they had similar arguments with piston and jet engines, some saw piston superior to jets and we know how that worked out

They do?

like 5th gen, this 6th gen UCAV is just a passing fad,
soon everyone will realise that 4+ gen with expensive standoff weapons will rule the sky

You said that every model needs full stealth and that is not true. The export versions will vary in their level of stealth.

try and keep up, aussies are getting the transformer one, you know, the one that turns into a bad ass robot plane
we will go around crushing everyone between our jaws

I partially agree. But while FS can be provocative, I think he deserves much more respect than …….. and …….. to (not)name a few.

One mission among others.

This is why we “raise our eyebrows” when we read “when the rafale was designed as a low level bomber”.

when i said fighter defense, i thought that covered its a2a role
i did actually read that one of the original rcs reduction was to put the air intakes under the over hanging fuselage, to provide protection from higher radar on low alt bomb runs
blending the wings to the fuselage is another original rcs reduction
i dont know of a 4,5 gen that is survivable doing bomb runs at 25,000 ft

I hope so, but on StrategyPage, they aren’t sarcastic when they write about Rafale history. There is something comparable to creationism with Rafale.:D

thats funny, bluewings and french strategy on StrategyPage fit that definition for me
the rafale is a good plane, its when its given magical qualities i raise my eyebrows
wasnt the rafale designed as omnirole, fighter defense and self escorted with ground hugging radar for low alt bomb runs

i think you will find, as in all planes boats etc, the faster you go, the more drag, the more fuel you burn

the same would apply if we brought rafales, i dont see your point

but not being able to maintain it yourself is a definite flaw…. what if you go to war and your supplier estimates you shouldn’t? or simply has ties with your enemy of teh day? look at argentina in 1982. they bought aircraft but the antiship missiles remained in france. when they started sinking UK ships, Uk asked the french not to deliver and they didn’t.

what if the US decide not to support your aircraft while you go to fight a war? no more air support, no more air superiority with the lovely shiny (well, not so shiny in reality, but you get the picture) and COSTLY toy you bought from them… I’m not even talking about putting new stuff on it or modifying it, but simply maintaining the aircraft.

yes we had that problem with one of the nordics when we went to vietnam
a good lesson, never buy off someone that doesnt share your views of the world