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Canada Buys New F-18s After Canceling Its Order for the F-35 Canada Buys New F-18s After Canceling Its Order for the F-35
You failed to add the last two words or the end of the complete sentence. "For Now"! Yep, they favor the F-18, "For Now". But, they will be back when the heavy lifting is complete, and it will be completed. Not a bad days work, using an Cruiser to bring down the enemy, thereby saving it's own ammo load for another unsuspecting drone or AC it acquired 125 miles out, flying blind. Not a bad days work at all. And honestly, so what, just think of what the follow on's will be capable of. That is probably the Canadian thinking, We will fly the FA18 in a backup role and allow the F35 ABC use us as it wishes, when it wishes. And perhaps they are waiting for the 2017 Black Friday sale. What ever, it simply does not matter. The "thirty five" rules, over and over and over, just like the Energizer Bunny.
Yaaah, there is a supply chain. There is precious little in it though as they are trying like hell to get aircraft to the squadrons. They are almost 900 aircraft short from what was promised. Guess what, the squadron supply chains aren't getting shit for a while. And it's not a new problem. It is a systemic problem that has been affecting almost all of the aircraft in the inventory. Amazingly enough the obama admin wished to buy shiny new toys, but, failed to adequately support them. Where have we heard that before?
'Wiped Out': Air Force losing pilots and planes to cuts, scrounging for spare parts
Then there is the shortage of parts, which is pushing the Air Force to get creative in order to keep these planes airborne. They have had to cannibalize out-of-service planes from what is known as "The Boneyard," a graveyard in the Arizona desert for jets that are no longer flying.
They strip old planes of parts, but now there aren't many left -- posing an obvious problem.
Like their counterparts in the Marine Corps, they even cannibalize museum aircraft to find the parts they need to get planes back into combat.
Capt. Travis Lytton, who works to keep his squadron of B-1’s airborne, showed Fox News a museum aircraft where his maintainers stripped a part in order to make sure one of his B-1s could steer properly on the ground.
'Wiped Out': Air Force losing pilots and planes to cuts, scrounging for spare parts
I can see you have never heard the name "Hangar Queen". Even though it's not supposed to happen, it is a fact of life. The Bird might be in hangar queen status for a week, or two then it's put back together and goes back on the line. This probably goes back to the Wright Flyer. Just a way to get the parts needed quicker than the normal supply chain. AS hard as you anti USAF idiots try, there is no story here.
"The Bone" is no longer in production including many of the spare parts. In the early 70s, we went through the same thing with the C-124C. It's not listed in the active inventory but low and behold, there sat two in Anchorage flying their merry heads off. Every "Shakey" was high time. They spent most of their lives flying over the water long distance flights. The reason they were still around was that they were the only bird in the inventory that could land on a gravel runway while carrying an eight wheeled emergency fire truck. When one was lost or would run out of time on the Air Frame we would either strip it in place (sinking it into the ocean) or fly the bird down to DM (boneyard), park it right next to the one we wanted, strip all the good stuff from one and transfer it to the one we are taking. We would fly the New? bird out of there. This is why the Boneyard was created. Using it may sound shocking to you but there really isn't any news here.
The AV8B has long since gone out of production. Just for spare parts, when the British retired their AV8As, the Marines bought them for their own boneyard so they would have parts. The parts are no longer in production so you do what you have to do.
All of these examples are to show that Hangar Queens, boneyards and easter egg hunts are as old as flight itself. Right now, the F-18C, F-16A, F-15C, B-52, all the aging birds are using up the resources quickly out of the Boneyards. When that resource has been consumed then all the rest join their ghosts in DM and meet the wrecking ball.
What may be cutting news to you may be old hat to us old timers. Three Aircraft come to mind as being headed the rest of the journey; AV8B, F-18C and A-10C. All three are no longer in production and are hanging on a wing and a prayer. All three's lives have been or are going to be life extended. But you can only do that for so long before they start falling out of the sky. Your "Breaking News" ain't so breaking at all. It's old history.
