According to a September 5 report by the U.S. magazine NSJ, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recently disclosed that the most critical Block 4 upgrade for the F-35 fighter jet has been significantly delayed, with an estimated delay of at least five years, and the cost has exceeded the original budget by $6 billion.

This upgrade is crucial for the F-35 to be compatible with next-generation weapons such as the AIM-260 long-range air-to-air missile, the Storm Breaker precision-guided bomb, and new anti-radiation missiles.

According to the initial plan of the U.S. Air Force, these weapons should have been deployed by the middle of this decade, but in reality, the F-35 can only rely on older AMRAAM missiles and limited ground attack capabilities, which means it cannot maintain the expected advantage against China's fifth-generation fighters.

The F-35, which was once seen as the U.S.'s only production fifth-generation aircraft, now faces a尴尬 situation where its combat effectiveness is stuck due to delayed upgrades. Anxiety within the U.S. has increased because this directly threatens the foundation of American air superiority.

American fighter jet

So far, a five-year delay may just be an optimistic estimate. Considering the inherent shortcomings of the F-35, there may not even be opportunities for future upgrades.

The F-35 was originally a messy combination from the start.

To meet the needs of the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps, the U.S. Department of Defense forced a joint service approach, resulting in A, B, and C models that are part of the F-35 family but have significant differences.

The Air Force requires a lightweight design, the Navy needs a large aspect ratio and tailhook, and the Marines require a vertical takeoff fan.

These conflicting designs were forced into one aircraft, leading to compromises in aerodynamic performance, structural layout, and maintenance convenience.

In addition, the F-35 also carries the burden of international cooperation projects, with over a thousand suppliers across dozens of countries, creating a long technical supply chain and complex management and interest conflicts. Any problem in any link will slow down the overall progress.

Furthermore, it has to perform flight computer tasks, with reportedly more than 8 million lines of software code. Each modification requires lengthy testing and verification, leading to high maintenance costs and questionable reliability.

These inherent defects mean that despite the F-35's growing numbers, its combat power has never truly delivered the advantages promised in U.S. propaganda.

Jian-35

Currently, the five-year delay in upgrades means the F-35 cannot carry the latest weapons. More importantly, this delay implies that the U.S. Air Force actually has no other fifth-generation aircraft available.

The F-22 was retired early, with a total number of less than 200, and it is now facing hardware aging and outdated avionics.

The NGAD sixth-generation aircraft is still in the theoretical stage and will not see a prototype until after 2030.

Therefore, within the next five years, the U.S. fifth-generation aircraft lineup will have to rely solely on the F-35, which is stuck in a quagmire of software and hardware upgrades.

The most direct consequence is that it will worsen the F-35's position in potential confrontations with China's stealth fighters.

This five-year gap could allow China to gain a dual advantage in both quantity and quality.

Therefore, for the United States, this represents a strategic risk that could completely change the balance of air power.

Parade scene

Looking at China's situation, China's fifth-generation aircraft development has shown a multi-point breakthrough trend.

During this parade, China displayed five different types of fifth-generation aircraft: J-20, J-20A, J-20S, J-35, and J-35A.

The J-20 is the main air superiority aircraft, with hundreds of units already in service and ongoing improvements.

The J-20A is an improved version, with further optimization in aerodynamic layout and avionics systems.

The J-20S is the world's first twin-seat stealth aircraft, capable of serving as an electronic warfare platform and coordinating with drones, expanding application scenarios.

The J-35 is a carrier-based stealth aircraft for the Chinese navy, featuring foldable wings and a tailhook, suitable for China's new generation of aircraft carriers.

The J-35A is the land-based version of the J-35 platform, providing the Air Force with more flexible stealth combat power.

Five models cover the Air Force and Navy, single-seat and twin-seat, land-based and carrier-based, forming a complete system.

They not only continue to expand in numbers but also complement each other technologically, avoiding the dilemma of a single model being difficult to upgrade.

It is foreseeable that China will not fall into the same upgrade stagnation dilemma as the F-35.

The reasons are: first, China's fifth-generation aircraft have clear divisions of labor, without the need to accommodate the demands of three services and allies like the F-35, making the upgrade and improvement path clear.

Second, the supply chain is highly self-reliant, free from the entanglements of international cooperation interests, allowing domestic control over the pace of R&D and improvement.

Therefore, China's fifth-generation aircraft upgrades are carried out in a rolling manner, with modular improvements, rather than a mess like the F-35, which doesn't even know how to proceed with upgrades.

By the time the F-35 finally completes the Block 4 upgrade five years later, China's fifth-generation aircraft will not only have erased the numerical gap, but will also have a comprehensive technological advantage.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7546859143949189632/

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