We keep hearing the F-35 is the "quarterback" of the future fight...so are we gonna dump AWACS?

I use the E-7 as my AWACS example because from my reading of the planes currently flying, its the most advanced and once the USAF gets around to replacing the current model will probably buy this as their future ride....

via Military Times.

Goldfein also used the occasion to push back against findings by the Pentagon’s operational and live fire test office, which “currently considers the accuracy of the [internal 25mm] gun, as installed in the F-35A, to be unacceptable." The external guns on the F-35B and F-35C variants are in working order, the report noted.

The F-35A is the conventional takeoff and landing variant designed to operate from conventional runways, and is the only version to carry the internal cannon. F-35As will be the most prevalent version of the aircraft, used by the U.S. Air Force as well as man allied air forces.

Goldfein said he hadn’t seen the report specific to gun accuracy issues, but added that the F-35′s cannon isn’t the driver behind the aircraft, and isn’t what concerns him.

“Given what we built the F-35 to do, I’m not sure the gun is what we should focus on,” Goldfein said. “When we talk about fifth-generation, stealth is actually only a small part of that. … It’s about information fusion."

Goldfein, who flew the F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-117 Nighthawk, compared the aircraft’s future benefit to that of a quarterback — able to call audibles and deciding what to do at the last second after seeing all possible complications.

“When I was a mission commander at Red Flag, my job was to take about a hundred aircraft and choreograph them through different time slices, get them into a battle space and fight against a heavily defended adversary,” he said.

This is the current talking point for the F-35. 

They've dumped the idea of stealth being the reason for the plane and grabbed onto "information fusion" (notice that they've dumped sensor fusion because we know that 4h gen planes like the Gripen and Super Hornet NOW HAVE that capability because they have big AESAs too!) with all their might.

But why?

Am I missing something?

I thought AWACs were the "quarterback" of the air fight!  Does this mean that a 2nd Lt just out of flight school will now command the flight?

Are they decentralizing the air campaign to such a degree that we'll never see the clustefuck of air tasking that plagued Desert Storm with the USAF DEMANDING control of all air components across the board?

I need clarification on this claim of the F-35 being the "quarterback" of the future fight.  As things stand it seems like the latest marketing scheme.

But let's say it isn't.  Then are we getting rid of AWACS?

F-21? Kinda obvious the sting from the F-15X is biting...

Manufacturer's website here.

Ya know what we'll never know unless someone writes a book or hits the talk circuit?  How long the talk has been floating around the Pentagon that the USAF needed to build capacity!

When news of the F-15X first hit, that was the song the AF Chief Of Staff sang.  He needed the F-35 but he also needed capacity (how that could be when the numbers of F-35's being projected to be bought easily accomplished that goal).

We all know better don't we?

The F-35 is hopelessly late.

We know that there was a quiet debate about buying additional F-16's and/or F-15's.

Well the USAF chose their bird and Lockheed Martin is trying to sell the F-21 to India.  I'll skip the designation idiocy (I don't understand it and I don't think they do either) and just give this thing a quick look see.

First thing I noticed?  They loaded up this thing with fuel.  Don't know the size of the drop tanks or the conformal fuel tanks but this thing should fly far...farther than a standard F-16.

Next up is the missile loadout.  Eight AMRAAMs and two Sidwinders?  This is for the long range fight.

They might be peddling it to India but I'd bet bodyparts that I'm fond of that they also tried to peddle it to the USAF.

The last thing is that they're trying to tie this into the F-35.  This is what the website says...

F-21 – India’s Pathway to F-35

Lockheed Martin continues to leverage technologies across its portfolio to drive affordability within new and existing platforms and is committed to delivering the F-21 at the most affordable price for India.

The F-21 has common components and learning from Lockheed Martin’s 5th Generation F-22 and F-35 and will share a common supply chain on a variety of components. Approximately half of the F-21 and F-16 supply chains are common with the F-22 and F-35.

That's obvious and obscene.

Its damn near shouting that if you buy the F-21 now, you can climb aboard the F-35 later...after they get it working!

Lockheed first got my ire by the way they treated their partner, Patria with their AMV in the ACV contest.  Then the disaster that the F-35 became apparent to me.

