News>F-35 is backbone of Air Force's future fighter fleet, Welsh says
Photos
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III (center) answers a question posed to him from a subcommittee member during a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Defense Subcommittee, on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C., June 19, 2013.The subcommittee met to receive testimony on the F-35 Lightning II, joint strike fighter fiscal 2014 budget request. During the hearing, Welsh talked about the importance of the aircraft for national security and helping provide air superiority for joint operations. Along with Welsh providing testimony were: Frank Kendall, under secretary for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics; U.S. Navy Adm. Jonathan Greenert, chief of Naval Operations; Gen. John M. Paxton, Jr., assistant commandant of the Marine Corps; and Lt. Gen. Christopher C. Bogdan, the program executive officer for the Department of Defense's F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office. (U.S. Air Force photo/Jim Varhegyi)
Lt. Gen. Christopher C. Bogdan testifies before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Defense Subcommittee, about the Joint Strike Fighter program during a hearing June 19, 2013, on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. Bogdan is the program executive officer for the Department of Defense's F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office. (U.S. Air Force photo/Jim Varhegyi)
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III (center) answers a question posed to him from a subcommittee member during a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Defense Subcommittee, June 19, 2013, on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.The subcommittee met to receive testimony on the F-35 Lightning II, Joint Strike Fighter fiscal 2014 budget request. During the hearing, Welsh talked about the importance of the aircraft for national security and helping provide air superiority for joint operations. (U.S. Air Force photo/Jim Varhegyi)
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III (center) answers a question posed to him from a subcommittee member during a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Defense Subcommittee, on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C., June 19, 2013.The subcommittee met to receive testimony on the F-35 Lightning II, joint strike fighter fiscal 2014 budget request. During the hearing, Welsh talked about the importance of the aircraft for national security and helping provide air superiority for joint operations. Along with Welsh providing testimony were: Frank Kendall, under secretary for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics; U.S. Navy Adm. Jonathan Greenert, chief of Naval Operations, left; Gen. John M. Paxton, Jr., assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, right; and Lt. Gen. Christopher C. Bogdan, the program executive officer for the Department of Defense's F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office. (U.S. Air Force photo/Jim Varhegyi)
by Master Sgt. Angelita Colón-Francia
Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs
6/20/2013 - WASHINGTON, D.C. (AFNS) -- The Air Force's most advanced strike aircraft, the F-35 Lightning II, is a vital capability that the nation needs to stay ahead of adversary technological gains, the Air Force chief of staff told a Senate panel here, June 19.
Testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Defense, Gen. Mark A. Welsh III said air superiority is critical to the nation's security and how the U.S. military plans to fight.
"The air superiority this nation has enjoyed for 60 years is not an accident and gaining and maintaining it is not easy," Welsh said. "It requires trained proficient and ready Airmen and it requires credible, capable and technologically superior aircraft. I believe the F-35 is essential to ensuring we can provide that air superiority in the future."
The F-35 is an unprecedented fifth generation fighter combining stealth technology with fighter speed and agility, fully integrated sensors and network enabled operations, and state-of-the-art avionics. However, design issues and production costs have put the F-35 program in real jeopardy.
Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall told the committee he believe those concerns have been addressed.
"The department's and my focus has been on the efforts to control costs on the program, and to achieve a more stable design so that we could increase the production rate to more economical quantities," Kendall testified. "Indications at this time are that these efforts are succeeding."
The Air Force intends to use a portion of the proposed fiscal 2014 budget to support current defense strategic guidance and modernization programs like the F-35.
"Potential adversaries are acquiring fighters on par with or better than our legacy fourth generation fleet," Welsh told the committee. "They're developing sophisticated early warning radar systems and employing better surface to air missile systems, and this at a time when our fighter fleet numbers about 2,000 aircraft and averages a little over 23 years of age -- the smallest and the oldest in the Air Force's history."
Welsh said America needs the F-35 to stay a step ahead and to "make sure the future fight is an away game and to minimize our risk to our ground forces when conflict inevitably does occur."
"The F-35 is the only real, viable option to form the backbone of our future fighter fleet," he said. "The F-35 remains the best platform to address the proliferation of highly capable integrated air defenses and new air-to-air threats."
Comments
6/26/2013 10:38:23 AM ET The F-15 Silet Eagle with its stealth features electronic defense suite proven platform-logistics tail excellent payload and Boeing's on-time track record for fighter aircraft is a viable and less expensive alternative to the F-35 for global air forces.
Mark Avery, MidWest
6/25/2013 11:03:03 AM ET LtCol Phillips I am intimately familiar with the legacy of GD and the F-16 as well as the F-22 and F-35. I can class it as a There I Was... Your comment hit the nail on the head
Max in OK, Okla Tex
6/21/2013 12:11:56 PM ET As each new aircraft gets more expensive we can procure fewer of them. This Death Spiral is clearly seen in the F-22 and F-35. The current price is due to the DoD asking for stealth a technology of suspect usefulness. Max should note the Lockheed - began as General Dynamics - F-16 which is a very successful program.But the failure of the F-22 and F-35 will leave the General Dynamics F-16 and the McDonnell Douglas F-15 two companies who's legacy will far outlive them as the dominant US fighters for the next 30 years.
Charles D Phillips LtCol USAF ret, Houston Texas
6/21/2013 8:51:29 AM ET The F-35 is cutting edge technology The only issue with this jet right now is the manufacturer. Those who have been placed over this project to see it through fruition are the same ones who put the F-22 into a Death Spiral. The F-22 is without a doubt one of the finest fighters flying however as a Lockheed-Martin projectprogram it was a grand failure The concept of cost quality and schedule is lost. The fact remains Lockheed builds great cargo aircraft and 'Black' aircraft. However they have not actually built a successful fighter since the P-38.
