The F-35 Lightning II was the design chosen in 2001 by the United States Department of Defense for the Joint Strike fighter competition. The Lockheed Martin X-35 design was deemed superior in most categories and was chosen over Boeing‘s X-32 design. The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is named so because of the collaboration on the project, mainly between the United States and United Kingdom. There are several other countries that are a smaller part of the project and may ultimately end up purchasing some of the aircraft when they go into production.
The main goal of the F-35 project was to design a multi role aircraft for a variety of missions and to develop three distinct variations. The project was intended to lower production costs by developing one airframe to be used with several variations. By sharing the airframe they can mass produce the majority of the aircraft and then add on components and parts that are specific to the role of the aircraft.
Design
The F-35 Lightning II is fairly similar to an F-22 Raptor and does draw several key elements from it. However, it is quite a bit smaller and utilizes a single engine as opposed to the F-22‘s twin engine design. The F-35 Lightning II is currently being developed with three variations, F-35A, F-35B, F-35C, with each variation performing a slightly different role with enhanced capabilities for each specific role.
The F-35A is the base model with the lowest production cost and the most limited capabilities. This is a conventional take off and landing model that will complement the F-15 & F-22 models that are currently in operation. This model will have limited air to air attack capabilities and will be mainly utilized by the United States Air Force. This model will likely be purchased by countries such as, Italy, Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Denmark and others.
The F-35B is designed as a Short Take Off Vertical Landing (STOVL) aircraft that is tasked with replacing the Harrier class of jets that are currently used by both the United States and United Kingdoms military. This has been the most complicated model to design and has taken much longer than anticipated due to a variety of issues. The major problem being the weight, with the initial design being far overweight. They ultimately came up with a solution of reducing the size of the internal weapons bay, thus reducing the amount of weapons that could be carried. The F-35A and F-35C variants have a weapons bay payload of 2,000 lbs, with the F-35B have a weapons bay capacity of only 1,000lbs.
The F-35C is mainly designed for the United States Navy as a carrier based aircraft that is planned to complement the existing fleet of F-18E/F aircraft. The C variant is designed as a stealth attack jet with an increased range and precise landing capability for use on air craft carriers. The major difference in this design is the wing area, which is 35% larger than the other models. This results in the ability to carry a larger amount of fuel for increased range and greater lift at low speeds. The other variations included enhanced landing gear, catapult launch bar, arrester hook and other features necessary for a carrier based aircraft.
Development
The joint strike fighter program initially moved quickly, with the project receiving initial approval in 2001 and the first test flight on December 15, 2006. Since that time there have only been thirteen F-35 Lightning II test units built. The plans call for a total of 2,443 aircraft to be built for the United States Military at a projected cost of $323 billion. This is the most expensive undertaking ever funded by the United States Department of Defense. The reasoning behind funding such a large project is to simultaneously replace several aircraft models, rather than replacing them one at a time.
The purpose of the JSF project was to develop a common airframe with several variations to ultimately replace the following aircraft: F-16, A-10, F/A-18, AV-8B. The thought at the time was that it would reduce production costs and time by sharing approximately 80% of the parts between different models. The idea seems to make sense in theory but in actuality it has not worked out as smoothly as initially expected. For example, in January 2011 the F-35B variant has been put on a two year probationary period as a result of delays and design complications.
The rising costs of per unit production have increased drastically from an estimated $45 million per unit in 2004 to an estimated $120 million per unit in 2010. This has resulted in a lot of speculation that the program will not produce the large amounts of aircraft that were initially planned. The progress of the F-35 Lightning II in the next few years will dictate whether or not the program is an overall success or failure.
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