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UKIP: 'UK must build naval Typhoon' 19 January 2012 The UK should cancel the purchase of the F-35C and invest in developing a naval variant of the Eurofighter Typhoon, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) has said. Lord Alexander Hesketh, UKIP's defence spokesman and former executive deputy chairman of Babcock International Group, said that adopting a naval Typhoon would allow the UK to restore carrier strike capability on its Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers before 2020 while saving money and protecting UK jobs. UKIP estimates suggest it would cost £1.4bn to develop a naval typhoon, with unit costs of around £80m....

Navy's £5bn Harrier jet replacement 'unable to land on aircraft carriers' The Royal Navy's multi-billion pound fighter plane programme is under threat amid claims that its new all-purpose jets cannot land on aircraft carriers, it has emerged. Leaked Pentagon documents claim a design flaw in the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) has caused eight simulated landings to fail. The “F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Concurrency Quick Look Review” claimed the flaw meant that the “arrestor” hook, used to stop the plane during landing, was too close to the plane’s wheels. When a fighter lands on an aircraft carrier an arrestor cable catches...

Britain voices concern over future of F-35 in US WASHINGTON — British Defence Minister Philip Hammond voiced concern on Thursday about possible cuts or delays in the US F-35 fighter program as London plans to equip a future aircraft carrier with the stealthy aircraft. In a visit to the US capital, Hammond said he wanted to hear from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta about the potential effect of a new US military strategy and budget plan on the future of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. "One of the things I hope to understand in the meetings I am to have later...

The F-35 is set to become the dominant fighter plane of the U.S. and its allies in the 21st century. A conglomerate of aerospace industry leaders (Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems and Pratt & Whitney) have combined manufacturing, engineering and technological capabilities to develop the F-35 Lightning. While the Joint Strike Fighter program has been incredibly expensive, here is a look at the final product– and 10 reasons why it is a true fifth generation multi-role air superiority fighter. 1) Mission Flexibility The Basic F-35 design is multi-role, but in addition, there are three variants that add mission specific...

Boeing, loser in Japan, eyes more fighter contests (Reuters) - Losing a big Japanese order to Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) was clearly a disappointment for Boeing Co (BA.N), but a $29.4 billion order from Saudi Arabia for F-15 fighter jets and several other competitions will keep the company in the fighter business for now. The U.S. government and Saudi Arabia are finalizing a letter of agreement on the sale of 84 Boeing F-15s, and may announce that deal soon, according to one source familiar with the discussions, who was not authorized to speak publicly. Boeing, which has rung up big...

Japan Chooses F-35 For Next Generation Fighter Jet . TOKYO—Japan's Defense Minister Yasuo Ichikawa said Tuesday that Tokyo has selected Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter as its next-generation jet, capping a multiyear vetting process to upgrade its aging fleet. The contract for the new fighter, dubbed the FX, totals 40 to 50 planes, according to Lockheed Martin, valued at an estimated $4 billion. It is Japan's most expensive fighter procurement ever and one of the world's largest military contracts this year. The Lockheed Martin jet won the contract over two lower-cost, combat-tested aircraft—Boeing Co.'s F-18 Super...

Boeing: F-35 hasn’t yet won in Japan Despite news reports claiming that Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will win Japan’s F-X fighter contest, Boeing officials say Tokyo delayed the contract award until next week because it is still heavily weighing all three contestants, including Boeing’s Super Hornet. “We think what they’ve done is taken another hard look at the full situation and have decided that if they do pick F-35 there are some things that they are not sure of right now, some risk in terms of cost and schedule,” saidPhil Mills, Boeing’s lead salesman for the F-X contest...

Israeli developed systems for F-35 not in this "restaurant" By Arie Egozi on December 13, 2011 You have in your restaurant the best products for preparing a gourmet dinner‫,‬ but your partner, who is stronger physically and has a larger bank account, forces you to serve a simple dinner that will not satisfy the guests. This is a colourful way of describing the feelings of some Israeli defence and aerospace industries when they talk about the contract to buy 20 Lockheed Martin F-35s. When Israel joined the F-35 programme very late, it did not realise that not being able to...

Japan likely to pick F-35 fighter - Nikkei (Reuters) - Japan is likely to pick Lockheed Martin's (LMT.N) F-35 fighter jets to replace its ageing fleet of F-4 Phantom fighters, Japanese media reported on Tuesday, reaffirming strong security ties with the United States. The government will choose between two U.S. models -- the F-35 and the Boeing (BA.N) F/A-18 Super Hornet -- and a European third contender, the four-nation Eurofighter Typhoon, at a meeting of the national security council on Friday, the Nikkei business daily said. Analysts say the purchase is potentially worth $8 billion. The F-35 or Joint Strike...

Japan Weighs Options for Pricey Fighter Jets By CHESTER DAWSON TOKYO—Japan is upgrading air defenses increasingly tested by China and Russia, and officials are wrestling with a fundamental question: Can the country still afford to pay for the most advanced technology and nurture its domestic industry? In a move expected as soon as this month, Japan's Defense Ministry will pick a replacement for its aging squadrons of Vietnam-era F-4 fighters from among three finalists, two American and one European. The order for a new fighter is expected to total 40 to 60 planes valued at an estimated $4 billion. It...

