When you’re sending a $100 mil fighter and its crew, into a high threat environment, you want its threat libraries and heuristic algorithms to be as effective as possible. The US has the widest, most intensive sigint/techint collection program in the world. You get access to that through the F-35 one hand while the program gets access to new data detected by your operational aircraft. A symbiotic relationship.

But the idea that the aircraft is crippled if this doesn’t happen on a sortie-by-sortie basis… …is beyond absurd.

OK, that makes sense to me. Thanks.

Even if they don’t receive an update on time, Turkish F-35s will still have no problems striking their target. It will have little short term impact. (To stick with the Apple analogy – updating your iPhone/iMac every month instead of every day doesn’t stop it from working properly now does it?)

That makes sense, too.

If your relationship with the US is one where there’s even a possibility of actual sabotage (deliberately placing your soldiers & pilots in harm’s way), then the F-35 isn’t the aircraft for you. Fortunately, this doesn’t apply to any of the countries the F-35 is being sold or marketed to.

Not so sure that every country supplied with F-35 will never embark on missions that run counter to US policy.

In a manner that recalls Apple’s ability to exert perpetual control over all iPhones by making it impossible for them to long function without periodically updating their operating systems, the US has made it impossible for foreign governments to simply purchase F-35s and use them as they see fit.

As Defense-Aerospace.com reported last November, “All F-35 aircraft operating across the world will have to update their mission data files and their Autonomic Logistic Information System (ALIS) profiles before and after every sortie, to ensure that on-board systems are programmed with the latest available operational data and that ALIS is kept permanently informed of each aircraft’s technical status and maintenance requirements.

“ALIS can, and has, prevented aircraft taking off because of an incomplete data file,” the report revealed.

I see a risk that F-35 operation can be controlled by the US government, whoever the operator is. If F-35 user A wants to strike a target and the USA government disagrees, the user can be prevented from striking that target by being denied updates to their mission data files. Come to think of it, won’t the USA inevitably know what a user’s government is planning to do militarily if mission data files have to be updated in the USA? I can’t imagine there being a Chinese wall at LM where the government agrees that LM will not leak military secrets of other countries to the US government.

Saudi Signs $3 Billion Deal with UK for BAE Hawk Trainer Jets

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/171405/bae-wins-%243bn-saudi-order-for-hawk-jet-trainers.html

I’m interested to know how different maintenance will be for F-35 compared with, say, F-16 in terms of the work the user does. I imagine an air force equipped with F-16 does all the maintenance required to keep the aircraft operational itself. What work required to keep F-35 operational cannot be undertaken by the air force operating it?

I observe the situation on the Russian side.
The insolence of the US and NATO “knows no bounds”. State of Russia – 1000 years, its “childhood diseases” is over. Now an adult, experienced “man” (40 – 45 years).
USA – 200 years This is a young man of 18 – 25 years. He “does not know what he was doing.” He knows only one word – “I want to”. He thinks only of himself and his own interests.
The United States in 1945 – 1991 years repeatedly provoked the Soviet Union. Only the the common sense of the Soviet Union saved the world from disaster.

US occupied Europe, Japan and other places. They have placed military bases around the world. What for?
They used to call an enemy of communism. Today, Russia is not communist. In Russia, capitalism, as in the US.
What is the problem?

Approximation of NATO to Russia’s borders. “Orange Revolution” in the former Soviet Union – the result of CIA activities. Financing of a “fifth column” in Russia.
All this creates a danger to the country’s territorial integrity and its statehood. What is surprising is that Russia has decided to defend themselves?

Motives operations in Syria, I do not understand. I guess I look for them in mysticism.

If Turkey will dare again “prick Bear”, then it will lose control of the Black Sea Straits and part of its territory. In any case, the period of tension (or war) will end in 2018.

Thanks for your thoughts.

US occupied Europe, Japan and other places. They have placed military bases around the world. What for?
They used to call an enemy of communism. Today, Russia is not communist. In Russia, capitalism, as in the US.
What is the problem?

Good questions. I do not think USA would be happy if Russia had bases in Canada and Mexico.

But do not forget that Russia does not have a history of valuing freedom. Russia occupied most of eastern Europe for about 50 years. The people in those countries hated Russia removing their freedom.

Guys, why so much garbage in your heads?

What is your opinion of Russian foreign policy? Can you explain an increase in activity where more Russian aircraft are being intercepted in Europe? I ask because you are based in Russia. How do you suggest that the current situation of tension can be calmed?