F-35 looking more like white elephant

F-35 looking more like white elephant

news.yahoo.com

Following a series of cost overruns and delays, the program is now expected to cost a whopping 382 billion dollars, for 2,443 aircraft.

The so-called 5th generation fighter was built with features designed to help avoid enemy radar and ensure American supremacy in the skies for decades.

At home, the Lockheed Martin F-35 is getting increased criticism even from some at the Pentagon.

(visit the link for the full news article)

What I see as a key point to this is even the Pentagon seems to be complaining. I am not saying it is going to change anything, although it would be interesting if it did. I see this program as more of just a big corporation doing what ever it has to do to swindle the government out of as much money as possible. Boeing also has a plane that was competing against Lockheed. I wonder how much Boeing would be charging now for its version.

news.yahoo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by RedGolem


Hey, I don't necessarily think that Lockheed Martin is trying to swindle anything. This is suppose to be a top of the line aircraft, with no others like it in the world for decades to come. The R&D put into this to make it untouchable for decades to come couldn't have been cheap, so it's not so easy to say that Lockheed is milking this one.

You mean a government contract was abused?! Call the press!

This really isn't news, and won't stop until the people we elect start being held accountable for their decisions. Boeing has long been the sweetheart of the Pentagon, and I will garuntee that everything was put on paper before the project was started. Any 'unexpected' costs along the way are just kickbacks.

Originally posted by RustyShakleford92


Hey, I don't necessarily think that Lockheed Martin is trying to swindle anything. This is suppose to be a top of the line aircraft, with no others like it in the world for decades to come.

Thanks for posing
Rusty
spoken like a true tool of the industry. Yes it is suppose to be a top of the line aircraft. I am not in the loop to really know how much each plane costs, but can you clarify any of that?

reply to post by RedGolem


this is the military industrial complex. they are going to milk this cow until cheese comes out.

reply to post by RedGolem


My father works for Lockheed Martin. I believe each plane is going for roughly $90 million. And this technology is really incredible, some of which isn't made public.... so I would believe this price tag. The system that is involved to shield itself from enemy radar is a decent percentage of it.

Originally posted by RedGolem

Originally posted by RustyShakleford92


Hey, I don't necessarily think that Lockheed Martin is trying to swindle anything. This is suppose to be a top of the line aircraft, with no others like it in the world for decades to come.

Thanks for posing

Rusty
spoken like a true tool of the industry. Yes it is suppose to be a top of the line aircraft. I am not in the loop to really know how much each plane costs, but can you clarify any of that?

I am in the frame of the thought that the so called f35 is somewhat outdated if you must know and in my humble opinion, once again, and in my opinion, standard combustion engines is similar to viewing 1913's history videos.

We are way beyond oxygen enriched combustion......

edited

link ( en.academic.ru... )

isnt china quite far on with there 5th genaration fighter?
nothing changes your country is falling to bits and what do they spend money on? .....even better ways of killing people. but what country's differnt in that respect!

Originally posted by danielhanson420
isnt china quite far on with there 5th genaration fighter?
nothing changes your country is falling to bits and what do they spend money on? .....even better ways of killing people. but what country's differnt in that respect!

China is as far as what you suggest as you cooking an egg on your stove. Don't assume they live in caves or cannot interpret algorithms needed to achieve that standard.

Question: Is the F-35 suppose to be better than the F-22? I've wondered this for awhile.

There is also 3 types of F-35. The F-35A, F-35B, and F-35C. Not sure what the differences are, but I do know the Air Force, Navy, and Marines are all suppose to get certain types.

So really that amount of money isn't that bad if your getting 3 different versions for mission specific roles for all three branches.

Made a mistake, there's 5 versions of this plane, not three. There's the F-35A through F-35E.

There have been Many budget cycleswhere the pentagon has told congress itdidn't want this or that...
but they get it anyway/. Why?
Because these expensive aircraft or vehicles or ships are built in somebodies congressional district.

