Pratt & Whitney’s F135 Engine Core Upgrade (ECU) for the F-35 has received $75 million additional funding to modernise the engine.
“If the services and our allies want Block 4 enabled F-35s before the end of the decade, the engine needs a core upgrade,” said Jen Latka, vice president of F135 programs at Pratt & Whitney.
“Thanks to the support we’ve received from Congress, with leadership from Chairwoman DeLauro, the upgraded engine will be ready for fielding starting in 2028.”
Pratt & Whitney’s ECU is the only F-35 propulsion modernisation option suitable for all F-35 variants. The firm say here that it will yield $40 billion in lifecycle cost savings “by avoiding disruptive and costly air vehicle changes and leveraging the current sustainment infrastructure”.
“Pratt & Whitney has reduced the cost of the F135 engine by 50% since production began, and the engine has performed at twice its original specifications for years. An upgrade is overdue,” said Rosa DeLauro, chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
“We’re going to give the F-35 the capabilities it needs for billions less than a new engine. That’s a win for the warfighter and the taxpayer.”
You can read more here.
That’s an interesting spin compared to GEs take on the matter. Will be interesting to get a more objective take on all the aspects of the alternative solutions.
Hmmm…this article maketh it appear the path forward is an unfettered stroll unto sunlight. Methinks there may skullduggery afoot and abroad in the land, in the guise of GE and/or RR, afore this matter be settled forevermore. 🤔😳😉
Everyone knows that the General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 was a much better engine:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric/Rolls-Royce_F136
The US only funded Pratt and Witney so they have two engine manufacturers. That’s fine but the UK should have funded the General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 version in my opinion to give us a better option for our F35B’s
Two manufacturers would have allowed competitive bidding that should have reduced the unit profit, inevitably lowering potential contributions to politician’s support funds.
So how’s your prediction of a Russian advance from Kherson to Odessa turning out?
Prepared to apologise yet for backing a murderous facist regime and its invasion of Ukraine?
Oh is this the murderous fascist regime and it’s invasion of Ukraine, or the murderous fascist regime that illegally invaded and destroyed Iraq, based on a deliberate lie by President George Bush in order to prop up the profits of giant US corporations, and ending in the deaths of an estimated 600,000 to 1,000,000 citizens of that oor country?
It is the murderous fascist regime the illegally invaded Ukraine… Not the democratically elected president who fabricated a reason to invade Iraq simply because its leader had once plotted to have his father, a previous president, assassinated. Nor is it the democratically elected Prime Minister who along with his spin-doctor, fabricated evidence to support the Iraq invasion in the naive believe that a western liberal democracy could be parachuted into a middle-eastern country and resolve all religion inspired terrorism. It should be noted the later two no-longer hold office – that’s democracy for you. Unlike the president for life you… Read more »
“… politician’s support funds. ”
Like Putin’s luxury yachts, his luxury dachas in Sochi, and elsewhere, his countless millions squirrelled away in offshore Bank accounts , likewise the same for his gangster oligarch cronies. That’s what you refer to is it ? You don’t fool anyone else here.
Hence Team Tempest and now GCAP with Italy and Japan.
This is not an adaptive cycle upgrade just a refresh of the original power plant. I think we should have a new plant for F35B to give it better performance for carrying more payload.
Why? We need some upgrades to improve efficiency, reliability and improved cooling. But more payload? F-35B can already take off at MTOW. The max weapon load on UK F-35B is around 5,500lb’s at present. But thats not down to the aircraft….its down to the weapons we have cleared on it. You can fill it up with fuel and the max UK weapon load and its not even close to MTOW. Maximum UK loadout at present is 6 Paveway IV, 2 AMRAAM and 2 ASRAAM. Future maximum weapons load is around 1,000lbs heavier (4 Paveway IV, 8 Spear, 2 Meteor and… Read more »
That is interesting if this is the case why is the RN working on the rolling shipborne landings as this was initiated to bring back unused weapons to the carrier. There was not the power margin to bring back a full load….
Please explain – if there is such a big power excess on F35B why the new landing technique?
Thought I read the rolling technique was used to not strain the engines and surface of the carrier at max thrust?
MTOW higher than MLW on all aircraft as under carriage not made to take full weight of aircraft/payload and full fuel impacting runway on touchdown. flight burns fuel so for example a voyager can take off with 100+ tons but will only plan to have emergency divert reserves on landing so why make landing gear even heavier. For fighters they recon on having min fuel and no bombs which in war is good but for peacetime sorties you might want to practice take off/handling with warload but not cost effective to have to dump to get back down
Nowhere did he say that the F-35B can vertically take off at MTOW because that requires a rolling take off.
One of the main drivers initially was the desire to bring back Storm Shadow. That was cut from the weapons to be carried an age ago. But the SRVL work has continued as it has applications in areas that are very hot and humid where the max landing weight drops. In particular the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. Harrier always had issues there. SRVL adds further margin. In practice though SRVL whilst nice to have as a backup, I suspect, will not be used in practice that often. At least until heavier weapons arrive, principally for the UK that would… Read more »
Don’t forget drop tanks are coming
Why was Storm Shaddow dropped? I thought UK F35 would carry it. Considering the capabilities of it I would have thought it would be a vital tool for CSG land attack….
Also will UK F35s be given NSM?
Dropped almost 10 years ago, along with Brimstone and Asraam internal carry. Brimstone obviously dropped as Spear was on the way… Asraam internal as it made no sense… Storm Shadow as it looked like it would be years away (correct) and the SS OSD would only be a few years later, so not worth bothering with. FCASW should get integrated though…. JSM (not NSM) is getting integrated, probably available from 2026. But there are no plans or current requirement for a buy. Personally I think we should buy around 50 of them as an interim purchase before FCASW arrives. Some… Read more »
Thanks for the update. Any idea when Meteor is going to be intigrated.
Ben Wallace claimed in November to the Defence Select Committee that “… [Meteor integration] was due in 2027 originally … I think I managed to get it brought forward by the programme committee to 2025.” I thought this was the latest estimate. However reading the transcript there’s a footnote that rolls it all back and then some! Note from the MOD: SofS took action to restore the IOC for Meteor to the original schedule of 2025, following a potential delay to the end of the decade. However, subsequent options have since delayed IOC until 2028 to align with Block 4… Read more »
Sorry, MRUSW? 🤔 (Have been gone awhile.). Suspect it is a new, lightweight and/or compact munition?
https://breakingdefense.com/2022/11/uk-researches-new-affordable-precision-munition-with-ukraine-in-mind/ If you look at the detail (8 weapons internally on F-35), and previous announcements about Spear ‘spiral developments’ it can only be 1 thing…a Spear derivative, a ‘SpearSimple’. There are 3 Spear derivatives currently on the way… Spear – >120nm range mini cruise missile Spear-EW – c300nm range EW decoy/jammer (MALD-J equivalent). Spear without a warhead with Britecloud jammer tech in its place SpearGlide – 70nm range glide weapon. Essentially Spear without the engine, but with a 2x larger warhead. A direct competitor to SDB2 Stormbreaker These are all well and good…but they’re by no means cheap. MRUSW is… Read more »
Very interesting potential development. It is apparent the guided munitions market will become more competitive; may the best weapons win (more export sales 😁).
Appreciate the explanation 😊
hi Rudeboy a lot of potential with spear family and as you say once one integrated you have the rest. had not thought of a recon drone or propeller loitering.
A land-launched anti-radiation loitering munition variant of Spear would make sense imo.
Absolutely agree, leveraging some other country’s integration of JSM on F-35B would be an apparent no-brainer. A token financial contribution to the effort would probably not go amiss in reducing any potential ill will re perceived freeloading. 🤔
To be honest given the UK is pretty much paying for Meteor integration on its own (with a tiny contribution from Italy) and other nations like Japan and South Korea will benefit I suspect they’ll be quite happy for Norway, Japan and Australia (and the US due to Raytheon’s involvement) to fund JSM integration on their own. There aren’t any UK components in it (AFAIK) so no industrial benefit for the UK. The surprising thing is no-one has jumped at the opportunity to integrate a small internally carried (but much larger than Spear) cruise missile now that Turkey’s SOM-J has… Read more »
Why carry a long range missile internally?
The F-35 whilst being Low Observable is not invisible. There is still a requirement to kill high value targets at long range (an S-400 battery for example). Those targets could be deep within enemy territory so having a weapon that keeps you as stealthy as possible up to launch so you can make a speedy exit…
I would have thought a little bit of route planning would overcome the problem of staying unobserved from hundreds of miles away. Stealth or no stealth. But I bow to your wisdom.
Noticed the decrement in future weapons payload when factoring external (drop or conformal?) tanks (2 v. 4 Paveway IV). MTOW, CG, or physical impingement/restriction? 🤔
Strictly out of curiosity, military or contractor? Understand, if not permitted to declare.
External tanks would have to be on pylon 3 and 9 (the 2 innermost external pylons on each wing) as they’re rated for 5,000lbs carry. A 660 gal external tank will weigh, when full, around 4-4500lbs. After that the mid wing external pylons are only rated for 1,500lbs each, with the outermost pylons rated for 300lbs (so Asraam or 9X only, no Amraam as its >50lbs over the rated weight). MBDA do have a common stores attachment that allows 2 Paveway IV to be carried (derived from the triple Brimstone launcher on Tornado or Typhoon) but its only been seen… Read more »
Thanks, appreciate the response. 😊
Interesting point re pace of external missle integration. Attempting to discern rationale; funding constraints and SPO preoccupation w/ near term issues both seem to be feasible explanations. Being in the swamp w/ many hungry alligators snapping is not the most pleasant experience.