Dude, you are full of crap. I guarantee you I am far more versed in the history of the Air Force, and the workings thereof, than you ever will be. You are trying to compare an apple to a prime rib dinner. The fact remains that the obama admin has cut back on parts to such an extent that the ENTIRE aviation community is in dire straits. That includes the F-35 which in addition to being shortchanged in the supply logistics chain, is also so far behind its production targets that there was no way for them to get the planes flying when they broke up here.
That is a fact. I don't like it. But it is a fact. Trying to assert hangar queens as "normal" is horse poo. Yes, in a WAR ZONE they are a way of life. Not those CONUS bound you 'tard.
Just how many years do you have in Maintenance Management again? How many years do you have as a Line Chief. How about anything to do with management of the Aircraft themselves. News flash: When those birds hit the tarmac, they cease to be owned by the Crew. Maintenance now owns them and only loans them to the air crew for a few hours each day. Most Pilots don't have a clue what goes on in the background when they don't have the key in the ignition. All they know is that they have a mission to fly and the bird is sitting there configured for it at the right load, airworthy, and ready for them to do a short preflight and get it into the air.
Your denial of "Hangar Queens" is noted. You would know that it's against regulation. But it happens all the time. If if weren't for those Queens, the Tankers would be down for parts that will keep them down for a week or two. There just aren't enough air frames to go around for the amount of flying hours and missions. There never is. But if you sit in on a Chief of Maintanence meeting you will hear it mentioned. Bombers and Tankers always have one Hangar Queen around. It's not Regulation, but it is normal. Everyone from wing down knows it's going on but it's not something that is publically admitted. Just shows how far down the pike you really were.
A Bomber and a Tanker is ALWAYS at war. They operate as if they were at war to prevent war.
None. And none. And it doesn't matter. You were the worker bee. I knew your boss. And, he was a damned good friend of mine.
Then you are ill equipped to be making the bold statements you keep making. I can see you are capable of munging song lyrics as well. Since I had many bosses, how about naming just one.
I can see you have never heard the name "Hangar Queen". Even though it's not supposed to happen, it is a fact of life. The Bird might be in hangar queen status for a week, or two then it's put back together and goes back on the line. This probably goes back to the Wright Flyer. Just a way to get the parts needed quicker than the normal supply chain. AS hard as you anti USAF idiots try, there is no story here.
"The Bone" is no longer in production including many of the spare parts. In the early 70s, we went through the same thing with the C-124C. It's not listed in the active inventory but low and behold, there sat two in Anchorage flying their merry heads off. Every "Shakey" was high time. They spent most of their lives flying over the water long distance flights. The reason they were still around was that they were the only bird in the inventory that could land on a gravel runway while carrying an eight wheeled emergency fire truck. When one was lost or would run out of time on the Air Frame we would either strip it in place (sinking it into the ocean) or fly the bird down to DM (boneyard), park it right next to the one we wanted, strip all the good stuff from one and transfer it to the one we are taking. We would fly the New? bird out of there. This is why the Boneyard was created. Using it may sound shocking to you but there really isn't any news here.
The AV8B has long since gone out of production. Just for spare parts, when the British retired their AV8As, the Marines bought them for their own boneyard so they would have parts. The parts are no longer in production so you do what you have to do.
All of these examples are to show that Hangar Queens, boneyards and easter egg hunts are as old as flight itself. Right now, the F-18C, F-16A, F-15C, B-52, all the aging birds are using up the resources quickly out of the Boneyards. When that resource has been consumed then all the rest join their ghosts in DM and meet the wrecking ball.
What may be cutting news to you may be old hat to us old timers. Three Aircraft come to mind as being headed the rest of the journey; AV8B, F-18C and A-10C. All three are no longer in production and are hanging on a wing and a prayer. All three's lives have been or are going to be life extended. But you can only do that for so long before they start falling out of the sky. Your "Breaking News" ain't so breaking at all. It's old history.
Dude, you are full of crap. I guarantee you I am far more versed in the history of the Air Force, and the workings thereof, than you ever will be. You are trying to compare an apple to a prime rib dinner. The fact remains that the obama admin has cut back on parts to such an extent that the ENTIRE aviation community is in dire straits. That includes the F-35 which in addition to being shortchanged in the supply logistics chain, is also so far behind its production targets that there was no way for them to get the planes flying when they broke up here.