I get the feeling that we expended our resources on the R&D for the F35 just so the Chinese could copy it and run it as the new Chinese J-20. We trash our F-35 program and the Chinese end up releasing an interesting new prototype that looks just like a hybrid of it and the F-22. Hmmm Hmmm We have to pay them back for financing our debt somehow right?

Actually, looking back to 2006, it would appear :

One question that may go unanswered for a long time concerns the degree to which cyberespionage has aided the development of the J-20. U.S. defense industry cybersecurity experts have cited 2006—close to the date when the J-20 program would have started—as the point at which they became aware of what was later named the advanced persistent threat (APT), a campaign of cyberintrusion aimed primarily at military and defense industries and characterized by sophisticated infiltration and exfiltration techniques. Dale Meyerrose, information security vice president for the Harris Corp. and former chief information officer for the director of national intelligence, told an Aviation Week cybersecurity conference in April 2010 that the APT had been little discussed outside the classified realm, up to that point, because “the vast majority of APT attacks are believed to come from a single country.” Between 2009 and early 2010, Lockheed Martin found that “six to eight companies” among its subcontractors “had been totally compromised—e-mails, their networks, everything,” according to Chief Information Security Officer Anne Mullins.

www.aviationweek.com.../awst/2011/01/03/AW_01_03_2011_p18-279564.xml&headline=China%27s%20J-20%20Stealth %20Fighter%20In%20Taxi%20Tests&prev=10

Who cares how much it costs to make them when we will just sell them to other countries? If they are gonna be picking up alot of the bill then what does it matter. Look back in history at all the money the U.S. has made selling weapons to other countries. RedGolem you are a tool to ignorance. If you don't know how much they cost or the technology that has been developed in the aircraft how can you say anything about the F-35 milking money? The F-35 has full colour displays, its lift fan is driven by the main engine which means it doesnt need a seperate lift engine, the handeling during hovering is supposed to be far superior to the Harrier, It has special radar absorbing paint that is put on with the aid of lasers. There is alot of new technology being used to make the F-35. Check this post for some good videos and info on the F-35. F-35A, conventional take off and landing (CTOL) variant. F-35B, short-take off and vertical-landing (STOVL) variant. F-35C, carrier-based CATOBAR (CV) variant.

Originally posted by J.Son79
Question: Is the F-35 suppose to be better than the F-22? I've wondered this for awhile.

F-22 is a long-range, air supremacy fighter. What this means is that it can patrol a territory and intercept enemy fighters or bombers.

F-35, especially as a VTOL/STOL fighter, is designed to be used tactically in combat. It's ability for vertical take-off means that you can deploy it pretty much anywhere without large runways, so you basically have a smaller fighter with a similar operational ability as an attack chopper. They are also more ideal for carrier use (F-35C) and tactical strikes.

This is how I view their roles anyways (this is what they are designed for, but they can obviously engage in other abilities though).

reply to post by Dimitri Dzengalshlevi


Okay, I gotcha, thanks for the reply.

When is enough, enough?

No country on earth can compete with the Raptor, and won't be able to for many years yet - despite what the military tell you.

The military industrial complex is a cash cow for many people.

But while people are homeless, starving, living in tents and queueing up at soup kitchens, is this really THAT important?

Well, to those wishing to expand their bank accounts by another few million, it probably is.

For the man wondering how to feed his family after the credit crunch, not so much.

AMERICA, you are letting down your people, you are letting them starve, you are letting them live in squalor, whilst propping up corrupt organisations who are producing needless watse and technology that is not needed.

It's no good carping on about "protecting the citizens" unless you look after them first.

reply to post by budski


the j20 from china will and can compete with the f22 its better in someways but we have to see what the j20 can do

Originally posted by budski
When is enough, enough?

No country on earth can compete with the Raptor, and won't be able to for many years yet - despite what the military tell you.

Never underestimate.

reply to post by tristar


Or never stop spending money on something that is really not needed.

It's obscene.