Is vertical takeoff really unworkable as widely reported? I’d have thought the F35B being lots more powerful than the Harrier could manage some kind of VTO with combat load.
And reliability too. Not the best start for 2023 sadly.
“Following the crash landing of an F-35B near Lockheed Martin’s LMT assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas two weeks ago, the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) has grounded a number of F-35s including foreign aircraft until at least January. The latest grounding comes less than six months after the Air Force temporarily grounded its F-35A fleet this past summer.”
LINK
And reliability too. Not the best start for 2023 sadly.
“Following the crash landing of an F-35B near Lockheed Martin’s LMT assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas two weeks ago, the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) has grounded a number of F-35s including foreign aircraft until at least January. The latest grounding comes less than six months after the Air Force temporarily grounded its F-35A fleet this past summer.”
LINK
“Powering Freedom” is probably one of the most American slogans I’ve seen.
Bought a sticker at a Mildenhall air fete day back in the 90’s with a sketch of a Phantom with “Jet noise – The sound of freedom’
Actually, at least since the 1950’s, perhaps even the late 1940’s.
The phrase, that is.
Presumably you were there spying for the Soviets…
Because America understands the meaning of Defense. The UK isn’t quite so sure. Mostly due to the lousy set of politicians that run the place.
The UK does Defence.
👍
I was waiting for the correct spelling to be used!
.. and the US does Defense. The spelling was deliberate dumbass. Oops sorry: stupid arse.
This is a UK based website, w/ a similar target demographic. As a general rule, the regular posters do not respond well to ad hominem attacks. As a special favor, could we refrain from reinforcing the stereotype of the Ugly Americans? Thanks, much appreciated. 😊
Generally the us population is no more or less ugly than any other….if your going to generalises I would say more overweight than the UK population but with better teeth…so sort of balances….😂😂😂😂
😁
True but the UK also does not do down town streets full of mostly black, Homeless people with severe mental Inness freezing in winter.
But your know potato potatoe
Put the pipe down son…. And just lay their defenseless…
Yaaaawn, here he goes again, dripping, and also dripping chip fat down his weak shoulder.
Where did that “dripping chip fat down his body” comment come from, this is not that sort of web page 😂😂🤣🤣
Take a fw minutes our, read his previous nasty and continuous garbage then come back! I respond in kind as one, it annoys him, and two, it annoys him.
Ah Jonathon, my error, you were taking the piss, sorry mate, it’s 05:20 and only had one coffee….😂👍! Prefer coconut oil but that’s another story for another website….😂😂
Now coconut oil I can go with 😂😂
True but without them UK and most of Europe could well be a very different place. Certainly no ethnic diversity, which is the irony of your post.
That’s Potentially true between the 40’s and the 80’s but it’s not been true for a long time. Even with its greatly reduced defence capability Europe still retains a significant territorial defence capability, sure its power projection is weak but it’s easily able to defend itself against Russia its only conceivable threat. It’s the adage that is constantly used in US politics primarily pushed by special interests that America has to spend money to keep Europe safe. The US continues to spend way above a level required given the true threat environment especially to its self which is close to… Read more »
Jesus wept
Wow that’s a great argument, well done
Hmmm…really try very hard not to rise to the bait…but since this is such a broad indictment of US, compelled to make at least an attempt: Believe Europe, as a whole, if united and well led, has the capacity to resist and probably defeat, Russian conventional aggression. On the nuclear plane, it is an entirely different matter. The only two relevant countries in Europe, the UK and France, are both suseptable to being overwhelmed by single point failures (Single SSBNs on patrol, successfully targeted; yes, France has a residual aircraft delivered capability, but airbase(s) would be targeted.) Many may claim… Read more »
Excellent post. Jim occasionally makes some good points in his post but those points are often times overshadowed by his virulent anti Americanism.
Thanks, understand. 👍
Not trying to bait you just getting pissed off by “Team America” (Not you but other commentators) telling me how shit the UK is at defence all the time. For a nation as rich as the USA your HDI figures are severely lacking and I think anyone can attest to how much pressure there is on US infrastructure as well as mental health provision. Every country gets to make its own decisions and I’m fine with the UK spending 2.2% of its economic product on military defence because that’s more than enough to guarantee our own security and make a… Read more »
Rather than embark on a point by point rebuttal/refutation, perhaps it would be simpler and less distracting for other site participants, who wish to discuss F135 engine upgrades, if we simply agree to disagree re the future threat assessment by an apparent order of magnitude?
Counter history is always a bit thumb in the air but I think it’s fair to say that without the US and UK ( to a lesser extent from the 50s onward, but still a key part) mainland Europe would without doubt be part either a German led fascist empire or Russian led communist empire, with the UK having the lovely experience of being neighbours with a totalitarian super power and probably at constant threat of war. What most people do forget is that both the US and UK could have simply left Germany and Russia to fight it out.… Read more »
Have absolutely no hard data on which to base the following assessment, but believe the following may indeed be the case: The US foreign policy establishment probably believed it had achieved relative balance in the European theater when the UK was safely ensconced w/in both NATO and the EU as a necessary counterweight to French, German and Russian plans, plots, intrigues and cabals. Unfortunately, our duly deputized emissary relatively recently decided to cash in their collective economic chips and leave the poker game w/out adult supervision. Predictably, the other players have begun to brawl, and several are reaching for hidden… Read more »
Most people don’t really appreciate how England ( as this is very much an English cultural imperative) has shaped European imperial and great powers. It’s literally been the knife in the back of every European power since the formation of an “english” state at the beginning of the Tudor dynasty.
“In summary, the US is admittedly far from perfect, but it is the only dominant power currently available to protect the West. We will attempt, as you Brits say, ‘to muddle through.’” And thank christ for that… “The only two relevant countries in Europe, the UK and France, are both suseptable to being overwhelmed by single point failures (Single SSBNs on patrol, successfully targeted; yes, France has a residual aircraft delivered capability, but airbase(s) would be targeted.)” These days I look at the collective ‘West’s’ SSBN’s as almost one entity. Even for the USN the days of ’41 for Freedom’… Read more »
We read the tea leaves in exactly the same manner. However, depending upon manner in which geo-politics develops w/in next ten years, believe there may be a realistic possibility USAF resumes airborne nuclear alert posture w/ B-21s (ala Curtis LeMay’s SAC). That may give Mad Vlad’s successor and ChiComs cause to pause…
The size of the Columbia class fleet may be revisited in the future, depending upon Russian and especially. ChiCom behavior. START Treaty limits may be adjusted to account for the projected quadrupleing of ChiCom warhead inventory.
Pleased the blokes at the Admiralty started counting and quietly decided to increase your inventory.
BTW,Taiwan has just instituted universal male military conscription. They, at least, have begun to comprehend the magnitude of the coming threat.
“I don’t see any reason why the US thinks it’s some how obliged to run to their aid.”
For the same reason why I pay tax so that my fellow citizens get the healthcare they need or the help when unemployed. It’s called responsibility for our fellow man.
Also self interest. US historically needed stable democracies around it.
To be honest, more so now, with Chinese merchantile bullying.
It’s in the self-interest of any democracy to be surrounded by other democracies, as democracies don’t declare war on each other.
(With the exception that Stalin required Britain to declare war on Finland during WW2, though we never actually fought Finish forces.)
Yes, that amplified my point?
Not sure where you pay your taxes so hard to comment but Taiwan just crossed 2% of GDP on defence spending despite how much they “love freedom”
It’s a pretty good indication of how willing a country is to fight and defend itself. I don’t see why people in the USA should feel obliged to spend nearly 4% of GDP and put up with some pretty serious economic and social consequences of that higher spending to defend an island that’s spent most of the last two decades with some of the lowest military spending in the industrialised world.
You might not see why, but it’s pretty obvious to anyone who can foresee the consequences of allowing totalitarian regimes to conquer democracies: whether it’s Russia invading Ukraine, China invading Taiwan, Nazi Germany invading… American has tried isolationism in the past, and this stance arguably contributed to the two bloodiest wars ever seen in human history. I’m pretty sure the 3.3% of GDP the USA spends on defence is not solely focussed on defending Taiwan, so that argument is facile. The USA spends that much because it chooses to, as it helps maintain its influence as the sole superpower and… Read more »
In fact if you’re being factually correct none of the western nations went to war with Nazi German because it invaded a democracy. In fact the UK and France specifically did not go to war with the third Reich after it invaded a democratic republic ( Czechoslovakia) and only when to war when it invaded a fellow totalitarian state (Poland). What is interesting is that Poland after 1918 had pretty much forced out the German population of land taken from Germany ( today we would have classes what Poland did in the corridor as ethic cleansing of the German population).… Read more »
Well the U.K. didn’t go to war over Czechoslovakia simply through expediency, we weren’t ready. While Chamberlain may appear naive over Munich, the U.K. was rearming and defence spending radically increased in preparation for a war. That rearming wasn’t complete when Bohemia and Morovia were invaded, the act that convinced Chamberlain of the inevitability of war. Even after the declaration, this rearmament and preparation continued: the Phoney War period. So while the U.K. didn’t declare war over Czechoslovakia, HMG concluded it was inevitable which is why they offered the guarantee to Poland should there be an invasion. As for the… Read more »
Open, legitimate question: When will Western politicians understand the concept that while history seldom repeats, it often rhymes? Before or after the missles start impacting civilian population centers?
