F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: NATO's new F-16?

The F-35, much has been written about it. Some like Pierre Sprey think that it's a really bad aircraft. Others are more positive about it.

The Joint Strike Fighter is developed by Lockheed-Martin. It is intended to become the main aircraft of the USA and many partner nations. The US Airforce will get the F-35A, the US Navy will receive the F-35C for its carriers and the Marines will receive the F-35B STOVL version.

The UK and Italy have ordered both the F-35B for their carriers and the F-35A. Customers for the F-35A include the Netherlands and Norway.

The F-35 is meant to be a cheaper, single-engine complement to the larger F-22. It is also a multinational programme, involving several NATO-countries from the start (but not Belgium)

Does this make you think about the F-16?

The F-35 has some similarities. The USAF operates the smaller F-16 next to the bigger F-15. The F-16 is a very popular aircraft within NATO and beyond. There is one big difference...

The F-16 was mostly designed with sales to the smaller European airforces in mind. The USAF at the time was focused on the F-15. Eventually the F-16 proved popular with the USAF as well.
The F-35 was first and foremost designed for the three service branches of the USA mentioned earlier with sales to other countries coming second.

The F-16 was a suitable plane for the European countries that turned out to be useful for the USA as well. The F-35 was built for the USA. The question now is: "Is it also suitable for the Belgian Air Component?"

Air-to-ground mission

This is where the F-35 feels at home. The F-22 Raptor is the baddest fighter in town but when it comes to air-to-ground, not so much. No worries that's what the F-35 is for. The JSF has four internal pylons in its weapons bay for 2 A2A missiles and 2 bombs with a weigth of 1360kg (3000 lbs). It is most stealthy when operating like this. Alternatively it can carry 6800kg (15000lbs) of extra ordnance on six external pylons. The combined payload is 8160kg (18000lbs). It will be able to carry the commonly used Paveway GBU and JDAM precision guided bombs. The F-35 will have good targeting equipment. 

The F-35 is a stealth aircraft with a reduced radar cross section. Its shape and the use special composite material make it less visible to the most common radar systems. It is important to note that hanging extra ordnance under the wings makes it les stealthy. The F-35 will have advanced sensors including: AESA radar,  IRST system and DAS (digital apeture system). The input from all these sensors will be combined and presented to the pilot on his helmet mounted sight system. The aircraft will also have a radar warning receiver and common countermeasures like flares and chaff. The intent is to give the pilot exceptional situational awareness and to make the aircraft very resistant to SAM systems.

Overall the F-35 has good A2G capabilities.

Air-to-air mission

Can the F-35 take on enemy figther jets? The F-35 is not extremely maneuverable. It was designed to match the capabilities of the F-16. Many new jets like the F-22, the Eurocanards and Russian Sukhoi's are supermaneuverable. They exceed the capabilities of older 4th generation aircraft. 

When it comes to speed, the F-35 has a top speed of Mach 1.6. It can reach a maximum altitude of 15km (45000ft). When it comes to pure flight characteristics the F-35 matches 4th generation aircraft like the F-16 but not much more. So in WVR combat it will be at a disadvantage compared to 4+ generation fighters.

Can't the F-35 fight at BVR range instead? Yes it can, but the F-35 still uses the same AIM-120 AMRAAM radar guided missile. It can also carry the improved AIM-9X Sidewinder infrared missile, but not internally. The F-35 will most likely get the first shot off because of its low observability but launching a missile doesn't equal a guaranteed kill. Generally speaking a missile lauched at a long range had a lower kill probability than a missile launched at closer ranges. Most aircraft can detect incoming radar guided missiles and can deploy countermeasures. Did I mention that there is only room for four missiles in the internal bay? 

The F-35 could carry more missiles under the wings but this reduces its stealth. Alternatively the pilot could get closer before firing. But radar is not the only way of detecting targets. Many new aircraft come with an Infrared Search and Track System. This system looks for heat sources like engines or heat caused by friction. Stealth planes can get detected by IRST systems if they get close enough (sources differ but a detection range of 30+ km is often mentioned). Fighters with a good IRST system and modern IR missiles will be tough opponents.

The F-35 is not the greatest air superiority fighter. It can defend itself or it could try to avoid opponents using its stealth but you will have a tough time sweeping the skies clear with it.

Cost and ease of maintenance

It is always difficult to get accurate figures for the cost of aircraft. When buying aircraft you pay for the plane itself but also for the development costs. Once you have it, you will be confronted with operating costs. The idea of the JSF was to have one aircraft for the US Airforce, Navy and Marines + partner countries to save costs. However the US Navy wanted a version for their carriers and the Marines wanted a STOVL (short take-off and landing) version for their amphibious ships.

Aircraft on carriers usually have folding wings, a tougher body, stronger landing gear and provisions for the catapult and the arresting cable. Converting a normal plane for use on carriers can be done. The STOVL version is a whole different thing. Taking off vertically sounds as difficult as it is. Many of the problems and cost-overruns of the F-35 were associated with the F-35B. Building an advanced stealth aircraft that also needs to be STOVL is hard to do and expensive. Plus the F-35 is still under development. A lot of software and many systems still have to be integrated.

The unit flyaway cost for the F-35A is about 188 million USD (170 million euro).
The operating cost for the F-35A is about 21000 USD/flight hour. Although some report it as high as 31000 USD/flight hour.

It is difficult to get good figures on the actual cost of the F-35A. I have seen the price tag of 98 millions USD for Low Rate Initial Production lot 7, EXCLUDING the cost for the engine (and perhaps some other stuff.) source
I have also read about a unit flyaway cost of 129 million USD for the F-35 (airframe 74.41 million, engine 13.75 million, avionics 22.14 million, other 18.76 million USD). source

The acquisition cost may go down but everyone seems to agree that the F-35 JSF is a very expensive aircraft to operate. It is also a complicated machine and Lockheed Martin likes to keep much of its software and technology to itself. I am not sure if countries will be able to operate this aircraft without a lot of assistance by Lockheed Martin.

The F-35 will be equipped with a sophisticated logistical system called ALIS. There have been many problem with this system. There are also grave concerns that ALIS may make the aircraft vulnerable to cyber warfare. The operating costs of the F-35 could turn out to be very high. Maintenance could be extremely difficult as well. It's hard to tell because a lot of systems still don't work properly. It's a big gamble.

More here: f-35-analysis

Cooperation

The F-35 will become the main US fighter. Several European countries will acquire it as well. Belgium often cooperates with the Netherlands and the Dutch Airforce has already ordered the F-35 JSF. So when it comes to cooperation, the F-35 is a good choice.

Suitable for Belgium?

The F-35 is a good aircraft for air-to-ground purposes and several other European countries will get it. That could make it a good choice for Belgium

It is not the greatest at air-to-air combat at it is very expensive to buy and operate. It is also a complicated machine. Out of 34 aircraft, only 20 may be flying at any given time.

The most interesting and unique version is the STOVL F-35. This is great for the UK and Italy who wan't to operate it from their carriers but it is irrelevant for Belgium.

Overall the F-35 is nice if you need a STOVL plane or for SEAD missions against very extensive air defense systems. Its biggest drawback is its very small payload in stealth mode. With 2 A2A missiles and 2 bombs, you will need to make a lot of bomb runs to have an effect. I suspect that in 90% of the situations it will be smarter to use the F-35 with a full load of external stores.

This makes me wonder if the remaining 10% justify its cost and compromises. It is a good idea for larger airforces to have both stealth and conventional aircraft but smaller countries like Belgium need to make a choice. It is a good thing that some European countries will acquire it but it seems the wrong aircraft for Belgium.