But one thing you have to give them credit for.  They're audacious and arrogant as hell.  If their engineers were as in your face as their sales team that thing would be flying rings around the moon right now!

Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant has begun ground testing

.#FVL Full Throttle: Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant has begun ground testing at Sikorsky's Development Flight Center in Florida, team reports. Can't wait to see this bird take flight, hopefully flying alongside S-97 Raider! pic.twitter.com/EoGpnxN9t3

— James Drew (@StrikeWriter) February 19, 2019

Here's hoping they get it to work.  I want to see a REAL competition between the two approaches.  If both work then why not run with both!

Blast from the past...Navy chaplain Luis Padilla holds a soldier wounded by sniper fire during a revolt in Venezuela in 1962.

Navy chaplain Luis Padilla holds a soldier wounded by sniper fire during a revolt in Venezuela in 1962.

Have you noticed that Venezuela has disappeared from the headlines?  We were almost to the point of being bombarded last week now nothing.

Do you believe that the drama has passed or is this the quiet before the storm?

Personally I don't know.  I've been trying to keep up with troop movements but I've heard nothing. 

Nevertheless the pic above is instructive.  Venezuela has been here before. Even if it's not in the news in the US, doesn't mean that the drama has abated.

Expect more to come.

Spear 3. A European weapon that we should take a look at?

Manufacturer's website here.

Worth a look see or is this capability already in the inventory?

Open Comment Post. 20 Feb 2019

New Chinese infantry fighting vehicle at IDEX-2019

Note!  This thing is crazy.  Either the Chinese are trolling the hell outta us or they've gone mad.  Maybe my estimates are off...way off, but take a look at the pics and tell me if you're seeing what I am....

Continued!  Let's start at the front of this vehicle.  Either this thing is the most heavily armored tracked IFV planned, has an engine that can power an oil tanker or they have a HUGE amount of dead space up front.  How do I arrive at that?  Check out what I assume to be the drivers position just in front of the turret!  It's almost at the halfway point of the vehicle!  If this thing is to scale then it's monstrous.

Next take a look at the turret.  Then check out the caption that came with the pics (below)...

Until in the form of layout. Armament - 100 mm + 30 mm + 7.62 type turret of the BMP-3 and remote 2 installation type German Marder at the stern. The fighting compartment is similar to the same on BD-04A.

Again, I'm assuming that Chinese model makers build to scale.  That's a BMP turret riding on this thing.  By my crude estimates that makes this vehicle appear to be bigger than even their MBTs.  Probably bigger than even the Namer.

But wait it gets better! Check out the middle pic.  The caption says Marder style machine guns in the back.  Ok.  But again look at the scale!  50 cals?

If we're not getting trolled then the Chinese are about to build what the US Army wanted to...the 80 ton GCV.

Would they dare?

Is it possible I'm right?

What do you guys think?

2nd Tank Battalion Gunnery....pics by Lance Cpl. Ursula Smith

No F-35's for Turkey?

via AhavalNews.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a spending bill that blocks the transfer of the country's F-35 new generation fighter jets to Turkey.

According to spending bill signed by Trump on Friday, delivery of the jets to Turkey will be blocked until the U.S. Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense submit an update to the report regarding the purchase of Turkey of the S–400 missile defense system from the Russian Federation.

In earlier report to the Congress, Pentagon said Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile systems could result in Ankara’s potential expulsion from the F-35 program, as well as affecting its acquisition of other weapons including Boeing Co. ’s CH-47F Chinook helicopter and Lockheed’s F-16 fighter and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.

Story here. 

Hmm.  Definitely need to wait to see how this plays out.

The US Navy and Boeing receive permission to offer Finland the E/A-18G for the HX fighter program...

via Naval News.

Boeing and the U.S. Navy have received U.S. Department of Defense approval to offer the EA-18G Growler to Finland. Previously only Australia had been authorized to purchase the airborne electronic attack (AEA) aircraft.
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An F/A-18 variant, the Growler is the world’s most advanced AEA platform and the only one in production today. It’s capable of disrupting, deceiving or denying a broad range of military electronic systems including radar and communication systems.

Story here.

This is interesting.  I never even considered the E/A-18G for the Finnish Air Force.  I wonder if they have a different view of future warfare than the rest of the Europeans?