Because people in general, not just politicians, only learn from generational history. Though history may be documented, analysed, etc, anything outside of a generation’s own experience is discounted as being of lessor importance/relevance/etc. Also consider industry. There are cycles where corporations adopt diversification, to expand into new industries so that they have income from other sectors in case the original business losses profitability. Then they go through cycles where they refocus on the core business and core competencies, refocusing on the original business’ strengths and divesting of themselves of recent purchases. The only constant, is the CEO who initiates the… Read more »
Sorry, generally agree w/ your argument of recency/immediacy bias in human learning, but failed to comprehend industry example. Is it your contention that only CEOs have the wisdom/experience to make significant decisions for business in a parallel manner as politicians do for society? 🤔😳
The industry example is just an accelerated form of the same phenomenon it lasts less than a generation. With it being faster it’s possible some CEOs have the experience of having gone through it, but certainly not at their current company. So it’s usually the case the current CEO doesn’t see the need for change, is replaced, and the new CEO initiates the change. Sometimes just to justify their appointment. 🤷🏻♂️
OK, we are clearly OT and headed down the rabbit hole: Read an account (possibly Churchill”s memoirs) that stated during one intermediate crisis c.1936-37 (pre-Czechoslovakia), the Admiralty issued a directive to mobilize the Home Fleet (and possibly others). The argument stated that if HMG had held firm, and not countermanded the directive, the German General Staff may have compelled Hitler to back down, thus delaying or forestalling WW II. The preponderance of forces evidently favored the British and French at that point in time. As you have stated, counterfactuals are difficult to assess, but have you ever seen this argument… Read more »
Yes there is pretty good evidence that if the UK was going to war with Germany it should have done so in the mid late 30s. Essentially the waiting and making a mutual defence agreement with Poland was chaining itself to an ultra nationalist state ( Poland was not nice and to be honest was pretty horrible to all its minorities, German, Jew and Ukrainian), it then allowed a second ultra nationalist state to dictate to timeframe for war. We did possibly end in a middling outcome, the Cold War and half of Europe ending under an evil empire and… Read more »
Taiwan is a little complex in that its freedom has pretty much depended on an illusion that it’s not a separate state. Therefore its alway played a balance, as militarily it will never ever be able to defend itself against mainland China all it can do is play the illusion game and hope mainland China does not decide to finish off its 80 year old civil war. The rest of the world has always played to same game, no major power recognises Taiwan as a separate nation from china. For if Taiwan simply states it was a separate nation, raised… Read more »
The question is which is the legitimate Chinese government, the one in Beijing or the one in Taipei. Until 1971, it was the one in Taipei that held the UN seat and was recognised as the legitimate government of China. It was only Tricky Dicky’s rapprochement to the CCP that saw this change. The West can happily say that it agrees with the CCP that there is ‘One China’ without naming which government it believes is legitimate rather than de facto. While Taiwan is significantly smaller than the PRC, it could exact a sufficiently large price, that any invasion by… Read more »
The question of “ready” is a really interesting one and was in really potentially the biggest failure of foreign policy of all. In reality Germany at that period was not in any way ready to go to war with the western powers and if the UK and France had pushed Hitler would have almost undoubtedly capitulated and moved back from taking over Czechoslovak. it’s probably that which was one of those of crisis points that could have massively changed history. As it was in fact the Czec arms industry that allowed Germany to have the mass within its armoured divisions… Read more »
Unfortunately you can only answer the question of which is the legitimate government of China after their is a final Victor in their civil war. simply put the last 72 years have been nothing more than a pause in that conflict. It’s best not to get involved in other peoples civil wars if you can avoid it. Taiwan many be very good at manufacturing chips, but it’s still a geopolitical gamble for the west to become dependent on a the manufacturing from what is still a disputed region in a civil war. China is not going to give up and… Read more »
Unfortunately that argument about ‘civil war’ could be used/misapplied for:
• North & South Korea
• East & West Germany
• Ukraine & Russia
The reality is there’s never been ‘one China’, that was a story invented 70 odd years ago. Throughout the claimed 5,000 history of the country it was never politically United as a country. And that’s without considering PRC annexations such as Tibet, etc, etc.
Taiwan is world-leading in chip-fab. Unless you want state-directed industry, as under communism, then private industry will choose to use the best available.
Hi Sean it’s very different from the other examples: North and South Korea are two distinct nations that were created in 1945. They then proced to go to war with each other as both effectively decided to claim the same real estate. But the Korean nation as was had been destroyed by the beginning of the 20c and had been effectively a failings state since the early 19c and north and South Korea were artificially created by the U.S. and USSR as the nation was formally defeated by the allies and considered a formal belligerent. So it was partitioned between… Read more »
North and South Korea, East and West Germany, Taiwan and China, all artificial partitions created as a result of war. In all cases, these became separate nations, either recognised or DE FACTO. Currently 13 countries legally recognise Taiwan as a nation, along with another 59 having unofficial diplomatic relations with the island (eg USA, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, etc.) Not enough for UN recognition, though obviously this is due to behind the scenes strong-arming by the PRC. But a nation doesn’t require recognition by the UN to be a nation. Incorrect. Germany and a few other countries (not Europe) becoming… Read more »
Gosh lots in there. Let’s start with the basics: I do not inadvertently legitimise or de legitimise the ROC government, it is one of two governments of China and they will tell you very clearly if you asked them they are not the government of Taiwan they are the government of China. Taiwan is not a state, not even ROC call Taiwan a state. China was not forced into two separate states as the other nations you use as an example..it had and is still in state of civil war.. that is the office position of both the Chinese communists… Read more »
The Taiwanese-based government does not call itself because it: • considers itself to be the legitimate government of the whole of China • doing so would be a declaration of independence, which the PRC has promised would result in immediate military retribution. Of course there are parties in Taiwan that advocate dropping the claim to the whole of China and declaring independence. This may happen in time. That you don’t understand the difference between de rigeur and de facto is not my problem. What you advocate is not protectionism, it’s totalitarianism. Protectionism is favouring domestic production by applying tariffs and… Read more »
Remember, that at one point a PRC amphibious assault on Taiwan was derisively termed the Million Man Swim w/in the military. No longer. 😳☹️
The Germans had transports available for their much shorter hop across the Channel and it never happened… China has requirements for domestic shipping such that they can be deployed, in addition to the PLAN, for an invasion of Taiwan. However current estimates are that they do not yet have the capacity necessary to transport and logistically support such a force. Sea conditions also mean that there’s only a couple of months each year when such a crossing is possible, and such a naval build-up would be obvious. The PRC could eventually invade and conquer Taiwan, but the losses they would… Read more »
Xi has issued a directive for military to be prepared to conduct an invasion by 2027. Next 4-5 yrs. could prove to be interesting.
2027 by which point he’ll be 74. While the average life expectancy is 77, he’s guaranteed to live longer due to no limits on healthcare spending for him as the leader. Relevant as he is like Putin, he wants a resolution to the Taiwan issue in his lifetime as part of his legacy. Before they can proceed, they need the forces to be able to cut off Taiwan from the rest of the world. That means a submarine force that can implement a blockade AND a naval strike force able to prevent the flying in of supplies from the Pacific.… Read more »
PLAAF and PLAN may be compelled by their master(s) to attempt to create an AD environment, sufficient to provide a military version of a cordon sanitare around Taiwan, regardless of internal plans and/or assessments. Especially if political masters perceive US/Western military and/or political weakness. Doesn’t necessarily mean ChiComs would be successful, but if a sufficiently serious attempt occurs, could, in turn, lead to a range of rather unpleasant outcomes. The most extreme would presumably be the civilization ending one. 🤔😳☹️
Of course, there is always the chance that peace, love and understanding could spontaneously emerge in all of world’s conflict arenas, but, short of the Lord’s Second Coming, don’t believe the smart money is taking that bet.
I think the PLAAF operating from the mainland alone would find it impossible to impose an air exclusion zone around Taiwan. To prevent supply aircraft coming from the Pacific they would need to overfly Taiwanese air-space. The Chinese could deploy area-air defence destroyers to the Pacific, but these are more for providing air-defence to a flotilla than imposing exclusion zones. Also the Taiwanese wouldn’t allow them to sit off their coast in the Pacific unmolested. Without carriers they’ll have little or no air-cover as PLAAF fights would have to overfly Taiwan to reach them. China is going to need a… Read more »
…sanitaire…🙄
Regardless of the historical path trodden, or motivations of the relevant players, believe it would be a cruel act of ‘Realpolitik’ cowardice to abandon over one score million, peace and freedom loving, Taiwanese citizens to the ‘tender mercies’ of the jackals governing the PRC. Crushing freedom-seeking dissent in Hong Kong was the test case for slimeball, scum-sucking ChiComs. Emboldened by pathetic Western response to treaty violation, now contemplating/planning seizure of Taiwan. If successful in the invasion of Taiwan, it will prove simply to be the first domino to fall. Will the West be concerned when SK falls? Japan? Australia and… Read more »
At…🙄
To be honest for me it’s alway a question of choice. I agree I would support our governments supporting the Taiwan population if there was naked aggression. But I do have a problem when bad policy means we have no choice but to defend Taiwan because of manufacturing dependency. You have to remember democracy is a bit of a new experience for the ROC and there is nothing to say they will not go back to a military dictatorship that sits there bating the rest of China knowing the west will need to defend it….sort of like what Turkey is… Read more »
Defence spending aside. Without the US Europe would be white Arian nation. US had its first non white president ten years ago. I believe European countries are still waiting for its first non white leader. US tops the world in destination for migrants. Whilst most of Europe accept German
lag behind places like Saudi Arabia and Russia for migration. Whilst the US has its problems its clear its still a nation that has aspiration as a core value an migrants still see it as a place they can aspire.
