Salute!
I am with you ex-fast, and I was skepticsl of the F-35 when they started to have problems with the HUD and then the ALIS logistics thing, but then the insiders started to give clues.
I talked with a pilot or two and some maintenance folks. The wrenchbenders thot ALIS was a POS, but not worse than what they dealt with in legasy planes. They thot it was as easy or better to replace LRU boxes but had to be careful due to coatings and seams and...
The pilots thot it was gonna be great and they had not even exploited the data transfer capabilities with other players.
I would rather have the USAF buy a stripped down Viper for a low end platform that could still bomb and fight A2A with most potential adversaries, especially if Vipers have the new 'winder. The old architecture can handle anything built to 1760 standards, so no problem there. So maybe enhance the comm and datalink, but if you want all the bells and whistles, go with one of the later blocks.
My feeling is there are "pressures" on the new CSAF from some folks that are not all in for the F-35 or think they can save money to use for other purposes/dreams.
..Gums sends..
P.S. Part of the press from the U.S. CSAF claimed that a low-end tactical plane could save 1.9 trillion $$$ over ten years. That is really funnny looking at the "covid relief" $$$ last year and the new proposal. LMAO.
Last edited by gums; 19th Feb 2021 at 22:43.
Reason: addendum