F-35 Lightning II : News & Discussions

F-35A Ready for Action in the Pacific if Necessary, SecAF Says
Military.com // August 28, 2017


The F-35A Joint Strike Fighter is ready and poised to go to the Pacific — or any theater, for that matter — should tensions escalate with North Korea, the Air Force‘s top civilian said Friday.




“We now just passed 100,000 flying hours with the F-35, and it is doing very well and in any contingency, if there were a problem, they’re ready to go — ready to go to combat,” Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson told reporters during a briefing at the Pentagon.

While she didn’t speak to potential overseas rotation schedules for the Air Force’s version of the stealthy fifth-generation fighter, she said “everything is on track” for identifying more stateside bases to house more of the aircraft rolling off Lockheed Martin Corp.’s production line.

The secretary’s comments come at a time when North Korea continues to threaten and challenge the U.S. Both President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary James Mattis recently indicated they’d be willing to respond with military force should North Korea launched any missile at Guam, where the U.S. maintains air and naval bases.

Earlier this month, North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un threatened to launch a salvo of four missiles that would splash down in waters within 25 miles of the U.S. territory of Guam. U.S. President Donald Trump responded with a Tweet that said the country is “locked and loaded” for a conflict with North Korea.

The U.S. military has since repeatedly sent B-1B supersonic bombers and South Korean fighter jets in a show of force near the demilitarized zone. Meanwhile, the Air Force’s F-35A has yet to make its debut in the Pacific theater. (The Marine Corps this year deployed a squadron of F-35Bs to Iwakuni, Japan.)

In April, the Air Force dispatched a handful of F-35As overseas to Europe for several weeks in the aircraft’s first training deployment to the continent.

In recent months, service officials said they plan to rotate a “theater security package” of F-35As to the Asia-Pacific region. Such a rotation includes forward-deployed aircraft and units that conduct missions across the continent over six months to reassure allies.

Read the full article from Military.com.

 

F-35 Pilots From UK and Europe Begin Coalition Interoperability Trials
BAE Systems // September 18, 2017


For the first time, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force pilots have teamed up with fellow F-35 pilots from Italy and the Netherlands to take part in the latest interoperability trials that see coalition forces flying F-35s in a simulated mission scenario with other UK military platforms across land, sea and air.




The trial is part of a series of simulation exercises that links together facilities from multiple locations across the UK and creates a common synthetic environment that can evaluate F-35 interoperability with other UK platforms.

The pilots flew the F-35 aircraft from desktop simulators - supplied by Lockheed Martin - at BAE Systems’ site in Samlesbury. Linking into the live scenario, a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) identified nearby ground threats from a hilltop position and requested close air support (CAS) for coalition troops under fire.

This request was coordinated through a simulated Air Support Operations Centre (ASOC), and passed to two Royal Navy Sea King aircrew who provided command and control directions to the F-35 pilots. As they approached the target area the pilots checked in with the JTAC using the Variable Message Format (VMF) datalink and then proceeded to prosecute their assigned Digitally Aided Close Air Support (DACAS) missions.

Tony Hall, F-35 Programme Manager for the interoperability trials at BAE Systems said: “It’s been great to welcome F-35 pilots from other nations to our facilities for the first time. Giving them a taster of the complex missions we can conduct in a synthetic environment and the interoperability challenges they may face has been very useful.”

“For many, it was their first experience of digitally aided CAS using the F-35’s VMF datalink, and it proved very valuable. It’s a great example of collaboration across the programme and we are already looking forward to welcoming these pilots and those of other F-35 Partner nations back for further trials.”

This latest trial took advantage of recent investments in the simulation facility which enabled the F-35 pilots to experience the helmet mounted displays (HMD) used during flight.

Further facility improvements include a new mission control room to command the exercise, a mission planning room for aircrew and operations support staff, and a large briefing/observation room where the scenario and missions can be viewed live and operators can link up via video conference to the other trial participants at the various locations to conduct a debrief.

The aim of the overall trials programme is to progressively evaluate the interoperability of UK and Coalition Partners’ F-35s with other military platforms including: Command and Control (C2) platforms; Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platforms; and Combat assets, with the goal of identifying issues, fixing and re-testing them ahead of Initial Operating Capability (IOC).

Tony Hall added: “We are working towards establishing an IOC interoperability baseline for the UK and F-35 Partner nations and helping them develop a Coalition Concept of Operations (CONOPS) and common tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs)”.

BAE Systems is responsible for leading F-35 carrier integration activities on behalf of the UK customer.A further trial is scheduled later in the year which will concentrate on the interoperability between the F-35 and Italian naval and airborne platforms and will link simulation facilities from multiple UK and Italian locations.