“US had its first non white president ten years ago.”
Given the relative histories of the US and UK in terms of ‘non-white’ populations…the UK’s record is far, far more impressive…It took the US several hundred years to reach that point…it took the UK 70 years…
Plus get back to us when the US has had a President from the largest ‘Minority’ in the country….i.e. women…we’ve had 3 now….the US a great big fat zero…
No women though, considering how small the ethnic white population is I don’t think having one none white (technically half white) leader is a great accomplishment.
Why would Europe be a white Arian nation without the USA? What history have you studied? I’m sure there are alot of dead Soviets who would disagree with that premise. Most historians put the turning point for WW2 before the US joined the war even the few that put the turning point in late 42 don’t credit the US or even US lend lease with much of a significance.
But then yeah TEAM AMERICA f**k YEAH
Why study history when you can just make shit shit up 😀
I wasnt talking about military efforts. US supply chain and the 50 billoon in aid provided by the US 10b of which went to Russia. If you multiply that buy 21 you get the value today. Like you say why study history when you can ignore part of it.
I think you need to put in context the reason for migration into the US before using Moral equivalent with Europe. The black African population of the US was pretty much a universally forced migration. The European population is a mainly economic and religious migration that found the space and wealth to migrate by ethnically cleansing a large number of cultures and nations. like many nations you really have to get under the skin of why they are where they are and in almost all cases it’s universally unpleasant to the modern western liberal mind. using Saudi is also not… Read more »
Whist true the outcome is not known the reality is with what is the equivalent of 1 trillion USD in aid in today’s money is far from a trivial input. Lets not forget Russias industrial base was depleted by 2/3s and the UK was essentially bankrupt by 1942. My father died a few years ago at 99 having fought in WW2 I used to get first hand accounts believe me the first part of the war was not good at all. We had very few advantages and Hitler made some errors which gave us time to use US aid to… Read more »
Yes that’s all fair. I do agree the US in 20c 21c I was and is very much an opportunity for immigrants. It is after all an economic power house that even if not perfect still promotes equality of opportunity. There is also no question post world war 2 the USSR would have invaded Western Europe without US military support. It was after all the aim of the USSR to make the world communist. The bit I doubt is if they would have pushed through France as a nuclear state and then onto the UK as I think in the… Read more »
Touching on migration in Saudi and other Middle East countries. I had 2 drivers and I spent hours with them chatting whilst driving. The topic of treatment Icame up of course. Both their opinions was totally contrary to western views and media. They had grasped opportunity as in their home country their wages were just 1 usd per day. They were getting many multiples of that and had loggings and food fully paid so masses of disposable income compared to their peers back home. Both had saved enough money to start business back home whilst supporting their families. Essentially changed… Read more »
Also the reality is the west have jobs that need doing that don’t really provide a stable career future. Agro industries is a classic, yes we need farmers whose career it is to grow our food and act as Stewards, but we also need a ton of unskilled seasonal workers a very low wage levels. So I do agree we need a good mix. Personal I’ve always been a believer that if someone is willing to travel the world to earn money and they are paying taxes then bring ‘em on. What I do believe in is making sure those… Read more »
Setting up proper facilities and processes to handle temporary workers would go a long way in tackling poor conditions and gangs. And yes it must be targeted we need some industries to invest and increase productivity so living standards can rise, low pay makes the investments that would raise productivity less attractive.
Taiwan spends about 2.1% of GDP on defence, like we do. It claims to want to increase that to 3% but finds it hard to spend more. It doesn’t have the industrial base to manufacture much more at home and too few countries are willing to ignore China’s wrath by selling to it. A long term view is required to build the industrial base to support increased defence spending. In practice, more defence spending now just means more money leaving the country and flowing to the US. It also forces the spend away from the items Taiwan needs to buy… Read more »
Believe you are absolutely correct re Taiwanese industrial base issues. 👍👍 Believe US will increase both quantities and types of weapons it is willing to provide to Taiwan, given current and projected future geo-political environment. 🤔
Re Taiwanese political leadership, do not have enough knowledge to have an informed opinion.
Correct!
US approves sale of Volcano anti-tank systems to Taiwan 02 JANUARY 2023
“The US Department of State has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of Volcano anti-tank munition-laying systems to Taiwan for an estimated cost of USD180 million.”
LINK
Ahem, China is the clear and present danger to our way of life; and to that of every other Liberal democracy.
Spoken like a good WASP. The truth is that if we all stopped our ‘leaders’ from building newer weapons constantly, the US with its great history of Space travel and research would probably have discovered livable planets by now and helped the research into global warming.
No, it’s based on the lies perpetrated by US hawks to keep the tactics of fear alive in order to increase profits. The lie of Saddam Hussein’s ability to hit the West in 45 mins is the classic example.
The U.S.A. have a certain genius when it comes to producing toe curling slogans.
Just British toes and let’s face it, not many care about those outside of the UK.
Are you really Esteban Grinch because you have the same petulant countenance? I think most people would find the slogan a little kitschy, as for your “ just British toes” riposte, that is “just like, your opinion man”.
No, he’s Ron 5. Remember him 😂 his +100 comments confirmed it!
By that do you mean inspiring or stomach churning?
Unless this engine is offered on later UK orders I doubt the upgrades will be adopted until a separately funded programme is approved.
They will be the only engines on offer so no.
Okay, that’s interesting and also good news.
“If the services and our allies want Block 4 enabled F-35s before the end of the decade, the engine needs a core upgrade,” said Jen Latka, vice president of F135 programs at Pratt & Whitney.
Is there any deeper meaning in my highlighted bit? Like does the upgrade provide more electrical power? Block 4 now end of the decade?
Also $75M spread over 6 years doesn’t imply, contrary to Rosa DeLauro’s comments, much urgency.
Yes, the deeper meaning is that F-35 customers want block 4 as soon as possible and block 4 needs more electrical power. Sigh.
I think that was a reasonable question…so the elusive Block 4 we need for our world beating weapons will be delayed until at least the end of the decade…waiting on the yanks to facilitate our own internal weapons development…when they do not have the same driver as we.
I suspect the UK lost a lot of its bargaining power when it decided to only order a couple of slack handfuls rather than the committed 138 aircraft. Folk in the US notice such things.
The UK certainly went to the back of the line after Cameron changed the F-35B orders to F-35C’s. Reversing that decision a couple of years later didn’t restore the original priority.
The engine upgrade produces more electrical power but the main benefit is better thermal management, which is also necessary for the Block IV improvements. Worth remembering that Block IV is being delivered incrementally though, not as a single upgrade, there will be multiple capacity inserts to reach full Block IV capability over a period of years. For the UK there is one aircraft (BK-03) that is in the ‘possibly too expensive to upgrade’ camp. By the time 2030 rolls around that aircraft will have been in service for 20 years. So it might get moved exclusively to training, testing or… Read more »
Yep people often think that it’s one fleet but really you have a type then different mod levels. That’s just upgrades you’ll then have airworthiness directives enforce upon you.
The RAF in particular has learnt that lesson the hard way with Typhoon. A huge amount of effort in recent years has gone into making the Typhoon fleet more homogenised, and has been very successful. The good news for the UK is that the USMC will ‘prove’ the upgrade path first, essentially de-risking it.To not follow the path that they’ve already trodden would add a lot of risk and cost….which means we can in all probability look forward to the UK’s F-35B fleet all being upgraded to the Block IV Lot 17 standard that the USMC is going for. This… Read more »
Is BK-03 the oldest orange wire bird currently based at Edwards?
Presume from your text that Lot 17 and beyond should incorporate all the hardware changes necessary to support complete Block 4 integration w/ the probable exception of necessary engine modifications?.
No BK-03 is the first UK Combat Capable F-35. Ordered in 2009in LRIP batch 4. At that point it was the 3rd UK F-35B ordered, with 2 ITF test aircraft ordered in 2008. A 3rd ITF test aircraft was ordered in 2013 to make up the 3 orange wired aircraft (presumably to help get testing on track). BK-03 is at RAF Marham, probably assigned to 207 Sqn as a training aircraft. It’s the only UK F-35B that is likely to be in the ‘too expensive’ to bother upgrading category…plus by then it will have been in service for 15 years.… Read more »
U know ur stuff on the F35. U have probably self nominated as the resident F35 expert. Great reading
Seconded.
Thanks, excellent post, comprehensive and detailed. 👍 Finally beginning to understand certain nuances in British acquisition program. Funding for execution (relatively) assured?
Believe £50M for 1K JDAMs, even at current exchange rates, is a very generous estimate; £25-30M should be attainable, based on surveyed cost data.
As ever with munition purchases its the technical data packs, support from manufacturer, maintenance kit and tooling that add a fair bit to the cost of the actual munitions. There is an element of them being a 1 time cost though so subsequent batches would be cheaper.
Ahh…so you actually want to be able to maintain and use the weapons? There will be an upcharge for that…,🤔😳😱😉
There is presently no ER version of the 1,000lb JDAM. Australia developed the original ER version only for the 500lb bomb. S.Korea then came onboard to develop a 2,000lb version using the same tech. No-one has yet put their hand up to develop a 1,000lb version. It would be a relatively low risk development.