That is a fact. I don't like it. But it is a fact. Trying to assert hangar queens as "normal" is horse poo. Yes, in a WAR ZONE they are a way of life. Not those CONUS bound you 'tard.
Just how many years do you have in Maintenance Management again? How many years do you have as a Line Chief. How about anything to do with management of the Aircraft themselves. News flash: When those birds hit the tarmac, they cease to be owned by the Crew. Maintenance now owns them and only loans them to the air crew for a few hours each day. Most Pilots don't have a clue what goes on in the background when they don't have the key in the ignition. All they know is that they have a mission to fly and the bird is sitting there configured for it at the right load, airworthy, and ready for them to do a short preflight and get it into the air.
Your denial of "Hangar Queens" is noted. You would know that it's against regulation. But it happens all the time. If if weren't for those Queens, the Tankers would be down for parts that will keep them down for a week or two. There just aren't enough air frames to go around for the amount of flying hours and missions. There never is. But if you sit in on a Chief of Maintanence meeting you will hear it mentioned. Bombers and Tankers always have one Hangar Queen around. It's not Regulation, but it is normal. Everyone from wing down knows it's going on but it's not something that is publically admitted. Just shows how far down the pike you really were.
A Bomber and a Tanker is ALWAYS at war. They operate as if they were at war to prevent war.
None. And none. And it doesn't matter. You were the worker bee. I knew your boss. And, he was a damned good friend of mine.
Then you are ill equipped to be making the bold statements you keep making. I can see you are capable of munging song lyrics as well. Since I had many bosses, how about naming just one.
Why bother. The fact remains that you were a worker bee, a valued one no doubt, and no doubt your service was honorable. But your knowledge of the inner workings of the Air Force is minimal, as is mine. However, I at least was friends with Base Commanders, some of whom ARE well versed in the politics of the USAF. The earliest one that I was good friends with was Hub Zemke. He was a bit before your time, me thinks, but he taught me how to really ring the performance out of an aircraft, even the light aircraft I was flying at the time.
Daryl/Westwall, lighten up a bit guys. That is some advice from an aged First Sergeant in his mid70's. Nasty is simply nasty and more so when personal. You guys have to much going for yourselves to get personal. Again, please, lighten up a bit!
Daryl/Westwall, lighten up a bit guys. That is some advice from an aged First Sergeant in his mid70's. Nasty is simply nasty and more so when personal. You guys have to much going for yourselves to get personal. Again, please, lighten up a bit!
I'm game. I have zero to either lose or gain from this nonsense.
Gen. David Goldfein, the Air Force chief of staff, speaking during the State of the Air Force address at the Pentagon, said of the Air Force's dwindling dominance: "I believe it's a crisis: air superiority is not an American birthright. It's actually something you have to fight for and maintain."
Only one US airframe remains head-and-shoulders above any and all competition: the F-22 Raptor.
The US's military edge over Russia and China has come down to one plane
F-35 should have been zeroed out.....cross sig is what 25 times larger......and I would bet cost has been comparable as you are still fixing everyone you build and have built for zero combat capability after what 20 yrs
LLMMMAAOOOOO werent you guys saying fighter pilots loved its dog fight skills........better go back and read your posts over you are getting lost in your liesF-35 should have been zeroed out.....cross sig is what 25 times larger......and I would bet cost has been comparable as you are still fixing everyone you build and have built for zero combat capability after what 20 yrs
Considering our own ground and air radars have to get within 35 miles of the F-35 just to know it's there doesn't sound so bad. The Russians have to be even closer. If the F-35A has internal bombs (mini jdams) it can do a bomb toss well outside your radar.
Think of this, the Russians and the Chinese have Stealth looking AC but they aren't really stealthy. One way for them to save face is to announce they are working on a 6th gen fighter. Except, unless you can build a 5th gen (they can't) you really can't build a 6th gen either.
The ONLY thing that the F-35A doesn't do excellent is a real up close knife fight. Since the F-35A sees you first, he picks the fight. Not the other way around. And if it comes to an up close and personal I imagine that the Russians are more than likely mixing it up with the F-15C/E which matches or exceeds anything they have including the SU-35. Thrust Vectoring only works at low speeds. And if you are low speeds then you are going to be deader than dead. The F-15 will make the fight at just under transonic flight where your thrust vectoring has zero advantage. Use it at that speed and you can easily exceed 10 gees and turn your pilots brains to mush. Again, the F-15C/E will see them first and can dictate the beginning fight.