 

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• 
  F-35B Hot Loads With AIM-120’s
  MCAS Yuma, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing // September 25, 2017
  The exercise was a validation/verification conducted during Weapons and Tactics Instructors course 1-18. WTI is an exercise that takes service members from all over the world in a joint training exercise for mission readiness. WTI is hosted by Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron one.
• F-35 Lightning II Update at ASC17
  Defense & Aerospace Report // September 19, 2017
  Jeff Babione, executive vice president and general manager for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II program, shares a program update with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian during a Sept. 19, 2017, interview at the Air Force Association’s 2017 Air, Space & Cyber conference and trade show.
• 
  F-35 Pilots From UK and Europe Begin Coalition Interoperability Trials
  BAE Systems // September 18, 2017
  Royal Navy and Royal Air Force pilots teamed up with fellow F-35 pilots from Italy and the Netherlands to take part in the latest interoperability trials that see coalition forces flying F-35s in a simulated mission scenario with other UK military platforms across land, sea and air.
• 
  VMFA-121 Helps Prepare JASDF for F-35A
  Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan // September 14, 2017
  Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 hosted members of Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s Third Air Wing for an educational tour and class centered around the F-35A Lightning II at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Sept. 13, 2017.
  
  
• 
  Fleet Readiness Center Southeast Hits Bull’s Eye with Work on F-35 Targeting System
  Fleet Readiness Center Southeast // September 13, 2017
  Fleet Readiness Center Southeast became the first military depot to establish the capability to repair the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s advanced electro-optical targeting system, known as EOTS, Aug. 30.
• 
  The F-35 Lightning II Integrated Test Force
  UK Ministry of Defence // September 13, 2017
  With the F-35B, the whole experience is much more controlled and predictable with the majority of the launch autonomous, allowing the pilot to focus on the mission ahead rather than being distracted by the launch.”
• 
  Lincoln Tests F-35C Lightning II at Sea
  U.S. Navy // September 12, 2017
  The F-35C will introduce next generation strike-fighter aircraft capabilities to the Navy Carrier Air Wings, enabling the Carrier Strike Groups and numbered fleets to effectively engage and survive a wide range of rapidly evolving threats.
• 
  Air Force’s Sweet New Football Helmets Look Like F-35 Pilot Headgear
  SBNation // September 04, 2017
  The service academies are at it again.
• 
  Labor Day: Dedicated to American Ingenuity and Plain Hard Work
  Fort Worth Star Telegram // September 03, 2017
  It literally takes your breath away when you see a F-35 in the sky over Fort Worth
• 

 

Why don't using this plane to show your force near the N.Korean border this week end?

 

Why are you in a hurry to start a nuclear war?

 

Using a F15 or a F35 doesn't change anything.

Why USA loose the occasion to show it's latest toy?

 

http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/news/a28034/b-1-f-35-north-korea/

i mean they have already flew the f-35 to korea as a show of force.

http://static3.businessinsider.com/...008b7b62-1600/f-35-b-1-north-korea-japan-.jpg

 

US has a lot of toys.

A Lot Of BONEs

Posted 9/26/2017
Twelve U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base (AFB), S.D. and the 9th EBS deployed from Dyess AFB Texas, line the airfield at Andersen AFB, Guam, July 31, 2017. The aircraft are deployed in support of U.S. Pacific Command’s Continuous Bomber Presence operations. These aircraft, and the men and women who fly and support them, provide a significant capability that enables our readiness and commitment to deterrence, provides assurances to our allies, and strengthens regional security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (

 

Yes but north Korea could send a nuclear weapon to Andersen AFB, Guam.

 

The US Department of Defense is considering a change in direction with their fleet of F-35s, in which more than 100 fighters would be retired from combat rather than upgraded with a new software configuration.

Of the 1,763 F-35s intended to enter service with the US Air Force, 108 are in need of a software upgrade from Block 2B platform to the combat-ready Block 3F. This configuration change would be time-consuming and expensive, with 150 modifications needed in every aircraft to bring them up to standards.

It might be cheaper to simply take the older F-35s in need of upgrades and use them for testing or training purposes instead. The USAF is currently conducting a business case analysis to determine which option is better for the budget.

"What you're going to see is us continue to do a business case analysis of the cost to retrofit the older aircraft as we go forward. This is not a big dialogue," said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein on September 19, downplaying the significance of the consideration. "We have actually had this dialogue with the F-16, we had this dialogue with the F-15, we had this dialogue with the F-22. We just haven't had it for a while."

In the case of the F-22, three dozen fighters were retired when it came time to upgrade, with the USAF opting to use them for training instead. The US Marine Corps and Navy also operate F-35s, and Goldfein says that he will be discussing how best to move forward with his counterparts in those branches.

The 2018 Defense Authorization Bill calls for the purchase of 440 F-35s, a deal expected to be valued between $35 billion and $40 billion. The Pentagon, however, claims that the program continues to mount in cost.

The ever-controversial F-35 has become infamous for its high price tag and numerous design flaws, including a faulty ejector seat. The plane is so expensive that Lockheed Martin has been awarded $200 million in contracts to attempt to halve the aircraft's cost.

It has also long been rumored that the F-35 costs too much to continuously modernize. A 2015 Pentagon report from an independent weapons tester found that the plane's "modifications may be unaffordable for the services as they consider the cost of upgrading these early lots of aircraft while the program continues to increase production rates in a fiscally constrained environment."

"This may potentially result in left-behind aircraft with significant limitations for years to come."

After a quarter century of development, the F-35 has yet to see combat even once. Full production is intended to start in 2018.

https://sputniknews.com/military/201709261057691172-pentagon-considering-retiring-f35-early/

 

no one seems anxious to take on F22 and F35s. Spud does not seem the most reliable source.

 

But we can send a 1000 nuclear bombs to North Korea.

 

China will appreciate