Thats true. But MBDA make the Diamondback wing kit which could easily be adapted and there is also the Longshot wing kit out there still…failing that using a scaled up existing wing kit would be an easy job. You’d hope that it could be done for c£5k, its just a pop out simple wing, all the controls and manoeuvering surfaces are still at the rear on the JDAM kit…. The Powered JDAM is also a very interesting proposition. Would like to see someone really try and reduce the costs of micro-turbojets though…the USAF was trying to reduce cost massively with… Read more »
I should add…the only flaw with the Powered JDAM concept, is that whilst far cheaper than other cruise missiles with 160nm+ range its still not cheap (that range incidentally might be a lot more…20x has been mentioned,JDAM has a 15 mile range so it might be 300 miles). The JDAM bit is…but the motor will increase the cost at least 6 fold. The only reason why you use a powered munition like that is if you really want to stay out of range of defences. But those same defences could shoot the Powered JDAM down…at what point is it more… Read more »
I should have read this before commenting thanks for th post.
We have all had that feeling before🤣🤣🤣
So without this engine upgrade, Block 4 won’t work. This puts back the integration of Meteor and Spear 3 to 2030. What an absolute shambles of a project- a brilliant earner for Lockheed Martin but an utter failure to deliver the affordable successor to F16,18,A10 and Harrier offered in the original prospectus. It makes the UK decision to build the 2 largest and most expensive carriers in our history that can only operate a single type of combat jet look ever more misguided. Has the money spent on the carrier/ F35 project increased Britain’s overall defence strength? To fund what… Read more »
“We cannot go on pouring resources into this money pit.”
Oh Yes We Can 😂
And as someone said on here, we have got plenty to look forward to!
https://news.usni.org/2022/12/08/report-to-congress-on-f-35-joint-strike-fighter-engine
“After the 2018 war game I distinctly remember one of our gurus of war gaming standing in front of the Air Force secretary and chief of staff, and telling them that we should never play this war game scenario [of a Chinese attack on Taiwan] again, because we know what is going to happen,” Lieutenant General Hinote had told Yahoo News earlier this year. “The definitive answer if the U.S. military doesn’t change course is that we’re going to lose fast. In that case, an American president would likely be presented with almost a fait accompli.” At the same time, Hinote’s comments… Read more »
First, block 4 isn’t an upgrade, it’s a whole slew of them. Metor integration will come in far sooner than 2030, perhaps as early as 2025. It’s not that you can’t have any block 4 upgrades without an engine upgrade, it’s that you can’t have them all. Second this is good news; without this engine upgrade you’d have to wait until next decade to get new engines in order to have all of block 4 functionality. This is the fastest route to the increased power we need and will be available by 2028. Okay, that’s not as fast as it… Read more »
You might have missed this Jon on UKDJ
“Meteor was assigned a place in the Followon Development Programme by the F-35 Joint Programme Office and contracts were awarded to Lockheed Martin in the early summer.
However, entry into service is not anticipated to be until 2027 and there is a possibility that integration pressures in the programme may incur further delays because of challenges in the wider F-35 programme.”
LINK
Your short-sightedness is laughable. Like your mate Mr Collins below.
Never mind that it is already ‘n’ x better than anything any opposition can field..
No let’s just criticise the upgrade path instead rather than realise that when that it is delivered the platform be an order of magnitude better again…..
But no we could have harrier flying half the speed, half the range and half the payload with a very nice but totally outclassed, by F35B, electronics fit…..
Some of the comments are beyond ridiculous, from people who are supposed to be interested and knowledgeable about defence. They forget about the magnitude of issues that other fighter projects have been through, the cost overruns and the delays. But because F35 was born in the age of social media, it’s ok to give it a good kicking at any opportunity, regardless of the fact that the warfighters that fly it love it, and regard it as an absolute game changer. Nigel Collins once said we shouldn’t bother buying more F35s beyond 48 because 6th gen would be available from… Read more »
Now ask him to show you the link where I said 2025. More BS and spin from the master of it. I quoted a prototype that would be flying by 2027/2030 and guess what. As for the 48 F-35s? Tempest will not be flying off the carriers for one and two, what is the point in buying more when the current version has endless problems and cost overruns as it is? Something I’ve mentioned a few times over the years on here as you might recall! “First flight 15 December 2006 (F-35A)” “Squadron Leader Steve Long became the first British pilot… Read more »
Alternatively we could have kept the Harrier and lifex the old carriers. Or fitted emals to the QE and bought F18 or Rafaels. I. What world are they better options. Emals is only just operational. F18 are almost out of production no one who has access to the F35 is buying. They have all the data. Rafael costs about the same as the F35, again where the F35 is an optionits winning. Industry wise RR would not be nanufacturing lift fans and BAe would have zero stake in a global fighter program. We could have built more Typhoons but that’s… Read more »
Alternatively, we could have gone ahead with Typhoon or Tempest too and EMALS but we choose not to in favor of the F-35 B so we have what we have and it isn’t looking pretty at the moment.
Drones will no doubt make up the numbers in the future I’m guessing? I believe I found a link some time ago to a BAE post that stated that an N Typhoon could take off and land without the need for cats and traps with a full payload from the QE carriers.
Mojave
LINK
Navalised Typhoon
LINK
LINK
December 02, 2022 at 11:30 AM
“Breaking Defense understands that the second tranche F-35B order of 27 additional aircraft is expected to be completed in 2033.
Should those deliveries first start in 2026, after tranche 1 deliveries end in 2025, an average delivery rate of less than four aircraft a year would follow.”
LINK
Take off sorry not land. “According to Paul Hopkins, Vice President of Business Development (Air) at BAE Systems, simulation tests of a ‘navalized Typhoon’ show the aircraft can take off and land with full mission payload, including two ‘Storm Shadow’ cruise missiles, four BVR missiles, two short-range missiles, a centerline fuel tank and two conformal fuel tanks – something no other navalized aircraft can perform. A navalized Typhoon will be new built aircraft, fitted with a strengthened airframe and landing gear. The British decision to switch from STOVL F-35B to F-35C conventional take-off Lightning could pave the road for reconsideration… Read more »
Navalized Typhoons, gimme a break. Even the UK wasn’t that dumb.
Would have cost umpty billions in R&D for an under performing, gen 4 aircraft that would be obsolete in a couple of decades.
Really, really, bad idea.
No, they purchased the F-35B instead!
How many billions? can you provide me with a link, please?
Hopefully, the Spanish will read your post in time.
Airbus anticipates future Eurofighter buy from Spain
29 DECEMBER 2022
LINK
“Today’s F-35As Not Worth Including In High-End War Games According To Air Force General”
LINK
Oct. 18, 2022
“Lockheed Martin suggested the long-term sales prospects for its F-35 jet are uncertain amid worries the Department of Defense may begin to pivot away from the program.
In the short term, new production of the F-35 will go down in 2023.”
LINK
Nigel Spains buy is political, as was Germans. They have no skin in the F35 game anf face production line closure if they order anything other than the Typhoon. When LM say under threat they mean in 10 years when new programmes start to deliver. You know the USAF slashing its order for F15EX in favour of the F35? Navalised Typhoon would have required a lot of reengineering. You can’t just add new landing gear a hook and take off from a carrier. Adding weight anywhere on the airframe changes centre of gravity so you need to rework other parts… Read more »
Why would UK spend billions on a unique aircraft that nobody else would buy?
UK would then have to fund the unique upgrade pathway for it.
Terrible idea.
The whole QEC project would have stalled due to costs.
Tempest is a 6th gen fighter and would have not been possible 20 years ago technically and no nations would have partnered. I was aware of the navalised Typhoon concept but its would have been as expensive as the F35B if not more, it would still be waiting for an Aesa radar, no sensor fusion and non stealth. We still be waiting for the fixes from the US emals programme to be incorporated into our carriers, the Ford class has only just deployed for the first time and we’d be in the queue for the fixes. If we’d gone emals… Read more »
Funny how the aircraft that “hasn’t delivered” is winning all the fighter competitions.
yes because what has been delivered is still better than the rest. Read my earlier response to Nigel.
Some good news nonetheless! “The UK MoD FCAS director, Richard Berthon, told Airforce Technology that a single supersonic demonstrator aircraft will be manufactured for the 2027 first flight, although declined to comment which systems will be initially tested on the platform. “The flight itself is one milestone of many milestones,” Berthon said. Work in progress The design has also flown 100 hours digitally, testing key elements ahead of the start of platform manufacture, while the flight demonstrator platform was described by officials as being “low observable”. On 18 July engine manufacturers Rolls-Royce also presented details of Project Orpheus, a programme to develop… Read more »
That was from July, all has been reset with the announcement of the Japanese joining the program.
Calling the UK effort FCAS is a big clue this is old, out of date, news.
So they stopped the work then Ron 5?
Show me a link to when this happened.
Idiot. They’ve since signed an agreement with the Japanese and the schedule is being reworked with their involvement.
A bit like you Ron 5, with nothing useful to add.
It’s the start of the new year Ronny boy, try +101 😂
Cheers!
And the AESA Radar too!
“This is the single biggest capability boost since the introduction of the Typhoon,” said Air Chief Marshal Mike Wigston, Chief of the Air Staff.
He said that one of the lessons already learned from the war in Ukraine is that electronic attack and defense is a fundamental requirement.
Wigston confirmed that the first radar trial set will fly next year, with conversion of the RAF’s entire fleet of Tranche 3 Typhoons by the end of the decade.
The Tranche 2 aircraft might follow, but will in any case receive the software update.”
