Thanks Doug for the pic!
Well that didn't take long.
SAAB was quick on the trigger and I've noticed that they're striking at that big gaping weak spot when it comes to the F-35. .
Will it actually work?
Sidenote: A blast from the past when it comes to this airplanes price can be found here. Bogdan's been on a cost cutting kick from the first day of his tenure.
Well that didn't take long.
SAAB was quick on the trigger and I've noticed that they're striking at that big gaping weak spot when it comes to the F-35. .
Will it actually work?
Sidenote: A blast from the past when it comes to this airplanes price can be found here. Bogdan's been on a cost cutting kick from the first day of his tenure.
EPB has a graphic on JSF v. Gripen here.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome!
ReplyDeleteThere was also this gem:
https://twitter.com/GripenNews/status/489114320676995072
"200,000+ flight hours without engine incident"? I wonder who this is directed at?
;)
Denmark
Delete..."with a product that actually works." --ouch
ReplyDeleteRecent F-35 test report:
" Overall suitability performance continues to be immature, and relies heavily on contractor support and workarounds unacceptable for combat operations."
I feel like I'm watching a TV show where the defense contractors are actually people and Lockheed was just bitch slapped by Saab.
ReplyDelete"With a product that actually works"..........this comming from a company that Bankrupted their whole Automobile Range. Funny. Now i see the humor.
ReplyDeleteWho said the Swedes didnt have a sence of Humor ?
DeleteNot the same company...
DeleteSAAB AB is separated entirely from the aerospacial company.
DeleteAnd now they are going ahead with Sea-Gripen.
ReplyDeleteWill Brazil be getting Carrier Version of the Grippens, or just Air Force Model ?
ReplyDeleteThe deal with Brazil is with one and two seat versions of the AF version.
DeleteBut Saab mentioned Brazil, India and Thailand as countries with ambitions for a modern naval based fighter.
Our deal is, currently, exclusive for ground based Gripens for the Air Force. Future purchases and variants will be built with Embraer, IF funded properly (something I don't think will happen)
DeleteThat being said, our Navy is looking into a possible carrier-based version, but our carrier is a piece of shit and a good part of the budget is wasted on it. So, my guess is SAAB will promptly work with the Navy to build a naval version if there's funding available, but it won't be usable by our Naval Air force proper because our carrier is non-functional.
other findings in the most recent DOT&E Test Report:
ReplyDeleteWeapons integration, which includes both flight sciences and mission systems test events, did not make the planned progress in CY13.
The current ALIS capability forces maintenance operations into numerous workarounds and causes delays in determining aircraft status and conducting maintenance.
The F-35 is ...vulnerable to ballistically-induced propellant fire from all combat threats.
The vulnerability of the F-35 to electrical system ballistic damage remains an open question.
Buffet and transonic roll-off (TRO) continue to be a concern to achieving operational capability for all variants.
..deficiencies seen in bonding of the skin under high-temperature [afterburner use] and high-airspeed conditions.
Progress through weapons safe-separation testing was behind the planned schedule.
Progress through the work needed to release the Block 2B flight envelope also lagged the plan.
The program did not make the planned progress in developing and testing mission systems capabilities.
The test team accomplished only 54 percent of the planned 2013 baseline mission systems test points from test plans for Blocks 1,2A, and 2B [software] by the end of October.
...deficiencies in the aircraft sensor operations, particularly the Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS), aircraft communications capabilities, pilot electronic interfaces, and the aircraft Caution, Advisory, and Warning System.
In any type of operational mission scenario, the performance of the software would be unacceptable.
These aircraft were delivered in the Block 2A [software] configuration, but with less capability than defined by the production contract. Specifically, 22 of 47 (47 percent) of the capabilities defined in the production contract were not complete when the aircraft were delivered.
and wait, there's more:
ReplyDeleteInitial results with the new increment of Block 2B software indicate deficiencies still exist in fusion, radar, electronic warfare, navigation, EOTS, Distributed Aperture System (DAS), Helmet-Mounted Display System (HMDS), and datalink.
