If ours is so good and theirs is so bad, Why is it so good for them and so bad for us?
Articles about the problems and shortcomings of the F-35 are no longer perceived as they used to be. Instead of schadenfreude - only dry irritation with the progress of work on the creation of domestic fifth generation fighters.
The Russian reader is smart. He perfectly sees the contradiction between the stories about the "poorly flying" F-35s, built in dozens of a year, and the invincible PAK FA, which exist only in the form of six prototypes without avionics and the declared engines of the second stage. In fact, any comparison of the F-35 and T-50 comes down to comparing the performance characteristics of serial fighters and the requirements set forth in those. assignment to PAK FA. And even though we are still inferior in reality, we surpass everyone in our dreams.
Every year, a simple fact becomes more and more obvious: no one has yet managed to create a prototype of an aircraft that is close in its "filling" and capabilities to the American "fifth generation". Not to mention its launch into mass production (at least in the amount of a couple of dozen units). And I'm afraid that with the existing approach to the creation of the PAK FA, this gap will only continue to grow. It is necessary to stop "fooling around" by releasing one aircraft a year, or even to be ahead of the curve, creating even more advanced machines with a non-standard aerodynamic configuration (a real example is Bird of Prey). At least for the sake of prestige and demonstration of their own ambitions (hmm, for what else is the PAK FA being created?).
As for the mockery of the American "Penguin", then this is a disastrous business. Objective facts and nothing else.
1. The most powerful and efficient engine in the history of fighter aircraft
"Pratt Whitney" F-135 has 13 tons of non-afterburning thrust. Afterburner - 19 tons!
It alone burns more than two MiG-29 engines. With a dry weight of 1700 kg.
The empty weight of the F-35A is 13.3 tons. The actual take-off weight depends on the specific configuration. It is customary to engage in air combat with relatively light air-to-air missiles with a reduced (50% or less) fuel supply. In other words, the thrust-to-weight ratio of the F-35A in the fighter version should reach unity.
As for the absurd accusations of "unreliability" of a single-engine aircraft, let us turn to the MiG-21, Mirage III and F-16. Masterpieces of the world aircraft industry, which have fought all regions of the planet.
2. Radar with AFAR
It is equally effective for detecting targets on the ground and in the air. With the possibility of mapping, simultaneous operation in the “air-to-air” and “air-to-surface” modes, in the presence of a mode of low interception probability (low-energy pulses in a wide frequency range) and everything that a modern airborne radar should be able to do.
And even a little more.
According to common images (of course, taken not without the help of Photoshop), the AN / APG-81 radar is capable of inspecting selected areas of the terrain with an abnormally high resolution (30 x 30 cm). So clearly that the contours of people and various equipment become visible.
The creators of the radar explain the achieved effect by the AFAR technology in the presence of unique signal processing algorithms, for example, extracting useful information from the noise reflected from the AFAR "side lobes".
Unlike other radars with active PAA, the APG-81 station is an independent development, and not an improvisation based on outdated radars with passive PAA. With state-of-the-art signal processor and data bus, optimized for high AFAR capabilities. There are only two such radars in the world. This is the aforementioned APG-81 and its predecessor, the APG-77 from the Raptor fighter.
3. Stealth technology
Its elements completely define the appearance of the F-35. At the same time, unlike the outdated F-117, the methods of reducing the visibility have practically no effect on the aerodynamics of the new “stealth”.
Parallel lines and edges oriented in three selected directions. S-shaped channels of air intakes. Internal suspension arms. Sawtooth joints of panels and covers of technological holes. Vertical keels set 20 ° away from normal. Unbound cockpit canopy. Multi-layer radio-absorbing coating on the entire surface of the wing and fuselage.
The extent to which these measures are able to reduce the visibility of an aircraft was described in detail in previous articles.
4. Maneuverability
According to Lockheed Martin videos, the F-35 remains fully controllable at an angle of attack of 50 °.
He is able to fly "tail first", maintaining controllability even at supercritical angles of attack (110 °) and, at the request of the pilot, confidently return to level flight.
In the first minute of the video (1: 03-1: 07). Call it whatever you want, but it looks like you can't use hats in close combat.
It would be strange if he did not know how to do all this, having such a powerful and perfect engine as “Pratt Whitney” with a thrust of 19 tons.
Otherwise, the F-35 meets modern standards:
Overload limit - 9g. The design has an integral layout, in which a significant part of the lift is generated by the fuselage itself.
5. Technological glamor
All-aspect infrared detection system. Futuristic helmet with the ability to observe "through" the plane. Modification of the F-35B with the possibility of a short takeoff and vertical landing. F-35C shipborne fighter with titanium fuselage elements, tail hook and enlarged wing area. Boom (F-35A) and hose-cone (for F-35B and 35C) in-flight refueling systems.
