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  • Dubya

F-35 versus F-16I/F-15E/Tornado IDS/M2000D

This isn’t an actual comparison between the capabilities of these various aircraft but more of a question as to behind the design philosophy of the F-35.

Now I am going to make a few assumptions based on my limited knowledge of the F-35:

a.) It is a single seat aircraft
b.) It is predominantly a strike aircraft but still has A2A capabilities.

Now up until now the most capable strike aircraft have been mainly 2 seaters: the F-16I/F-15E/Tornado IDS/M2000D/F/A-18D etc. These aircraft still retain an A2A capability (more limited in the Tornado).

The advantage of a two seater is obvious – one is a pilot while the other is a Weapons Systems Officers. So basically one guy concentrates on flying the aircraft while the other concentrates on weapons delivery.

So does the single seat F-35 offer the same strike capabilities as the dual seat dedicated strike aircraft?

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