This is a Lockheed Martin F-35A, the most expensive weapons system ever made. They cost $108,000,000 each, and we have on order 1,763. That would be...umm...carry the 4...somewhere north of $190 BILLION dollars worth of taxpayer money. Also pictured are all of the various munitions it is capable of carrying.
But when the proud Pentagon put out this photo it forgot to mention a couple of things. Understand, this is a stealthy aircraft, meaning it is extremely difficult to see on radar due to its various shapes and special coatings. But see all those bombs and missiles hanging off the wings? They are NOT stealthy. Flying like that, any stealth advantage the plane might have had on paper just vanished. Now it will show up on radar like a Greyhound bus riding in the lane next to you on the freeway.
Only 17% of its potential payload can be carried internally, thus preserving the F-35's stealth. DUH!
Now don't get me wrong. What with all the threats facing us these days, I'm all for a strong national defense. But does this thing make sense? Am I missing something?
Oh, and they don't work very well. They've proven to be broken more often than flying. Just thought you should know. :)
S
Perhaps they should delay the order until they tweak a few things.
ReplyDeleteOr cancel it.
DeleteMost of our current air power relies on designs from the 70s and earlier so obviously we need something though this might not be it. But gee don't they work real well in movies like Man of Steel and Die Hard 4?
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't sound like this was thought through, but I bet a few contractors made a lot of money off this deal.
ReplyDeleteAnd someone in the House and/or Senate who represents the place the plant to manufacture them, has secured his next election, which was the whole purpose.
ReplyDeleteWonder how much the lobbyist for the defense contractors made...
ReplyDeleteThis is a boondoggle that needs to be shut down.
ReplyDeleteThis is the engineers working for the military building toys. And we have to pay for them.
ReplyDelete