6. Weapons
Up to four medium / long-range air-to-air missiles (AIM-120 AMRAAM), or two to four guided aerial bombs (for example, 113 kg gliding SDBs with a maximum launch range of 100 km) in combination with a pair of air-to-air missiles”, Or two heavy bombs or cruise missiles (as an option - 907-kg Mk.84 bombs with a GPS (JDAM) set, planning JSW high-precision ammunition weighing 681 kg or JSM anti-ship missiles).
The ammunition load of the built-in four-barreled 25-mm cannon is 180 rounds. Suspended - 220 rounds.
Six external suspension assemblies are available if required. Full combat load - 8 tons.
A few words about things not related to the technical appearance of the aircraft
On July 31, 2015, the first US Marine Aviation Squadron equipped with the F-35B announced that it was on alert.
On this, various speculations in the style of "has been flying for nine years, but has not been adopted for service" can be stopped. Just as the serial Su-27 de facto entered the troops from the mid-80s and even participated in "battles" (the collision of the Su-27 and the Norwegian Orion during a training interception over the Barents Sea, 1987), but on Armament "Drying" was officially adopted only in 1990.
As of early summer, the US armed forces had 120 Lightnings of three modifications, excluding 20 test and experimental aircraft owned by the Lockheed Martin company. The fighters were deployed at 10 air bases in the United States.
On March 19, 2015, an F-35 pilot training center opened at Luke airbase. By the summer, more than 200 pilots with a total flight time of 30,000 hours had already had permission to fly the Lightning. Not a single wrecked and lost aircraft in all 9 years of operation in the most severe conditions (rocking ship decks, night refueling in flight, group maneuvering).
On September 23, the first squadron equipped with F-35 fighters was formed at Hill AFB.
September 8 - the debut of the F-35 at the Italian airbase Cameri (the aircraft of the Italian Air Force, assembled at an Italian factory). The first flight of the F-35 outside the United States.
6 October - the first flight of an F-35 built for the Norwegian Air Force. Flight from the Fort Worth factory to Luke AFB.
October 19 - Canadian Prime Minister announced a possible withdrawal from the F-35 program. A number of media outlets hastened to announce the collapse of the F-35 project, not paying attention to a couple of circumstances. Firstly, none of the participating countries has left the project yet (Canadians can be the first). Secondly, what does 65 fighters mean for the Canadian Air Force against the background of the entire JSF program (3109 fighters, of which only one-fifth is export).
Price
Sadly, the Lightning is the cheapest generation 4+ and 5 fighter.
First, the engine. The most complex and time-consuming structural element in service, on which everything depends. Lightning has one. Domestic fighters traditionally have two of them.
Secondly, the volume of production, calculated in thousands of aircraft. Everyone knows that mass-produced products are ALWAYS cheaper.
The cost of research and development work on the JSF project amounted to $ 59 billion. Obviously, part of this cost is embedded in each of the fighters built. What should be the cost of developing the PAK FA for the final cost of the fighter to be equal to the American F-35? Based on 60 serial T-50s (optimistic scenario).
Answer: the cost of R&D should be 3000/60 = 50 times less!
1 trillion, which frighten the layman, concerns the entire life cycle of the F-35 program - R&D, the production of thousands of aircraft, their maintenance, parts and fuel. Weapons, pilot training, airbase refurbishment costs.
Considering that the F-35 replaces most types of aircraft, the indicated trillion is the cost of the existence of the US Air Force for the next 30 years. Expensive? So they still eat no less. After all, the world's first consumer of aviation fuel.
The expected cost of producing one unit of the F-35A in 2018 is $ 85 million (adjusted for inflation). Only Chinese plastic crafts are cheaper.
As for the notorious "electronics" and possible computer failures, the failures from which the planes go crazy are only in Hollywood films. In reality, electronics is the most reliable element of any system, completely insensitive to overloads, mechanical shocks and vibrations.
The computer can be reprogrammed in the hangar of the airbase, in contrast to the engine with a controlled thrust vector (the translational movement of parts in conditions of thousand-degree temperatures). Even block repairs are indispensable here. Whenever the need arises, the domestic Su-35 will be sent to the manufacturer. It is not difficult to understand how all this affects the cost of manufacture and operation.
Anyone who is not convinced by these simple and obvious things can continue to retell the tale of a terribly expensive plane with the price of a single piece of gold.
New cycle of sea trials. F-35C flights from the deck of the aircraft carrier "Dwight D. Eisenhower", October 2015
