Tag Archives: F-35

Document: F-35 Costs Decrease $4.5 Billion in 2012

Document: F-35 Costs Decrease $4.5 Billion in 2012

From the document released May, 23 2013: This information is based on the Selected Acquisition Reports (SARs) submitted to the Congress for the December 2012 reporting period.

SARs summarize the latest estimates of cost, schedule, and performance status. These reports are prepared annually in conjunction with submission of the President’s Budget. Read More

Greenert: Forward Deployed Ships, F-35s USN's Future

Greenert: Forward Deployed Ships, F-35s USN’s Future

Adm. Jonathan Greenert addressing a crowd in March. US Navy Photo

Adm. Jonathan Greenert addressing a crowd in March. US Navy Photo

In a time of fiscal “reduced visibility” the Navy’s strategy remains “to be where it matters,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert said on Monday in a speech to the Navy League Sea Air Space Exposition 2013 at National Harbor, Md. Read More

An Unmanned Joint Strike Fighter?

An Unmanned Joint Strike Fighter?

f-35

F-35 Simulator
[Northrop Grumman Photo]

CRYSTAL CITY, VIRGINIA — Three nautical miles from an amphibious assault ship, I toggled a small button labeled “STOVL,” or short take-off and vertical landing. The abbreviation “REDY” flashed in green and I could see thrust vector angles change on my heads-up display in my F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter. I adjusted what my instructor called the cruise control and set my airspeed to 80 kts. All of a sudden, my flight controls changed as the “REDY” turned solid. I had transitioned to vertical flight.

With minimal coaching, after two minutes I had landed safely on the flight deck of a U.S. Navy ship. Though I briefly felt pride after my landing, I quickly realized that a computer had done all of the hard flying for me.
Computers and cockpits are nothing new, but with the proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles and the degree to which computers control piloted aircraft today, policy makers and military leaders are asking when pilots can be removed completely from combat aircraft.

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