LINK
We could have had AESA now as there is version available, it not as capable as ECRS mk2. Its not great the T2s are not confirmed for the upgrade. We know money is tight but if the mk1 version is cheaper then why not upgrade the T2s to mk1 AESA. If the decision is made to not upgrade the T2s we’d be using 2 radars anyway. I do hope the contract for the upgrade is not easy to cancel so the its not a victim of cuts. On fast jets I’m concerned UK will not be producing any complete aircraft… Read more »
Agreed, I’m guessing that the Mk2 version will have been fully tested against the F-35 in order to detect low-observable threats at range. This detailed video is worth checking out too for a better understanding of the recent F-35B crash. F-35s Grounded Again Following Ft. Worth Crash “The F-35 Joint Program Office has grounded a portion of the fleet following a mishap that occurred at Forth Worth on December 15. This is the second grounding action for the F-35 inventory this year.” A more in-depth look at the crash can be seen via this LINK Smoke can be seen coming from… Read more »
As for EMALS, we initially developed it and sold the Company to the USA as I recall who in turn are now selling them on to the French it appears.
Another missed opportunity.
LINK
Bollocks. EMALS is US developed and built
Hello Ron 5, the +100 gave you away plus the curt and rude replies you continue to make! Nothing changes apart from the name eh! 😂 As I said, “as I recall” it was a long time ago after all. “Cast your mind back a couple of years to the feverish discussion and fretting about which variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter the MoD would select to satisfy the Joint Combat Aircraft requirement, and the more recent changing of variant, there was some hope that the UK would be able to develop an electromagnetic launch system. The company developing the… Read more »
The UK developed its own Electromagnetic Launch system called EMKIT. This was a small test system used to launch UAV’s/Drones. Thousands of launches have been made from it. The UK was planning to make a larger version using the EMKIT technology called EMCAT (which is why the US system is called EMALS….we had already nicked the most obvious name…). EMKIT/EMCAT was QinetiQ and Converteam (who ended up GE owned, Converteam are exceptionally specialist they make the electrical engines for UK Submaries and Type 26…). GE were looking to close the UK operation, but the UK Government made it clear that… Read more »
👍Happy New Year!
Exactly and nothing like the bullshit story that @Nigel made up.
EMALS is 100% American.
Any update on the electromagnetic catapult and arrestor wire systems? I haven’t heard anything about that of late.
“A Request For Information (RFI) issued to the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) has revealed that the Royal Navy is seeking information on a potential electromagnetic catapult and arrestor wire systems that could be used to launch and recover ‘air vehicles’ from ‘a suitable ship’ by as soon as 2023.”
LINK
Thanks for all the links. EMALS has been around some time. Rollercoasters use it to launch the cars. But the concept goes back to the start of the last century.
https://coasterpedia.net/wiki/Linear_synchronous_motor
As for possible UK contenders
https://www.qinetiq.com/en/what-we-do/services-and-products/advanced-naval-control-systems
Thought I’d also share a couple of interesting reads on the F35.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davedeptula/2020/07/20/f-35-problem-child-or-on-track-for-success/
https://www.businessinsider.com/militaries-in-europe-are-buying-the-f35-fighter-jet-2022-2
Anything newer Expat, it says at the beginning “This article is more than 2 years old.” Is this all there is on the link? the first part I was aware of. A bit more on the subject here. “It was last December Finland announced it had chosen to buy 64 of the F-35 to replace the current fleet of F/A-18 Hornets. The first F-35s will arrive at Rovaniemi in 2026 and all 64, including those to be based further south in Finland, will be in operation by 2030.” Finland announced in December that it would buy the F-35, becoming the latest European… Read more »
Welcome to Nigels world. He simply has a child like hatred of the F35, and thinks he knows something about the aircraft that the Governments and Air Force’s around the world who are buying it don’t know. And sharing links is his little way of convincing himself he is right. He usually does a disappear act for a few months, hopefully his next break can’t come soon enough.
A Tempest Prototype won’t be flying for 2027/30. A Tempest technology demonstrator will hopefully be flying in that timeframe. Big difference between a demonstrator and a first Prototype. EAP was a technology demonstrator. First flight was August 86. The first Eurofighter Prototype DA1 (Development Aircraft) flew 8 years later.
No other combat aircraft intended for widespread use in large numbers has had such a long and troubled development. It is more than 21 years since LM won the JSF competition and yet the aircraft is still plagued with problems and unable to meet expected FOC targets. Time between critical failures is disturbingly low.Had we actually needed to use it in combat, we would have been in trouble. How much longer do we wait until the aircraft is truly fit for purpose and how much more of an overstretched budget should we spend to acquire it in sufficient numbers? There… Read more »
Some would point you to our own Typhoon. Playback it’s developed life cycle it’s not fantastic.
You also have to recognise F35 is the largest and most complex fighter project ever undertaken. The delays and cost overruns are nothing new compared to every fighter project before it. Its also born in the social media age with information must easier to get hold of. You won’t find many negative comments from the people at RAF Marham and Lakenheath that operate the jet. Yes British F35 delivers arw painfully slow, but the reasons for that have been discussed many times and other nations are receiving deliveries in good time. The USAF F35A build up at Lakenheath is going… Read more »
👍👍
👍🏻
Typhoon started as FEFA in 1983. It was 2008 before the RAF got its first (by now obsolete) aircraft. F-35 is way ahead of that schedule.
BAE could have delivered it long before that.
It was a political decision to slow development, go multinational and kick the can down the road….
Who says Typhoon is out of date?
The Russians have nothing that up-to-date?
People really don’t appreciate just how good Typhoon is….
It’s literally the second best A2A platform on earth after F-22 with quite a gap to position 3…
It was designed as an air superiority fighter with ground attack a secondary role.
So it shouldn’t be a massive surprise.
Now all the UK’s radar and EW know how and the Litening pod etc….
That’s very true and Tempest has a high bar to surpass.
He said the first Typhoon is now obsolete. Do you think differently?
Unmodified T1 Typhoon is obsolete.
The RAF think that too.
So ideally they want new build T3+ or to upgrade T1 to F3+ standards.
The only issue with upgrade is that just about everything is different! That includes holes in structurally critical members being in the wrong places.
Tranche 1 are still an exceptionally capable platform, albeit with limited A2G capability (Paveway II, IV and LaGS only with Litening III pod, so still quite a capability). There aren’t that many fighters that are better as A2A platforms. Ultimately its stilll got incredible performance, decent radar and a very good missile loadout. The only quibble with it remaining in service for another 15-20 years is that it needs a radar upgrade to stay in the top rank. It is possible to attach an AESA antenna on CAPTOR-M, its been tested and is available. It wouldn’t be as good as… Read more »
The RN and RAF would strongly disagree so who do you think believes the money would be better spent elsewhere ?
Given the gobbledegook spouted by senior military figures in imitation of blowhard politicians, I think their comments are often better ignored. Nor do I think any serving senior officer would dare give overly critical messages that might attract political anger and jeopardize their careers. The issue is not whether the F35 is no use, it clearly is. The issue for the UK, having made the risky decision to build 2supercarriers with the ability to operate just one type of combat jet, is how much more of scarce resources to devote to the programme. Damage to other capabilities has already been… Read more »
Peter, the SU57 started in 1999, that’s 23 years ago…. I think you will have to agree that the F35 has been a vastly superior success story….
Some positive news for Tempest! “The UK MoD FCAS director, Richard Berthon, told Airforce Technology that a single supersonic demonstrator aircraft will be manufactured for the 2027 first flight, although declined to comment which systems will be initially tested on the platform. “The flight itself is one milestone of many milestones,” Berthon said. Work in progress The design has also flown 100 hours digitally, testing key elements ahead of the start of platform manufacture, while the flight demonstrator platform was described by officials as being “low observable”. On 18 July engine manufacturers Rolls-Royce also presented details of Project Orpheus, a programme to… Read more »
And AESA Radar.
“This is the single biggest capability boost since the introduction of the Typhoon,” said Air Chief Marshal Mike Wigston, Chief of the Air Staff.
He said that one of the lessons already learned from the war in Ukraine is that electronic attack and defense is a fundamental requirement.
Wigston confirmed that the first radar trial set will fly next year, with conversion of the RAF’s entire fleet of Tranche 3 Typhoons by the end of the decade.
The Tranche 2 aircraft might follow, but will in any case receive the software update.”
LINK
Repeating the same comment doesn’t make it any more accurate. This is old & out of date.
What is supposed to be “old & out of date”: the comment on Typhoon upgrade or on the Tempest demonstrator? There was a £2.3bn contract signed for the former only six months ago so I hope it isn’t out of date already.
The one I replied to about the Tempest demonstrator schedule as it was in July. Now been overtaken by events. The same comment the idiot Nigel made earlier in the thread.
Here’s a more current one for you Ron 5
“Following the crash landing of an F-35B near Lockheed Martin’s LMT assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas two weeks ago, the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) has grounded a number of F-35s including foreign aircraft until at least January.
The latest grounding comes less than six months after the Air Force temporarily grounded its F-35A fleet this past summer.
The grounding comes as a number of behind-the-scenes issues face the F-35 from a decision on whether to fund an alternative advanced engine for upcoming improved Block 4 versions of the jet”
LINK
Back again Ron 5! It’s not quite 2023 yet here in the UK so not out of date 😂
You can do better than that surely RON 5
Happy New Year 😂
“Rolls-Royce Defence business has designed, built, and run an innovative small engine concept in under 18 months – a truly transformational project that will change how products and technologies are developed for the UK’s Future Combat Air Strategy (FCAS). Known as Orpheus, the first demonstrator engine concept, on display at Farnborough International Air Show (FIAS), has been developed using a completely agile approach – built nearly twice as fast as a conventional engine programme, with the second demonstrator within the family, already on test in Bristol, UK. Pioneered by a team of highly skilled engineers, manufacturers, and programme managers, the… Read more »
+100
This is a totally meaningless appropriation. It is an earmark given to the Connecticut Congressional delegation by Rosa DeLauro who is both Chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee and the dean of the Connecticut Congressional delegation. Pratt & Whitney is located in the outskirts of Hartford, Conn. DeLauro is one of the most partisan Democrats in the House and universally despised by House Republicans. DeLauro will lose her Chairmanship come January 3, 2023 and won’t have sufficient power or clout to get the House to appropriate sufficient funds to buy a case of girl scout cookies.
