Key Points and Summary: While not without flaws, the F-35’s operational success and widespread deployment cement its place as a cornerstone of modern air warfare.
-The F-35 has been the whipping boy for many who criticize everything about the aircraft. It IS very expensive, and cost overruns have gone crazy.
For the first time in Eglin’s air space, U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II pilots navigate their aircraft toward an Air Force Reserve KC-135R Stratotanker from the 336th Air Refueling Squadron, March ARB, Calif., May 13, 2013. The initial cadre of Air Force F-35 instructor pilots at the 33rd Fighter Wing trained with others to qualify in aerial refueling for the joint strike fighter. Their success will add another capability for student pilot training to the F-35 Integrated Training Center here. The 33rd FW is responsible for F-35 A/B/C Lightning II pilot and maintainer training for the Marine Corps, the Navy, the Air Force and, in the future, at least eight coalition partners. Initially, 59 aircraft and three flying squadrons, one for each service/aircraft variant, will be established at Eglin. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. John R. Nimmo, Sr./Released)
-The scope and expectations of the F-35 program increased and were changed several times during development. This dynamic means development exceeded the original budget and past the original timeline.
Elon Musk Says F-35 Is Flawed—But Is He Right?
Even Elon Musk got involved. In December, he posted on his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, about the F-35.
“The F-35 design was broken at the requirements level, because it was required to be too many things to too many people. This made it an expensive & complex jack of all trades, master of none. Success was never in the set of possible outcomes,” he wrote.
There have been readiness issues and criticism of its capabilities. The F-35 has had serious problems, like all completely new systems, but is it “a flop?” Certainly not.
The F-35A Lightning II Is Already Successful
The F-35 is one of those programs where there is no middle ground. People either love it or hate it. But in the readiness aspect, the aircraft hasn’t had the availability that the Air Force, Navy, and Marines wanted. But it is a problem that covers all of our combat aircraft.
The GAO conducted a review for fiscal years 2018 through 2023, and not only did the F-35 not meet its readiness goal, but so did the F-22 Raptor, EA-18G Growler, F/A-18 A-D Hornets, AV-8B Harrier, and F-15E Strike Eagle. The F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets, F-16D, F-15D, and A-10 Warthog only met their goals in one year, while the F-16C and F-15C hit it three years out of six.
This readiness issue is problematic with all aircraft, not just the F-35. The military has spent billions trying to fix it. Lt. Gen. Mike Schmidt, director and program executive officer of the F-35 Joint Program Office, told Business Insider that “the F-35 is proven in combat.
“As the cornerstone of the future fighter fleet,” he said, “the F-35 enables the warfighter to dominate the skies in the most challenging combat environments against the world’s most capable adversaries.
“With this in mind, I am not satisfied with our readiness today—and our team is doing everything in its power to drive availability to levels our users expect,” he added.
Regarding its capabilities, the F-35 is already successful. On October 26, 2024, Israel conducted airstrikes against Iran. Over 100 aircraft were used, including some of Israel’s F-35 fleet. F-15s and F-16s hit radar installations in Syria, so they wouldn’t be allowed to warn Tehran. Israeli aircraft penetrated Iranian airspace and destroyed or damaged much of Iran’s S-300 air defense capability, other military sites, a UAV factory, and missile production facilities, with all Israeli aircraft returning safely.
It was later learned that a nuclear weapons research facility in Parchin, believed to have shut down, was destroyed. The missile production facility has been considered out of action for at least one year.
Don’t think for a minute that the successful results of the airstrike using F-35 stealth strike fighters weren’t seen in Russia, China, and North Korea.
F-35 Lightning II Successes Have Been Overshadow By Bad Press
Besides the very successful Israeli mission over Iran, the Marine Corps used their F-35Bs to conduct airstrikes against the Taliban in Afghanistan and against ISIS in Syria. Air Force F-35As also conducted airstrikes against ISIS.
Israeli Air Force F-35I. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The F-35 was the first stealth fighter to land vertically and operate from an aircraft carrier.
Alex Hollings wrote in Airpower, “The F-35 is also the most technologically advanced and broadly capable fighter in the sky today thanks to an immense amount of onboard computing power, sensor-fusing avionics, and a supremely low-observable design.
“This seemingly contradictory juxtaposition of real program issues and real platform capability has created a growing gap between perceptions of this aircraft and the actual value it offers to militaries.”
An Airman of the F-35A Lightning II Demonstration Team flies the F-35A in front of a mountain near Tacoma, Wash., on July 5, 2021. The demonstration team headlined both the Gig Harbor Wings-and-Wheels and Tacoma Freedom Fair air shows for the Fourth of July weekend, showcasing the advanced capabilities of the F-35 to the Pacific Northwest. (U.S. Air Force photo by A1C Jake Welty)
Hollings posted on X after the F-35 crash in Alaska that the F-35 is accused of crashing too often, although it has one of the best safety records of any fighter in the modern era. In fact, the F-35 averages just one crash for every 81,000 hours these jets spend in the sky—less than half of the F-16’s lifetime average.
Is the F-35 a success? There are over 1,000 of them built. That is more stealth fighters than all of the other ones combined. There are 19 countries that either already have the F-35 or have them on order and are awaiting delivery.
That’s success.
About the Author:
Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in other military publications.
