GAO on VH-71 (too heavy); V-22 (better design need); JSF (need knowledge-based approach), etc

Not only U.S. Marines, also Royal Navy, but looking what they did with
their Sea Harriers, it is difficult to tell what their next move can
be if serious problems about F-35B arise...


On 15 Kwi, 07:19, Pat Flannery wrote:

If they can't fix the weight problem with the V/SOTL version for the
Marines, then this plane is a waste of time.
The whole thing is designed around using that front lift fan in the
Marine version, and if you drop that as an aspect of its design, then
you can build a conventional takeoff/landing aircraft with equal stealth
and superior performance at lower overall price per airframe.
The JSF program resembles the F-111 project; trying to shoehorn to many
mission requirements into a single aircraft.
If all versions of it - Air Force, Navy, and Marine, had the same V/STOL
requirement in their design, then it would make sense.
But what we have now is an aircraft designed for the the Marine V/STOL
requirement which is modified for the Navy and Air Force.
This doesn't make sense.
Total numbers of an aircraft delivered to the Air Force and Navy to meet
their mission requirements shall dwarf those that the Marines need.
The Marines need a Harrier replacement; and neither the Air Force or
Navy use Harriers.
It should be a separate aircraft, optimized to the Marine's needs.

Pat