[Wild Goose]

Originally Posted by DoomRavager

Now watch as its procurement turns into a comedy of tragic proportions.

Well, so far it seems like it won't turn out to be the case, given that large-scale flight testing is already taking place in 2001, years ahead of IRL.

Originally Posted by sasahar17

Hm, if I recall from several a webcast I saw on YouTube, there was some exercise that the F-35V took part in that it was completely destoyed by Sukoi planes when it was dragged into old school dogfights (kinda like what happened with the Eurofighter and the F-22, but worse). It probably would fare better if it could do it's stealth fighter thing, but the Aussie minister being interviewed was quite critical about how the government had given away so much money for a bunch of planes that couldn't turn with a much cheaper Sukoi (if I recall, the 'KD' ratio for the Sukoi v F-35B was terribly lopsided; in fact, the F-22 had to run to the rescue).
It's been a while since I've seen that report though, and it was basically the opposition lamblasting the government (also note the F-35A, which was the one ordered by the RAAF seems a bit better), so I'm not sure how accurate it is now. Can anybody confirm this?

I'll have to do a significant amount of research.

Off the top of my head, however, I recall that US planners viewed the F-22 and F-35 differently. While the F-35 can dogfight, it's main purpose was to be a stealthy strike fighter, to replace the F-16, F/A-18 and F-117 in the business of dropping ordnance on target. Undoubtedly it could probably still turn and burn once the air to ground stores are all ruining someone's day, but that wasn't a key priority. IIRC the engines aren't thurst vectoring like the F-22, though I could be wrong.

Note that the USN intends to use the F/A-18F Super Hornet as it's interceptor/dogfighter, while the F-35 is intended to take over the strike role currently held by the F/A-18C and previously held by the A-6 and A-7.

The other issue is that the F-35B, the STOVL variant, has some compromises which were accepted in order to cram a completely different propulsion system. The general idea of a joint aircraft is sound (refer the F-4 and F-18), but the way they went about it was ass-backwards; they should have done the Navy version, then work it for the air force. Differing needs of the service and all that.

From what I've read, the F-35 is limited to 7.5G manuvers by the computers, which suggests that like the F-14, it's actually capable of higher G maneuvers, but the decision has been made to preserve airframes (Tomcats could pull 9 and even 10G turns, but that would stress the airframes and greatly reduce service life).

Well considering that saga was a long and painful one, I wonder how it would translate into the ML world.

Actually, given that flight testing is already occuring as of 2001, and by the looks of things is at an advanced stage, it seems that the ML Lightning II program surprisingly ran smoother.

When we look at it, the challenge of the IRL Lightning II program was combining three aircraft needs into one design: Conventional Take Off and Landing (CTOL/F-35A, USAF), Short Take Off & Vertical Landing (STOVL/F-35B, USMC) and Catapult Assisted Take Off & Barrrier Assisted Recovery (CATOBAR/F-35C, USN). It is quite possible for a common airframe for a CTOL and CATOBAR aircraft - note the F-4 Phantom, A-7 Corsair II and the F/A-18 Hornet - but we get significant challenges if we try to shoehorn a STOVL design into the mix. The aircraft with the most issues during development was the STOVL variant.

In ML, however, the challenges and issues appear to be lessened, because all TSFs by nature are STOVL aircraft, thanks to their Jump Engine placement, though of course CTOL is easier on the G-forces and fuel, as Yuuya and Stella briefly discussed in Episode 13 of Total Eclipse. So for the Lightning II, there appears to have been less work with exotic mechanisms. If my understanding is correct, in 2001 in Alternative Earth, the F-35 program is at the same stage it is right now in 2013 on IRL Earth. I should also note that F-35B STOVL aside, the USAF and USN models IRL are entering low rate production, and Replacement Training Units and Fleet Replacement Squadrons are being stood up to begin classes for pilots this year.

In short, if it hits the world soon enough, Muv-Luv F-35 looks to be a very tempting option for operators of 2nd and 2.5 gen TSFs; a light, manuverable TSF that is cheaper and easier to maintain compared to the F-22, with comparable performance to the Typhoon, with stealth, giving you a light TSF that be both shooty and stabby at the same time.

Originally Posted by wavehawk

- "WAS"? It's still ongoing for some of us! (Australia)

Have heart; there is light appearing at the end of the tunnel - in the US, at any rate.