Sounds like the F-35 program on steroids - one craft to do everything and nothing well while costing two arms, a left eye ball, and a first born.
The F-35, the plane that ate the USAF, and lunched on the USN.
Bfl
I am an Aerospace Engineer and former Air Force Pilot, so I will weigh in on a similar subject:
The F-35 is a piece of excrement.
There are many services, contractors, and politicians to blame.
May I highligth the Marines (who demanded their "jump jet"), Lockheed itself, and certain retired flag officers who were hired by Lockheed.
And it will cost $100 billion per copy
I love the F-22
If lasers are to be part of the weaponry of fighters why are we dealing with airplanes at all? They should perhaps be developing nuclear powered satellite and space-plane vehicles.
Question by a non tech guy:
If you have on board lasers that are going to shoot down incoming missiles and aircraft faster than than the enemy can launch them then why worry about being stealthy?
It would appear that the weapons described in the article make stealth redundant.
With such a lack of control surfaces it can’t be too maneuverable.
How many simultaneously incoming missiles can a plane-based laser shoot down?
Why is that thing carrying a human pilot? By the time it’s finally ready for combat, it won’t need one.
If the advanced weapons negate the need for more manuverability why not mount them on existing platforms and far cheaper drones and RPV’s?
What happens to a laser beam with cloud cover? It would likely be scattered to the point of being rendered ineffective. Seems like this design started with the idea of having a cool-sounding weapon, like a laser, without defining the purpose of the aircraft. Or perhaps the purpose of the aircraft, like the F-35 program, is to provide politically connected companies with fat contracts.
Back when I was a kid they didn't have lasers as part of their ad campaigns.
The designs are backwards, the AF bird has the intakes on top, while the Navy one has the intakes on the bottom, the better to Hoover up crewmen on a crowded deck.
At least the big laser turrets are so stealthy that you can’t see them in the renderings.
The camel is a horse built by committee.
Then there’s the F-35.
Interesting read, but I was dreading coming to this quote, knew it would show up.
Seems likes Deja Vu, all over again.
“This new aircraft will be as much about reusable weaponry (lasers) as it is about expendable weaponry.”
Green weapons?