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The F-35 Program Is Now 20 Years Old

The first operational F-35 is delivered to Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., on July 14, 2011. (Samuel King Jr./US Air Force) 

Breaking Defense: The F-35 At 20: How Its Successes, And Failures, Shaped The Aerospace Industry 

The takeaway from the last 20 years, according to aerospace analyst Richard Aboulafia, might well be, “You succeeded, but please don’t try that again.” 

WASHINGTON: On Friday, Oct. 26, 2001, executives and employees from the nation’s two biggest defense primes gathered in boardrooms and sprawling production facilities to watch a Pentagon press conference. 

At stake: the Joint Strike Fighter competition, which would decide who would dominate the next 40 years of the defense aerospace industry — and rake in hundreds of billions in profits. It was a moment five years in the making. The Pentagon wanted to buy a single stealth aircraft for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps capable of three distinct operational requirements: conventional landings on a runway, landing on aircraft carriers, and performing short takeoffs and vertical landings.  

Read more .... 

More News On The F-35 Program  

Raytheon CEO: Air Force may not be able to afford new F-35 engine -- Defense News  

Fund the F-35 program, lawmakers tell the White House -- Defense News 

Lockheed Expects Revenue Decline Amid F-35 Cuts, Afghanistan Pullout -- Defense One  

Air Force Begins Moving First Permanent F-35 Squadron into Europe -- Military.com  

The Stealthy F-35 Fighter Jet Is One Step Closer to Carrying Nuclear Weapons -- Military.com  

World’s ‘Most Dangerous’ Stealth Fighter Jet – Why F-35 Lightning II Easily Beats F-22 Raptor, J-20 & Su-57 In Lethality? -- EurAsian Times  

The Five Most Important Facts About F-35 Fighter Sustainment -- Forbes 

Why the F-35 is Crucial to U.S. Air Supremacy -- National Interest



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