Deficiencies in the HMDS [system include]:
--Filters for reducing the effects of jitter have been helpful, but have introduced instability, or “swimming,” of the projected symbology.
--Night vision acuity was assessed as not acceptable.
--Latency with the DAS projection has improved from earlier versions of software, but has not yet been tested in operationally representative scenarios.
The EOTS [Electro-Optical Targeting System] to meet target recognition ranges, exhibits track instability in portions of its field-of-view, and large line-of-sight angle and azimuth errors when computing target locations.
The DAS [Distributed Aperture System] has displayed a high false alarm rate for missile detections during ownship and formation flare testing. The inability of the DAS to distinguish between flares and threat missiles makes the warning system ineffective and reduces pilot situational awareness.
The onboard navigation solution – referred to as the ownship kinematic model – has shown excessive position and velocity errors.
The radar mapping function does not provide adequate target location accuracy.
Weapons integration has been slowed by discoveries of deficiencies requiring software fixes and additional testing.
In the F-35B, the program halted [durability] testing in December 2012 after multiple cracks were found in a bulkhead (FS472) flange on the underside of the fuselage during the 7,000 hour inspection.
Restrictions on the aircraft operating limits prevented instruction in most high performance maneuvering and flight through instrument meteorological conditions (i.e., clouds).
Mission systems were still immature, but generally unnecessary for this phase of training since no combat training could be performed.
Overall suitability performance continues to be immature, and relies heavily on contractor support and workarounds unacceptable for combat operations. Aircraft availability and measures of reliability and maintainability are all below program target values for the current stage of development.
LockMart of course sees it differently
ReplyDeleteSetting the Bar for 5th Generation Fighters
Feature Article // July 01, 2014
For more than a decade, the world has witnessed the F-35 Lightning II mature into an unmatched 5th Generation aircraft, combining advanced stealth, fighter speed and agility, fully-fused sensor information, network-enabled operations and advanced sustainment into a world-class air superiority machine. In the process, it has set the bar as the most flexible, technologically sophisticated multirole fighter in the world that meets the needs of both U.S. and allied military forces.//
I guess LM didn't read the test report. It "set the bar" and then tripped on it.
I've focused on the F-35 performance shortfalls. There are many other problems including fuselage and spar cracking, etc. Please read the F-35 test report for many more details.
ReplyDeleteNobody should want to buy these aircraft at escalated prices.
Nice report Don.
DeleteThe tidbits I liked:
1) Aircraft availability averaged just 37% across all bases, with the average being much lower than this for the last 6 months. The goal was 75%.
2) The aircraft has 2 electrical systems with different voltages, and enemy fire could cause arcs to form between them. Seriously damaging the electronic flight controls.
3) My favorite (because I saw it coming from the beginning):
“Analyses showed that fragment-induced damage could result in the release of more than 25 percent of a single lift fan blade, resulting in a catastrophic STOVL system failure.”
But…
“The F-35 has no sensors to warn the pilot of lift fan damage prior to conversion to STOVL flight upon return for landing. Conversion to STOVL flight puts high loads on the quickly accelerating system components that can result in catastrophic failure before the pilot can react and return the aircraft to wing-borne flight, or can create uncontained damage that cascades into other critical system failures.”
Ruh Roh Shaggy!!!
Once spotted, it can't run... can't dogfight... and if it does somehow win the engagement it can't limp back home for repairs with any certainty of being able to land in one piece on anything but a full runway. Lovely!
More from SAAB: http://forum.keypublishing.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=228911&d=1401868937
ReplyDeleteNote where even SAAB place the capability of the Gripen!
you're failing to look at that chart properly. what i see is an airplane that almost gives you the capability of the F-35 but at the operating cost of an F-5.
Deletethat is kind of important to cash strapped western nations don't ya think? we won't even talk about 2nd and 3rd world countries that are looking for fighters.
Funny how there isn't a queue lining up for the Gripen then...
ReplyDelete