Mighty F-35 Lightning 2 Engine Roars To Life

SpaceWar.com ^ | Sep 21, 2006 | Staff Writers

[nametrader]

Mighty F-35 Lightning 2 Engine Roars To Life by Staff Writers Fort Worth TX (SPX) Sep 21, 2006 The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II completed its first series of engine runs on Monday afternoon, culminating in a full-afterburner test that unleashed 40,000 pounds of thrust - the most ever from a jet-fighter engine. The testing began on Friday, Sept. 15, when Chief Pilot Jon Beesley moved a cockpit switch to the "run" position and brought the Pratt and Whitney [NYSE: UTX] F135 engine to life.

[jazusamo]

I read a piece here a month or more ago about the 22 doing test dog fights in Alaska. I guess it must have been at Elmendorf but I can't remember for sure. One 22 was taking on up to 5 or 6 fighters at a time and never lost an engagement.

[NormsRevenge]

how do you guys get these pictures

--

los fo the posted here at the various links
http://www.jsf.mil/gallery/gal_photo.htm

[volunbeer]

Not necessarily but speed is not a top requirement for your average ground support mission. From my brief stint with a forward air controller (FAC) it was explained to me that speed is an asset if we were illuminating a target or called in GPS coordinates for a smart weapon strike (get in, drop it, and get out) but for general air support where an aircraft comes on station to engage multiple targets in support of ground forces an aircraft (like an A-10) that can loiter in an area for a long time provides more time on target (and ultimately firepower with its cannon) than a fast mover.

For the non-conventional combat we are facing in the war on terror it is also nice to have a jet where the pilot can go slow enough to spot his own targets and destroy them on his own without FAC assistance. The A-10 is tops for this. Throw in the fact that the A-10 can survive ground fire much better than other tactical fighters and you have your answer.

It seems logical that an A-10's slow speed allows the nose of the aircraft to spend more time on target than a supersonic aircraft.

I am a fan of the F-35 and I will be excited to see it come online but I am also not a fan of using a $10 million plane with a $100 thousand bomb to destroy a toyota pickup truck with 3 men in the back when a million dollar aircraft with $300 worth of depleted uranium slugs would do the trick.

I want what is best for our guys but efficiency in the war ahead should be remembered. There has to be a balance there somewhere.

[bellevuesbest]

Can't imagine the Air Force not continuing with the F-22 as the premier fighter which is to replace the F-15 Eagle. Maybe the JSF replaces the F-16 over time but not the F-22.

Would also be surprised to see it on aircraft carrier decks anytime soon.

[NormsRevenge]

los fo the = lots of them

:-}

[tubebender]

Lots of gopher getters there Norm

[jazusamo]

Here's one article about some dogfights but it's not the one that I remember.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1677641/posts

[NormsRevenge]

It's always nice to have options.

little hammer or big one??? :-)

[tubebender]

Does it carry all those fireworks at once?

[Prost1]

Ahh, but the A10 can take a "lickin'" and still keep on "ticken'".

Will the F-35 be able to withstand "small arms fire" and still do the job like the A-10. If not, then it is already overated.

The claim has already been made! F-35 to replace even "mother's cookies"!

[jazusamo]

I don't think the 35 is going to replace the 22. It's going to augment it because the 22 is fantastically expensive from what I've read.

[NormsRevenge]

No, that pic is supposed to represent all the different weaponry that it could be loaded up depending upon mission and needs.

[Prokopton]

Do you know if the fighting characteristics of the F-35 are going to approach or be as good as the F-22? The F-22 reports out so far have been phenominal.

The F-35 does not have the capabilities of the F-22. However, the F-35 cost about $35-$40 million per plane while the F-22 costs somewhere between $130 million and $240 million per plane, depending on options and how many are purchased.

[Stayfree]

Thanks everybody for the info and the great links to more info...bedtime is calling with the wonderful thought of Americans coming together to brace ourselves for the upcoming battle...I may be an old groundpounder, but I would go to Iraq in a heartbeat if the military would let me because I can still split a pea at 200 yards...

[My2Cents]

What were they thinking?

[Iris7]

I also have great affection for the A-10. Grumman design at it's most rugged and practical.

Helicopters are OK but fixed wing ground attack has inherent engineering advantages. I don't think that our people at the sharp end on the ground should have anything less than the best air support possible.

I am certain that the A-10 can be improved. Even though the machine is an older design, however, improvement is hard to imagine clearly. It depends somewhat on how anti A-10 weapons evolve.

An interesting ground attack approach is Burt Rutan's Ares
Scaled Composite's ARES


designed for maintenance in the field and to fly from two lane asphalt. The specification was developed by the US Army. This design is dated now also but has possibilities. The asymmetric design keeps gun recoil in line with center of drag and thrust and aircraft frontal area down. The GAU-30 puts out so much propellant gases that it was a problem to keep the engines running on burnt powder fumes instead of air and the Rutan concept keeps engine air intake and muzzle gases on either side of the aircraft.

[jazusamo]

F-22 costs somewhere between $130 million and $240 million per plane,

Thanks. Yeah, I knew the 22 was super expensive but couldn't remember the figures. Those figures are what I read I believe.

[volunbeer]

Here is an link you might want to read on the A-10.

Not to rain on the parade of the F-35 which should further extend our air dominance for decades to come but like this article says.....

"The A-10 has proven high tech isn’t always the solution."

I would sum up my economic concerns with the following -

When killing cockroaches in go-karts you don't need the same weapons you would to kill professional drivers in Ferrari's.

War with China - give me the F35

War with the turbanator in desert - give me the A-10

The A-10 is cheap to operate and the guard/reserve guys love it so no reason we cannot have both.

[volunbeer]

Ooops.... I forgot to add the link

http://www.simhq.com/_air/air_051a.html

[HANG THE EXPENSE]

Love the HOG. it will be damn hard to replace except by another HOG.The f-35 in ground attack would be like a greyhound in a gogfight.