Page 20 - Renorming of Airpower: The F-35 Enters the Combat Fleet

The Renorming of Airpower: The F-35 Arrives into the Combat Force

When you’re traveling at those speeds, we are talking really only a couple of seconds that you have.
And, if you’re not performing tactics exactly as they’re prescribed, you put yourself in a kill zone.
With the F-35, we are jumping a generation in tactics and now looking at the expanded battlespace where we
can expand our impact and effect.
You need to take a generational leap so we are the ones not playing catch up with our adversaries.

FIGURE 4 FLYBY OF F-35CS OVER THE USS NIMITZ DURING DEVELOPMENTAL TESTING, FALL 2015.

And looking forward with regard to the F-35 and its evolving capabilities, Ninja highlighted a number of key
aspects.
This is one of the first aircraft that you can take off and after about two flights dropping bombs, and firing
weapons.
Your mission systems are so good that you can start operating weapons very early in your training and
operations.
We have to air-to-air pilots working with air-to-ground pilots and merging the cultures.
You are not focusing on your sensors; you are focusing on the end objective of your mission.
The big difference with this aircraft is situational awareness.
You see everything, and I mean on the surface and on the ground and you command attack, defense and
electronic warfare functions within the aircraft.
In short, the plane is here and is already reshaping the thinking of several air powers, the USMC, the USAF,
the USN, the Australian RAAF has generated its Plan Jericho to leverage the plane, the RAF sees it as a key
part of its triple transition involving modernization of Eurofighter intersected with the F-35s flying from their
new carrier, the Italians are doing a double transition with Eurofighter modernization with F-35s, the
Norwegians and Dutch are preparing to fly an all fifth generation fleet. And all of these squadron pilots are
currently flying together at Luke AFB with the F-35As and for the USMC and RAF at Beaufort Air Station with
the Bs.
The future is now
Second Line of Defense

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