F-35A Fighter Jet

F-35A Fighter Jet

#GS 03 Science and Technology

For Prelims

F-35A Fighter Jet

  • The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft that has the ability to perform both air superiority and strike missions.
  • It also the capability to conduct electronic warfare and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities.
  • The F-35 A serves as the backbone of allied airpower for 13 nations and counting.
  • The F-35 program is focused on three core lifecycle areas which are Development, Production and Sustainment.
  • The F-35 is designed to replace aging fighter inventories including U.S. Air Force A-10s and F-16s, U.S. Navy F/A-18s, U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B Harriers and F/A-18s, and U.K. Harrier GR.7s and Sea Harriers.
  • F-35A is able to provide next-generation stealth, enhanced situational awareness, and reduced vulnerability for the United States and its allied nations with its aerodynamic performance and advanced integrated avionics.
  • The F-35A is agile, versatile, high-performance, 9g capable multirole fighter and combines stealth, sensor fusion and unprecedented situational awareness.
  • All F-35s incorporate low observable technology.

Variants

F-35 is manufactured in three versions:

  • A conventional-takeoff-and-landing (CTOL) variant for the U.S. Air Force,
  • An aircraft-carrier version (CV) for the U.S. Navy, and
  • A short-takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) version for the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.K. Royal Air Force and Royal Navy.

Source “It’s a bird… It’s a plane… It’s an F-35A fighter jet!