LLMMMAAOOOOO werent you guys saying fighter pilots loved its dog fight skills........better go back and read your posts over you are getting lost in your liesF-35 should have been zeroed out.....cross sig is what 25 times larger......and I would bet cost has been comparable as you are still fixing everyone you build and have built for zero combat capability after what 20 yrs
Considering our own ground and air radars have to get within 35 miles of the F-35 just to know it's there doesn't sound so bad. The Russians have to be even closer. If the F-35A has internal bombs (mini jdams) it can do a bomb toss well outside your radar.
Think of this, the Russians and the Chinese have Stealth looking AC but they aren't really stealthy. One way for them to save face is to announce they are working on a 6th gen fighter. Except, unless you can build a 5th gen (they can't) you really can't build a 6th gen either.
The ONLY thing that the F-35A doesn't do excellent is a real up close knife fight. Since the F-35A sees you first, he picks the fight. Not the other way around. And if it comes to an up close and personal I imagine that the Russians are more than likely mixing it up with the F-15C/E which matches or exceeds anything they have including the SU-35. Thrust Vectoring only works at low speeds. And if you are low speeds then you are going to be deader than dead. The F-15 will make the fight at just under transonic flight where your thrust vectoring has zero advantage. Use it at that speed and you can easily exceed 10 gees and turn your pilots brains to mush. Again, the F-15C/E will see them first and can dictate the beginning fight.
So its a specialty plane that wont do much fighting of its own because its under armed.....slow and low,,,,but each carrier will carry say half squadron of em to help out awacs and suchLLMMMAAOOOOO werent you guys saying fighter pilots loved its dog fight skills........better go back and read your posts over you are getting lost in your liesF-35 should have been zeroed out.....cross sig is what 25 times larger......and I would bet cost has been comparable as you are still fixing everyone you build and have built for zero combat capability after what 20 yrs
Considering our own ground and air radars have to get within 35 miles of the F-35 just to know it's there doesn't sound so bad. The Russians have to be even closer. If the F-35A has internal bombs (mini jdams) it can do a bomb toss well outside your radar.
Think of this, the Russians and the Chinese have Stealth looking AC but they aren't really stealthy. One way for them to save face is to announce they are working on a 6th gen fighter. Except, unless you can build a 5th gen (they can't) you really can't build a 6th gen either.
The ONLY thing that the F-35A doesn't do excellent is a real up close knife fight. Since the F-35A sees you first, he picks the fight. Not the other way around. And if it comes to an up close and personal I imagine that the Russians are more than likely mixing it up with the F-15C/E which matches or exceeds anything they have including the SU-35. Thrust Vectoring only works at low speeds. And if you are low speeds then you are going to be deader than dead. The F-15 will make the fight at just under transonic flight where your thrust vectoring has zero advantage. Use it at that speed and you can easily exceed 10 gees and turn your pilots brains to mush. Again, the F-15C/E will see them first and can dictate the beginning fight.
I don't need to read my own posts. The F-35 has the ability to vector in other birds weapons without firing a shot themselves. This means that the F-15/16/18 that are lurching just beyond enemy radar range can fire and the F-35 can guide it in. The F-35 is now a huge force multiplier. The only thing the enemy will see is the barrage of incoming ordinance. It's just another tool in the US Grab bag of magic.
The U.S. Navy plans to divest its older model Boeing Co (BA.N) F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets in coming years and hopes to buy dozens of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to deal with a shortfall of strike fighters aboard its carriers, a Navy official said. U.S. Navy aims to buy more Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets: source More proof you will not be seeing F-35 in combat for yrs.......or will see just the ones that have been made cause cancellation it right around the corner
So its a specialty plane that wont do much fighting of its own because its under armed.....slow and low,,,,but each carrier will carry say half squadron of em to help out awacs and suchLLMMMAAOOOOO werent you guys saying fighter pilots loved its dog fight skills........better go back and read your posts over you are getting lost in your liesF-35 should have been zeroed out.....cross sig is what 25 times larger......and I would bet cost has been comparable as you are still fixing everyone you build and have built for zero combat capability after what 20 yrs
Considering our own ground and air radars have to get within 35 miles of the F-35 just to know it's there doesn't sound so bad. The Russians have to be even closer. If the F-35A has internal bombs (mini jdams) it can do a bomb toss well outside your radar.