It’s all very nice announcing the engine needs a core upgrade. But what about answering the elephant in the room. Which is the blade cracking found predominantly on the F135-600 used in F35Bs. After a prolonged period of vertical take-offs and landings. Hairline cracks have been found in the intermediate and power turbine blades. Because so many have been failing there is a distinct lack of serviceable engines. As there is a backlog waiting for replacement parts. Pratt & Whitney were incorporating new blades as part of a general power upgrade, that they’ve brought forward. The power upgrade was part… Read more »
As I mentioned in my link above. An updated July 2022 report (GAO-22-104678) stated that the “number of power modules needing repair was largely due to coating distress of the high-pressure turbine blades. F-35 aircraft operations in dusty or sandy environments, as well as the higher running temperatures, have caused accelerated coating distress on the blades.” The report further stated Annual engine sustainment costs, a portion of total sustainment costs, have increased from $79 million in fiscal year 2016 to $315 million in fiscal year 2020…. By fiscal year 2028, maintenance costs for the F-35 aircraft engine are projected to… Read more »
So is that any different to RR trent blade issues. As with RR PW should be picking up the tab.
Yes, that’s the summary. The protective coated was flaking off, leaving the blade exposed. Where extended high temperature running when doing VTOL has produced hairline micro fractures, that then merged and formed a crack. When the engine goes for maintenance, the blade discs would be taken off the shaft for inspection. The blades are then checked using non-destructive testing. If one blade shows flaking, it will be removed and replaced. However, the remaining blades will then need the surface coating more thoroughly inspected. As their coating’s condition cannot be guaranteed. This then leaves P&W two routes. It can replace the… Read more »
So BAU. Problem encountered, solution developed, solution fitted to aircraft.
So why all the crocodile tears?
Time unfortunately.
Another issue that could be (relatively) readily resolved, if Operations and (Maintenance!) budgets would be adequately funded! Will this ever occur? Oh, hell no, we’re too busy burnishing our cost metrics! Penny wise, pound foolish…morons…😳🙄
I’m no fan of PW but these issue are not uncommon Trent engines have had blade issues and a colleague of mine in civil aviation was telling me how badly Honeywell APUs perform. .PW geared TF had or still has issues.
Off topic, but I saw an article in the Times about PWLS spending more time in dock than at sea… as though that is a shameful or surprising thing? This is the problem of non-defence experts reporting about defence matters; they give the population an incorrect impression. Thank you, George, for often countering this.
Isn’t that just a function of the Times trying to hijack Daily Wail readers?
Yesterday they were wittering on about £40k cost of extra taxes on middle class incomes, when it turns out to be over 10 years and for households with two 60k earners – a sample from the top 2-3% of the profile. Which sounds to me exactly the place the extra recovery costs for Covid etc need to fall.
I suspect that was the income range of the journalist in question. I think the real problem is at the bottom. I am no fan of Ian Duncan Smith, but I do admire his efforts in making work attractive for the low paid. I fear that is now being undone by freezing the lower tax threshold at £12571 until 2026. Putting it up by inflation would be around £1250. I realise the Treasury would not go for that, but even a £425 rise, to just under £13000, would help low earners stay in work, rather than live on benefits.
Even the BBC fail to give defence the recognition it deserves. No website page and one coresspondent seemingly coming under diplomacy (Mark Urban). It is when diplomacy fails that 2% of our GDP comes into it’s own and it would be useful if the British public knew a little bit about it. I know the BBC is short of cash but I was led to believe that the BBC was paid for by us to keep us in the know in all areas.
Even BBC?! BBC is against military.
I don’t think BBC is anti military – I think it simply ignores it. When it is mentioned, it is the Government it is attacking, on it’s ‘holding the Government to account’ agenda, The BBC seems to have completely forgotten it’s public service broadcasting role which should be keeping the public informed (in an unbiased way) on a range of subjects including the military. In my view the BBC is shooting itself in the foot as it is now just another news outlet.
Spot on. Time in maintenance and even dry dock happens. Its what Operational Capability (OC) the vessel retains and its Notice for Sea that counts but click bait headlines don’t get that. A ship in a 4 week FTSP alongside the wall is usually at 48 hrs notice for sea. i.e given 48hrs notice it is expected to be able to sail and conduct operations. Its OC determines what operations it can conduct. OC is a live list of the state of all of the ships systems and crew. It details defects, crew shortages, training shortfalls, system clearance for use… Read more »
Thanks, Gunbuster. I was aware that ships spent over half their time alongside but I didn’t really know what their notice for sea was. I guess that a ship with defects or faults will be deployed or not depending on the level of the emergency, if it is routine maintenance. If it is for a key component that has gone wrong or failed, I assume it is impossible to deploy the ship?
Theoretically, even a vessel in dry dock should be assigned an OC rating and Notice for Sea? Has the RN ever realistically tested this on a major vessel, since, perhaps WW II? Even if maintenance crew bought into premise, and was fully briefed and prepared, would inevitably be burdensome. Could provide very useful data though…🤔
At least in antiquity (😁), when USAF aircraft departed for depot level maintenance, never knew or heard of an exercise to operationally regenerate before completion. Could prove to be very interesting…
I believe the build up to sending the Task Force south in 1982 would have been the biggest post war regeneration. I know the RAF did something similar for both Gulf Wars and the kick off for Afghan. Certain twin rotary aircraft had their maintenance periods extended (ie delayed to the next big scheduled servicing). This was to make sure there were enough airframes but also to make sure there was a large enough operational window before they needed work doing to them. It was the same for some Tornados. So I wouldn’t be surprised if the Hercs, C17s etc… Read more »
Excellent points. Actually forgot about Falklands conflict. Must have been a very interesting, and sporting, pre-deployment period w/in HM RNMBs, but was in fact, now 40 yrs. ago. Believe it would be a very informative exercise, once every decade or two. Especially as an outside pontificator, w/ no maintenance or ops. responsibilities…😉
Sporting?? Tell that to the Welsh Guards.
Yes, even in dry dock and emergency regeneration plan exists.
Sometimes this means that not all bits are stripped concurrently and it extends dry docking periods.
Never considered that emergency regeneration considerations could affect sequencing and schedule of activities in drydock…it pays to have some bloke down at the Admiralty contemplate these matters ..🤔
The UK folks seem very concerned about this when basically none of their bespoke weapons are relevant on this aircraft and you only have 29 pilots can fly the damn thing. Look within….
Not sure where you’re from, but I’ll guess it’s the US. The Yanks have a shortage of pilots too, if you might read about that.
To be fair, I do think the UK should buy a small stock of 1000 lb JDAM, as an interim heavy weapon for RAF/FAA F-35B.
Not needed. Paveway 4 is a superior weapon and provides 80% of the bang of its bigger 1000lb brother due to cleaver fusing options and being very very accurate. It can also hit moving targets. It can also be re-targeted in flight.
A 1000 lb bomb is always going to be a bigger bang than a 500 lb bomb.
Not when the the Paveway 4 gives you 80% of the bang because it is more accurate and has very advanced fusing options. And you can carry more of them under the wing. The RAF have stopped using 1000lb Paveway 2’s for very good reason. Have a little faith in the experts. The RAF has over 30 years of experience of dropping precision guided munitions in operational theatre’s.
So the UK has spent many billions on QE/PoW & the F-35B, yet the heaviest weapon we can drop on an enemy, for all that spending, is a 500 lb Paveway IV. Frankly we would have been better off not building the carriers or the F-35B, but buying 500+ Tomahawk cruise missiles instead.
Kinda missing the point John. Enhanced Paveway 4 is a very capable weapon, extremely accurate, and can hit moving targets in all weathers and at night, It can be re-targeted in flight, and the warhead can be dialed down for a smaller bang when collateral damage needs to be minimised. More weapons will come to F35B. Meateor, SPEAR 3, SPEAR EW and the future StormShadow replacement. I would certainly agree a larger TLAM stockpile would be useful, but it can only do one job. A carrier and it’s airwing can undertake a vast array of operational roles. From peace keeping,… Read more »
Except they can’t. At least not yet. Look, I am a carrier fan boy, but you either “go big or go home”. The UK has spent £4 billion approx on the carriers + another £4 billion+ on F-35B, yet can only manage to put a 500 lb Paveway IV on an enemy who is not too far inland. QE/PoW could be great assets, but they need the properly armed escorts + support ships. F-35B needs drop tanks, a heavy stand off weapon (SLAM-ER, Storm Shadow, JASSM-ER), an anti ship missile (JSM/NSM/LRASM). Also a few CMV-22B for ship to shore connection.… Read more »
It can’t carry a Ten Ton Tess either, 😀
Seriously though, what mission do you think a 1,000 JDAM can do that a Paveway IV cant.
I would argue there is a marginal Mission requirement for Paveway III heavy bunker buster but then no version of F35 can carry that internally.
