Delete comment from: Elements Of Power
Hi Mitchell,
A common AF-USN fighter would almost certainly result in either too high a weight and performance penalty on the AF version OR significant weaknesses and shortfalls in carrier suitability for the USN variant. I think the program took the best route, especially as to how commonality was a self-leveling effort. Excellent discussion on F-35 variant commonality and evolution and purpose here: http://esd.mit.edu/people/dissertations/boas.pdf .
While F-35 commonality has been measured by part-count and weight, it has not been assayed by relative cost. IMHO, the A and B model are far closer in design and execution than the A and C and even more closer than the B and C variants are when all factors are weighed.
Aug 8, 2015, 12:16:29 AM
Posted to CNO Nominee Richardson Got These F-35 Questions Too?