Gentlemen,
I must admit that I read this tome initially with some interest until I saw the protagonists involved. Frankly, articles by Messrs' Kopp and Goon should be taken with all the salt in Bonneville! They are rife with wilful aspersion, conjecture and [frankly] far-fetched analysis in some cases. Much of the assumption involved in their war games is fundamentally flawed and these individuals do not have any access whatsoever to the detail that would be needed to conduct a fair, objective war game to establish future requirements. The fact that they are even given the air time to show their results to others is astonishing in itself - the fact that some get completely taken in by it is lamentable.
The "Goon Show" hate F-35, view Super Hornet dimly and seem utterly bent on decrying most western platforms out there. Ultimately it comes down to their bitter resentment of knowing very little of those platforms' true capabilities and a persistent ignorance that clouds even their own judgement. F-35 has never been touted as an air superiority fighter a-la F22. It is a strike fighter and is therefore more akin to F/A-18 (Fighter Attack) in its role.
I'm not saying the F-35 programme is without flaws given the current cost/schedule situation but it irks me that those three individuals at AAP go way too far the other way every time they are given a soap box to stand on.
Their predictions are best suited for a Hollywood movie I think....