I am old enough to have lived through the acquisition of many weapons systems in my lifetime such as the F-15, F-14, and the Abrams tank.
There was massive hysteria with all of them, especially around the Abrams. They said it was too expensive, it guzzled too much fuel, it would never work in the desert, it couldn’t stand up to combat, it was too easily destroyed, it’s electronics would be unable to operate in combat, and so on.
It has become for the last several decades the finest main battle tank in the world, and combat tested.
No new weapon system comes out of the box and works perfectly, or very few do.
People need to have some perspective on this. People get hysterical saying the F-35 can’t win a dogfight with an F-16.
From hearing the viewpoints of those who fly the F-35, if you end up in a dogfight, you have squandered every single significant advantage you had. They have had to develop new tactics to use the aircraft, and I don’t see anything wrong with that.
I remember my hunch on all of the F35 hysterical negative articles...liberals, Obamites, media who want less money spent on defense and want to see our national security damaged...spinning like the media and liberals do.
I believe my hunch was right.
“I am old enough to have lived through the acquisition of many weapons systems in my lifetime such as the F-15, F-14, and the Abrams tank. There was massive hysteria with all of them, especially around the Abrams.”
i was just thinking the same thing.
“if you end up in a dogfight, you have squandered every single significant advantage you had.”
like worrying that the bayonets on our combat rifles are inferior ...
The “F-35 can’t beat an F-16” mantra was based upon initial test flight with a restricted flight envelope. I can’t believe people are still parroting that old story.
I remember that 60 minutes episode about the Abrams.
Our genius future tellers have goofed on large scales in the past for sure. But I agree with you. I’m still disappointed that the F-22 program was scrapped (sort of).
In our world today, I think we have advantageous technology that don’t fully know how to best utilize. This would include tactics in battle. The Thatch Weave used by WWII fighter pilots was a defense manuever developed because of combat and experience. The F-4 Phantom was a plane designed for one type of combat and deployed for something different. Then we adapted.