Since the existence (and technology behind) the F-117 was not released until after the RFI, it makes sense that stealth was not a major factor in the early designs.
Notice that the canards in Lockheed’s RFI concept are retractable. Also notice that the RFI concept from Lockheed looks nothing like the F-22, but an SR-71.
–update
There was a follow-on to the RFP (1985) that emphasized LO for the RFP. Since the RFP was 4 years AFTER the RFI, it is safe to say that LO was not a significant part of the RFI.
Page 56 of this book:
http://books.google.com/books?id=uCI5KhlGM4kC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=&f=false
Good catch.. I must have missed that when I did the FY2011 updates. Here is an updated one. I also changed the original to show the correction.
The only fantasy here is that F-35 meets ANY cost plans. And the whole mess around it clearly reflects that. For me this is end of story.
Once again, you show absolutely no ability to do any research.
For the first 4 LRIP F-35As, the final price (in REC Flyaway) was cheaper after all the bills came in (2 years after ordering) compared to what the ordering quote was.
While the Development costs have gone up due to delays, the cost to actually produce the F-35 is stable.
Toan, you can actually see the REC flyaway (no Ancillary or non-recurring costs) for the F-35. Here is a graph based on US Budget docs.
Deltawings has by far lower RCS then a conventional a/c by virtue of lower thickness and abcense of horizontal tail surfaces, easily negating any edge alignment, everything else being equal.
LOL… ow wait, are you serious?
Edge alignment means more than just the leading and trailing edges of the wings and tails. Every panel edge is also aligned. Here is a large photo that shows proper edge alignment.
I also like how you conveniently left out the RCS disadvantages of a canard on both of those deltawings.
Tell that your grandma. Originally specified ISD was 2008 for the USMC… 6 month behind the revised schedules. :rolleyes:
This is a slide from 2001. It clearly shows, PRE-SWAT, that the IOC for the USMC was 2010, not 2008.
There may have been some people, pre X-35, who thought that it could be done by 2008, but when they met up with people who actually develop & build planes, they had to face reality.
If you meant that POST-SWAT, the FF for STOVL was supposed to be 2008, then yes it is late by 2 years.
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