FC/ASW will replace StormShadow and will be integrated onto T26 and maybe other escorts. T45 is also being upgraded with CAMM to take its missile loadout to 74. Spear 3 will have an anti ship capability, 8 can be carried internally on F35B. Sea Venom, Sea Viper are all world class weapon systems. I’d look up the capabilities of Paveway 4, then you will understand why we don’t use 1000lb anymore. MV22 is a none starter, drones are the future for logistics and AEW and Strike. Now most of this is a few years away but other then the Americans,… Read more »
For £11+ billion, there is very little bang for the buck. Either fund a capability properly, or have a capability holiday, cross your fingers & save the money.
Well you can look at it that way, or look at the fact we had nothing for 10 years, and QE class and F35B are a million miles from the Invincible class and Harrier GR7/9. And both QE class and F35 are at the start of their development cycle with much more to come. Bringing into service a 5th gen fighter and brand new aircraft carriers of the size and capability of QE requires a monumental effort from the services and industry. I wish more could be in service sooner, but the budget only goes so far. We also have… Read more »
The USA likes JDAM as it has a large stockpile of 1000lbs bombs ready for tails to be fitted. Pave way 4 fits the uk nicely. It’s a clever weapon that can give the same damage as 1000lbs bomb if needed. Hell it can penetrate like a 2000lbs pave way 3. For those targets that require something else storm shadow with its broach warhead does the job. At the other end is brimstone. So when u take those 3 together they can do most if not all tasks.
In my opinion, the best $30K/copy investment by DoD, ever. Hell, that is the all inclusive price (including iron bomb, fuze and proximity sensor). Truly, where is anyone going to get a deal like that in 2023?!!? Believe 430,000 kits produced by Feb 2020.
Hard to believe that DOD can even write a number as small as $30k
Probably thought they were buying toilet seat covers of something 😀
If the uk needs a 1000lbs bomb it’s the obvious choice.
Very well put.
Horses for courses.
This is true…. But Paveway IV is £75k per munition JDAM 1,000lb is c£25k… One lesson from Ukraine is that stockpile depth really matters. It seems we need to relearn this lesson every decade….We could buy 1,000 JDAM for under £50m. It’s already integrated on F-35 and Typhoon (by the Germans). That would be a big increase to the UK’s weapon holdings for a comparatively small outlay. Just as a supplement to PWIV. At present we have reasonable numbers, certainly in comparison to our European neighbours, of exquisite precision guided munitions. All of which are very accurate but also with… Read more »
Good post mate. I don’t think the small number of different types of smart weapons is to much of a problem as PWIV and Brimstone 2 will cover pretty much every type of target we need to engage when it comes to close air support or longer range interdiction. And i guess the argument is if its accurate, then you don’t need to drop as many to take out the threat. StormShadow provides the longer range heavy hitting weapon when needed. SPEAR 3 and SPEAR EW will provide even more option’s along with SEAD/DEAD capability along with the F35s APG-81… Read more »
OK, been pondering this and am going to bite–why only 50 JSM on the wish list? Strictly a cost consideration? Calculation based on Mad Vlad’s remaining surface inventory? 😁
In the last 50 years we’ve fielded 7 types of heavy anti-ship missiles across the military. Martel, ship launched Exocet, ground launched Exocet (couple of trailer based launchers at Gibraltar), ship launched Harpoon, sub-launched Harpoon, air launched Harpoon and Sea Eagle. To date we’ve fired 0 in combat. And the truth is we’ve not even come close to having a chance to… We have managed to fire a lot of Sea Skua from Lynx however, but we’ve got replacement of that covered with Sea Venom. The likelihood of the UK being in a shooting war with anyone with ships to… Read more »
Interesting, did not remember plan for JSM integration on P-8 or a submarine torpedo launch capability. Would increase military utility as well as commercial viability. 🤔
BTW, would not be surprised if SSN(R) ultimately equipped w/ (limited) VLS. No hard evidence, though tantalizing hints dropped in recurring AUKUS pronouncements.
P-8 integration is a little odd. Lots of noise around it in 2015ish, particularly from the Australian’s. The Norwegian’s who make JSM also operate F-35 and P-8 so you’d expect them to want to ‘fly the flag’ and open up another market for it. But its all gone a little quiet since then. Australian’s have also ordered LRASM in the meantime, which is now being planned for integration on P-8 in 2027 (and F-35), but there is no indication that they’re not still interersted in JSM. Ultimately I expect it to happen at some point as there are multiple countries… Read more »
At this point, JSM integration on P-8 may occur more rapidly than on F-35. JPO is proving remarkably resistant to ‘suggestions’ for incorporation of additional requirements w/in rubric of Block 4 mods, until victory can be demonstrated, or, at least claimed. 🤔😳
Believe P-8 is relatively stable on a development path and does not entail nearly the same degree of cost, schedule and technical risk. Perhaps a viable, shared-cost, integration and test plan could be presented to the relevant allied user’s group.
This assessment, of course, loses validity if a relevant conflict occurs in the interim.
If RN absolutely, positively need to make an XXXL sized crater, please call (1-800-BOMBS-R-US). Reasonably certain Pentagon/USAF would be willing to oblige w/ a MOAB ASAP. 😉
Imagine what a modern Paveway guidance kit could do for a Tallboy or Grandslam? I wonder if you could lob one out of the back of a Herc or A400M?
Interesting thought experiment. Yup, of course someone may have to find a couple at the bottom of a munitions storage bunker. Both were supposedly taken out of service post-war, but willing to believe someone squirreled away a small number for ‘testing’ and ‘R&D.’ 😉
Willing to wager Wallis’ designs are preserved in some file (the warehouse in Raiders of the Lost Ark immediately comes to mind).
.Didn’t”t realize Tallboys we’re responsible for dispatching Tirpitz. Did Grandslams actually penetrate the sub pens?
Didn’t…🙄
Not vaguely true.
There are bombs and there are bombs.
Your sentence only makes sense in WW2 munitions context.
He is just a sad troll, he likes to whine and moan and be generally anti UK, as Mrs Esteban had a liking for Brit Squaddies.
He’s Portuguese 👍
Ah that ginormous country on the world stage….ahhhhhhh
Nevertheless, our oldest allies.
That’s the one 😄
I love this site, it gives the more simple and weak minded a chance to pretend they have a relevant opinion while having zero subject matter experience, hence Esteban. How about I upload a picture of my passport, you can look and dream eh?
🤣😂😁👍
I had two. Enough said!
Greedy!!!
Necessity. It would have been nice to have gone to some nice places, at least just once!
😉👍
Damn, just saw Sean”s comment. Sorry all.
I hear you there 👍
😆👍🏻
“If the services and our allies want Block 4 enabled F-35s before the end of the decade, the engine needs a core upgrade.”
Why wasn’t the ‘upgraded core’ put into the aircraft in the first place?
Ohhh right… to keep a continuous cash flow to the prats at whitney, I get it now.
Same as all the other defence contractors, keep improvements to yourselves, and keep the money coming by promising new ‘updates.’
FFS 🤦🏻♂️
Exactly, you know who started all this nonsense, it’s was that vickers supermarine lot. Why did the mk 1 spitfire not come with a two stage super charged Griffon engine , laminar flow wings, 20 mm Hispano cannons and drop tanks. Total waste of money making 24 mks.
So for all the posturing and grand claims of superior aircraft, there now has to be major engine enhancements made at an enormous cost to the taxpayer. Instead of buying a sophisticated aircraft such as the Typhoon we plump again for American rubbish, because of our “special relationship”, the enthusiasm for fat backhanders. The F15, now famous, or rather infamous for its inability to go into battle during thunderstorms, has joined the list of other US junk, with problems like the inability to land or aircraft carriers! I do hope our country’s leaders believe the brown envelopes were worth it,… Read more »
F-35s Grounded Again Following Ft. Worth Crash “The F-35 Joint Program Office has grounded a portion of the fleet following a mishap that occurred at Forth Worth on December 15. This is the second grounding action for the F-35 inventory this year.” A more in-depth look at the crash can be seen via this LINK Smoke can be seen coming from the engine. As mentioned in this video. F-35 Joint Strike Fighter:Cost Growth and Schedule Delays ContinueGAO-22-105943 Published: Apr 27, 2022. Publicly Released: Apr 27, 2022. “Operational testing of the F-35 continues to be delayed—primarily by holdups in developing an… Read more »
“Following the crash landing of an F-35B near Lockheed Martin’s LMT assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas two weeks ago, the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) has grounded a number of F-35s including foreign aircraft until at least January.
The latest grounding comes less than six months after the Air Force temporarily grounded its F-35A fleet this past summer.”
LINK
F-35 production decision won’t come until end of fiscal 2023 — at least “In a roundtable with reporters Tuesday, Lt. Gen. Eric Fick, the program executive officer for the F-35 Joint Program Office, said the F-35′s critical Joint Simulation Environment testing, which has to happen before the aircraft’s initial operational test and evaluation phase can be closed, is now expected to take place in early spring or summer 2023. Before a milestone C decision can be reached on full-rate production for the F-35, the results of these simulation tests must be validated and used to help create a report necessary… Read more »
At first glance I wondered when Brighton and Hove Albion FC entered the jet engine market…… #shouldhavegonetospecsavers
In a somewhat related vein, has anyone read a more detailed account of the preliminary NASC investigation of the Dec. 15th Class A mishap at NASJRB, FW TX, than the presumed failure of a high pressure fuel line? In a heavy, generally observed this type of event being taken in stride as an almost non-event; however in a single engine a/c, presume it might tend to increase the pucker factor rather significantly…,🤔😳