Originally Posted by
ORAC
Lord how time flies, 10 years next Thursday since the F-35 first flight. What a lot it has done since then...
Agreed. Ten years and over 75,000 hours on all three 5th generation variants, without any significant accidents or incidents, flying from airfields and ships with full payloads. USAF and USMC IOC achieved and USN IOC expected within the next year. Pretty impressive, even when compared with the less complex single (land) variant 4.5 generation...
...Typhoon
1972: Air Staff Target 396 (AST-396) issued for a STOVL aircraft to replace the Harrier and Jaguar fleets. AST-403, specification revised for an air superiority fighter. STOVL requirement dropped and AST-409 led to development of Harrier GR5.
Mid-1970s: France, Germany and UK initiated the European Combat Aircraft (ECA) programme
1979: Following differing requirements (particularly French requirement for carrier compatibility,) BAe and MBB proposed the European Combat Fighter (ECF).
27 Mar 1994 (22 years after initial AST): First flight.
21 Nov 2002 (8 years after first flight): Spanish twin-seat Typhoon prototype DA-6 crashed owing to double engine flameout.
1 Apr 2006 (12 years after first flight): No.3 Sqn RAF (first operational RAF Typhoon squadron) formed.
29 Mar 2007 (13 years after first flight): No.11 Sqn RAF stood up with Typhoons.
23 Apr 2008: RAF Typhoon written off after wheels-up landing at China Lake.
24 Aug 2010: Spanish Typhoon crashed after take-off with one fatality.
6 Sep 2010 (16 years after first flight): No.6 Sqn RAF stood up with Typhoons.
15 Sep 2012 (18 years after first flight): No.1 Sqn RAF stood up with Typhoons.
9 Jun 2014: Spanish Typhoon crashed on landing with one fatality.
9 Jan 2015 (21 years after first flight): No.2 Sqn RAF stood up with Typhoons.
2017 (23 years after first flight): Continued integration, trial and certification of outstanding weapons systems.