Think of this, the Russians and the Chinese have Stealth looking AC but they aren't really stealthy. One way for them to save face is to announce they are working on a 6th gen fighter. Except, unless you can build a 5th gen (they can't) you really can't build a 6th gen either.
The ONLY thing that the F-35A doesn't do excellent is a real up close knife fight. Since the F-35A sees you first, he picks the fight. Not the other way around. And if it comes to an up close and personal I imagine that the Russians are more than likely mixing it up with the F-15C/E which matches or exceeds anything they have including the SU-35. Thrust Vectoring only works at low speeds. And if you are low speeds then you are going to be deader than dead. The F-15 will make the fight at just under transonic flight where your thrust vectoring has zero advantage. Use it at that speed and you can easily exceed 10 gees and turn your pilots brains to mush. Again, the F-15C/E will see them first and can dictate the beginning fight.
I don't need to read my own posts. The F-35 has the ability to vector in other birds weapons without firing a shot themselves. This means that the F-15/16/18 that are lurching just beyond enemy radar range can fire and the F-35 can guide it in. The F-35 is now a huge force multiplier. The only thing the enemy will see is the barrage of incoming ordinance. It's just another tool in the US Grab bag of magic.
No ...no you wont which is why they are buying these.....I think specialty plane is best you'll get out of it....cant dogfight......20 times larger rcs than F-22.....no range.......no ability to carry ample weapons.......really is a disaster for what it was designed asThe U.S. Navy plans to divest its older model Boeing Co (BA.N) F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets in coming years and hopes to buy dozens of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to deal with a shortfall of strike fighters aboard its carriers, a Navy official said. U.S. Navy aims to buy more Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets: source More proof you will not be seeing F-35 in combat for yrs.......or will see just the ones that have been made cause cancellation it right around the corner
They will see the F-35C in force in 2018. In the meantime, they have to get those flying coffins off the boats and into storage where they belong. The Navy will also have the support of the Marine F-35B in the meantime. The F-35B is already capable of taking over and directing in ship fired weapons.
Nice try, Cupcake.
It is a very serious problem.
Military procurement bureaucrats listened to generals who wanted too much for too little. They wanted a stealth version of the Osprey that could do the VTOL stuff while flying at Mach+ speeds carrying a huge variety of armaments and payloads.
They got what they should've expected.
No ...no you wont which is why they are buying these.....I think specialty plane is best you'll get out of it....cant dogfight......20 times larger rcs than F-22.....no range.......no ability to carry ample weapons.......really is a disaster for what it was designed asThe U.S. Navy plans to divest its older model Boeing Co (BA.N) F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets in coming years and hopes to buy dozens of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to deal with a shortfall of strike fighters aboard its carriers, a Navy official said. U.S. Navy aims to buy more Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets: source More proof you will not be seeing F-35 in combat for yrs.......or will see just the ones that have been made cause cancellation it right around the corner
They will see the F-35C in force in 2018. In the meantime, they have to get those flying coffins off the boats and into storage where they belong. The Navy will also have the support of the Marine F-35B in the meantime. The F-35B is already capable of taking over and directing in ship fired weapons.
Nice try, Cupcake.
It is a very serious problem.
Military procurement bureaucrats listened to generals who wanted too much for too little. They wanted a stealth version of the Osprey that could do the VTOL stuff while flying at Mach+ speeds carrying a huge variety of armaments and payloads.
They got what they should've expected.
This is two major aircraft that have fizzled due to over reliance on stealth. The RAH66 Comanche was goring to be the most advance rotary aircraft of all time. On paper it was a stealth killing machine that made Werewolves howl in terror. In real life it was a pig that was unstable and easy to detect. At least we kept the Apache fleet.
The big concern with the JSF is they want to mothball the Hornets, Raptors and other effective fighters.
