire). They wrote detailed plans about that doctrine. Here's the Defense book
I think it's time to have a look at it to know exactly what is it about.
Total exiting from NATO. "opt out" policies within UE.
There is even a game that is available : laec-est-toi.fr
Have a nice weekend
Nothing with France. Just the delusions of its fanboys. You can thank the US and CATTSA for last years sales. The peace dividend killed off Europe's defence industry. Everyone was too busy dancing in the streets. Both the Rafale and Eurofighter should have been scraped and a new design instead. The US had the F-117 in 1983 and the F-22 in 1997. It wasn't that the EU didn't know it was building last gen aircraft.
Also if France funded Rafale updates earlier and started with the F3, instead of obsolete specs till 2015. It would have had earlier sales and be bringing it's next gen out now. Instead of the usual 20 years late to the party.
The UK pulled out of the EU, France can pull out of the EU as well. Or France can just pull out of NATO, if it wants to. It is not the first time it pulled from NATO. Though the EU does need a name change. ECS, European Catfight of Self-interest.
Also if France funded Rafale updates earlier and started with the F3, instead of obsolete specs till 2015. It would have had earlier sales and be bringing it's next gen out now. Instead of the usual 20 years late to the party.
The UK pulled out of the EU, France can pull out of the EU as well. Or France can just pull out of NATO, if it wants to. It is not the first time it pulled from NATO. Though the EU does need a name change. ECS, European Catfight of Self-interest.
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F-35 mission capability
When the French deplore the mission rates of the F-35, its defenders usually retort by comparing it with the Rafale. Accordingly, I will explain here why this is not comparable, and why the French are so concerned when they have not bought the F-35 and therefore might be indifferent.
Firstly we will look at the Mission Capability and Full Mission Capability Rates of the US F-35 fleet, FY 2020 :
We can see from this graph that the FMC is much lower than the MC, especially for the F-35B and F-35C. However, the Americans only talk about the MC, whereas in France this notion does not exist for the Rafale and the only thing we talk about is the FMC. And this is understandable for an Omnirole aircraft that must be able to change mission in case of unforeseen circumstances without returning to its base and that is not escorted when it carries out an air-to-ground mission.
Overall, if we consider the three types F-35 A, F-35 B, F-35 C, the Full Mission Capability (FMC) rate is 39% in fiscal 2020.
But there is another difference and for that you have to look at the definitions of MC and FMC:
Whereas the Rafale rates are for all aircraft, even those that are in depot or under maior repairs.
Monthly utilization rate
So on average, in 2020, on the three versions, we are around 20 hours per month, i.e. 240 hours per year, which is comparable to the use made of the Rafale, but there is an important difference, which is that the Rafale easily meets the objective of 250 hours per year, since Dassault committed itself to 1000 hours per year in Finland, and even to an excess of 350 hours in one month if necessary. The F-35's objective is 25 hours per month, i.e. 300 hours per year, and the maximum it can achieve is 240 hours.
Now consider this post:
www.strategicfront.org
How to explain this? My theory is that the total number of flying hours that the F-35 can do is constrained by the total number of available flying engines.
You can see on this graph that the number of engines in service is growing much slower than the number of F-35s built and seems to be plateauing at around 1000.
So if with 730 engines we can generate 115,000 flight hours, with 1,000 engines in 2030 we can generate 160,000 flight hours, which will have to be shared between 1,851 aircrafts, or 85 hours per aircraft per year.
What can we expect for Europe?
The 550 European aircraft may only generate 46750 hours per year, i.e. 3900 hours per month, i.e. no more than a surge of 11 Rafales.
This means that in the event of a crisis such as the one we are seeing in Ukraine, but with a desire to intervene more directly, the Rafales sold to Greece and Croatia could in 2030 make a greater contribution than the 550 F-35s sold in Europe, and I am not even talking about the 225 French Rafales we will have at that time.
This shows how much the sale of the F-35 weakens Europe.
When the French deplore the mission rates of the F-35, its defenders usually retort by comparing it with the Rafale. Accordingly, I will explain here why this is not comparable, and why the French are so concerned when they have not bought the F-35 and therefore might be indifferent.
Firstly we will look at the Mission Capability and Full Mission Capability Rates of the US F-35 fleet, FY 2020 :
Overall, if we consider the three types F-35 A, F-35 B, F-35 C, the Full Mission Capability (FMC) rate is 39% in fiscal 2020.
But there is another difference and for that you have to look at the definitions of MC and FMC:
Page 27
Whereas the Rafale rates are for all aircraft, even those that are in depot or under maior repairs.
Monthly utilization rate
page 28
So on average, in 2020, on the three versions, we are around 20 hours per month, i.e. 240 hours per year, which is comparable to the use made of the Rafale, but there is an important difference, which is that the Rafale easily meets the objective of 250 hours per year, since Dassault committed itself to 1000 hours per year in Finland, and even to an excess of 350 hours in one month if necessary. The F-35's objective is 25 hours per month, i.e. 300 hours per year, and the maximum it can achieve is 240 hours.
Now consider this post:
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning and F-22 'Raptor' : News & Discussion
13/01/20 : 491, 240000 flight hours 07/01/21 : 610 , 355000 flight hours 01/12/2021 : 730+ aircraft - 463K flight hours 05/01/22 : 750+ aircraft delivered; 470,000 flight hours 02/02/22 : 760+ F-35s Delivered| Flight Hours 480,000 SO from 13/01/20 to 07/01/21 : 355000 - 240000 = 115000 flight...
With nearly 700 F-35s in 21/22, F-35 users are not doing any better than the nearly 600 in 20/21.
How to explain this? My theory is that the total number of flying hours that the F-35 can do is constrained by the total number of available flying engines.
So if with 730 engines we can generate 115,000 flight hours, with 1,000 engines in 2030 we can generate 160,000 flight hours, which will have to be shared between 1,851 aircrafts, or 85 hours per aircraft per year.
What can we expect for Europe?
The 550 European aircraft may only generate 46750 hours per year, i.e. 3900 hours per month, i.e. no more than a surge of 11 Rafales.
This means that in the event of a crisis such as the one we are seeing in Ukraine, but with a desire to intervene more directly, the Rafales sold to Greece and Croatia could in 2030 make a greater contribution than the 550 F-35s sold in Europe, and I am not even talking about the 225 French Rafales we will have at that time.
This shows how much the sale of the F-35 weakens Europe.
Yes but facts are in conjuction with his words.You try so hard
USN and USAF have ask in FY23 for less F-35 than any other years and for more F-15 EX anf F/A-18E.
Not even compensated by unfunded priorities list More F-35s, Spare Parts Included in Navy’s $4B Unfunded Priorities List - USNI News.
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I remember a Pakistani meme.
USA be like Friendship over with Turkey, no F35.
Greece new best friend, F35 for Greece.
USA be like Friendship over with Turkey, no F35.
Greece new best friend, F35 for Greece.