Posted on 01/15/2010 9:21:22 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
The U.S. Navy has been nervously watching as the costs of the new F-35C and F-35B carrier aircraft increase. It comes down to this. Currently, it costs the navy, on average, $19,000 an hour to operate its AV-8 vertical takeoff and F-18C fighter aircraft. It costs 63 percent more to operate the F-35C (which will replace the F-18C) and the F-35B (which will replace the AV-8). These costs include buying the aircraft, training and maintaining the pilots, the aircraft and purchasing expendable items (fuel, spare parts, munitions.) Like the F-22, which recently had production capped at less than 200 aircraft, the capabilities, as superior as they were, did not justify the much higher costs. The F-35, at least for the navy, is headed in the same direction. The navy can go ahead with the more recent F-18E, and keep refurbishing, or even building, the AV-8. Politics, and lobbying by the F-35 manufacturer, will probably keep the F-35 headed for fleet service, no matter what the cost. The 27 ton F-35 is armed with an internal 25mm cannon and four internal air-to-air missiles (or two missiles and two smart bombs). Plus four external smart bombs and two missiles. All sensors are carried internally, and max weapon load is 6.8 tons. The aircraft is very stealthy when just carrying internal
(Excerpt) Read more at strategypage.com ...
we have to figure out how to build these damn things cheaper. they are needed and im sure they are awesome, but not THAT awesome. there’s no doubt we have to have air superiority, but look at the quality and quantity of the competition and think about our other expenses. they don’t do much in the fight against IEDs. we can’t carpet bomb villages. we have to have ground forces, too, ya know...
just my two cents.
Sickening. We are going to keep 70’s designed F-15s, Harriers, and F-16’s flying into the 2030’s.
Its very sickening.
We could purcahse a few dozen F-16 block 60s to supplement our forces.
We are broke. Haiti is the 51st state and needs everything. Millions of Haitians will need endless freebies and free homes in Florida.
We do not need first world military or NASA with a Muslim in the white house. People voted for this. They would rather watch football and college ball games and reality TV.
People voted for this. Judge Carter the Marine likes having a Muslim usurper in the white house.
Imagine what they will do to health care.
The answer is simple...build MORE of them.
LOTS more, hundreds more, thousands more
and the price goes down.
Almost all the cost is up front in the development. The more you build the cheaper they become.
As for air superiority. The other guys are not slowing down one bit.
Read Winged Victory about the Army Air Corps in World War II and you begin to get some perspective of the need to have control of the air or what is on the ground loses.
The F-22 and the F-35 are necessary. As for the cost, wouldn’t you have rather given the stimulus money to ensure our military control of the air rather than a pay off to Marxists? At least the fighters were an investment.
Who controls the skies and space control the battlefield.
Thank you for the only sane post on the thread.
No, but he is following the law. Many would like him to ignore the law in order to cause the removal of Obama, but then we ourselves, and the Judge, become that which we complain about.
If we are going to allow that, then our laws mean nothing.
Better that we find a LEGAL way to deal with Obama.
Thank you for the second sane post on the thread.
The case had nothing to do with removal. Carter totally ignored what was going on. He even said he could never remove Obama cause he was rightfully a citizen because his mother was an American. He is either an idiot or was playing stupid.
Waste of money when a muslim controls the white house. People voted for it and a former Marine and judge agrees with teh usurper. Well he totally ignored the court filings and tried to say it was about removing Obama when it had nothing to do with that.
We still have the BUFF, the M113 series vehicles, the M16 series rifles, etc. Just because it's an old design doesn't mean it's no longer useful.
Good. Go Raptor! (F-22)
F-15 airframe fractures grounded most all the fleet in 2007. They have been repaired. For now.
In part, this is why they cost so much. Build just a couple of hundred Toyota Camrys, and they'd cost millions a piece, too.
we need more bureaucracy and heavier regulations and more unions! Thats the ticket.
//sarcasm
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.