First time in the air now for the Navy's carrier version of the Lockheed-Martin F-35 Lightning II, the F-35C- like all variants a descendant of the F-35X JSF (Joint Strike Fighter). While the F-35 program is not without it's problems, Navy test pilot Lt. Chris Tabert successfully flew the F-35C test aircraft -which features Harrier-type VTOL capabilities via advanced thrust-vectoring- on Nov. 18, the first launch of the carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter from the Navy's new electromagnetic aircraft launch system, 'set to install on future USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)'... nice piece of kit, this thing: [YouTube] Video/specs/more at...

UPDATE 1-GE, Rolls Royce drop effort to build F35 engines Dec 2 (Reuters) - General Electric Co and Rolls Royce are dropping their effort to build an alternate engine for Lockheed Martin Corp's F-35 joint strike fighter, giving up on what they said could be a $100 billion market. The decision to end their funding of the project beyond 2011, which the companies announced on Friday, is a boost for United Technologies Corp's Pratt & Whitney unit, which builds the engine used in F-35's early production models. The Defense Department earlier this year canceled funding for the second engine. That...

Pentagon budget cuts almost certain to affect F-35 By Bob Cox rcox@star-telegram.com The stealth design of the F-35 joint strike fighter is supposed to make it nearly invisible to enemy radar, but the super high-tech combat aircraft may not be able to avoid the bull's-eye of Pentagon budget-cutters. Congress' failure last month to agree on $1.2 billion in additional deficit reduction measures means the Defense Department is facing enormous funding cuts mandated by law. Without new congressional action to restore funding, experts say, the Pentagon will be forced to make big cuts in spending on new weapons. And the F-35...

Lockheed Martin girds for battle After the debt supercommittee's failure, defense contractors are preparing for turbulent times. Can Lockheed save the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter? Perilous times await Lockheed Martin, the world's largest military contractor. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are winding down. Because the congressional supercommittee failed to agree on a plan to curb the federal deficit, the Pentagon faces spending reductions that could add up to about $1 trillion over the next decade. One likely target: Lockheed's controversial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons program in history. Robert J. "Bob" Stevens, Lockheed's CEO, can't be happy...

Eurofighter best option for Japan's ASDF David Warren / Special to The Yomiuri Shimbun The international security environment is evolving. Particularly in terms of air defence, new technology is constantly being developed, including fifth generation fighter aircraft with high stealth performance that prevents targets from being detected easily by a radar. The Japanese Air Self-Defence Force, therefore, needs to take measures to ensure it can meet any challenge in the future. Which aircraft to select as a successor of ASDF's F-4 fighter aircraft that has become obsolete will be a critical decision for Japan's air defence for the next 20...

PICTURES: Lockheed rolls out UK's first Joint Strike Fighter By: Craig Hoyle London Lockheed Martin has rolled out the UK's first F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), with the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft to be delivered in 2012. As the first F-35 to have been manufactured for an international partner, aircraft BK-1 will now enter a period of functional fuel system checks at Lockheed's Fort Worth site in Texas. It will then undergo "ground and flight tests in the coming months", the US-based airframer said. © Lockheed Martin The UK ordered three STOVL F-35Bs to participate in the...

Three of the five developmental Lockheed Martin F-35Bs have developed tiny cracks in a lift fan-related component which prevent the flight-test aircraft from reconfiguring in flight and landing vertically. Two flight-test aircraft - BF-1 and BF-2 - are now being modified with a redesigned actuator support beam, according to the joint programme office. BF-4 has also developed "hairline" cracks in the same part, but is continuing to fly in conventional mode only until the part is modified, the programme said. The potential for cracks to develop in the actuator support beam was identified several years ago. A redesigned beam was...

#DXB11: Dubai Air Show's biggest non-story is ... the F-35 The Lockheed Martin F-35 is the story that won't happen at the Dubai Air Show, which opens Sunday, and we're not entirely sure why. There is of course no shortage of big headlines at what is now the world's third-largest aerospace event and rising quickly. It's possible the United Arab Emirates will finally sign a check to buy some number of Dassault Rafales, although the total could be fewer than the stated requirement of 60. We may also hear more about the UAE's postponed deals for large airborne early warning...

Fresh delays in F-35 program will test aging CF-18 fleet: expert Undated handout photo of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, also known as Joint Strike Fighter, in flight. Photograph by: Handout, Lockheed-Martin OTTAWA — The Conservative government says a new, anticipated two-year delay in rolling out the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will not impact Canada. But analysts say the delay will increase the stealth fighters' already-controversial price tag while pushing the country's aging CF-18s to the extreme limit of their life spans. On Nov. 2, U.S. Maj.-Gen. Jay Lindell told members of the congressional subcommittee on tactical air and...

US offers India the Joint Strike Fighter, top defence technology Washington, Nov 2 (IANS) Although the US lost out in the bid to sell India 126 multi-role combat jets, it has offered New Delhi ''top-of-the-line technology'', including ''the best in the world'' Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). "The US F-16 and F-18 competed, but were not down-selected, in the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition in April 2011," the US defence department said in a report to the US Congress on US-India Security Cooperation. "Despite this setback, we believe US aircraft, such as the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), to be the...