Well, last night I discussed how the USAF is screwing the proverbial pooch in its efforts to get more F-22s, and this weeks issue of Aviation Week confirms this assessment. (paid subscription required)

In this case, they are discussing the capabilities of the F-35 in what the US military likes to call “battle space”, and they reveal something about the F-22.

Specifically, the F-22 is the roach motel of data. Data checks in, but it doesn’t check out.

The F-35, for example, it, “Already offers some capabilities that are not available on the F-22,” which, “for example, has no other way, other than verbally, to send the detailed electronic surveillance data it collects to other types of aircraft or to ground-intelligence facilities.”

The F-22 is designed for the end of the world scenario, with the Soviets attacking through the Fulda Gap. It was designed to operate while the rest of the military infrastructure around it was destroyed, though why the Soviets would not go after the air fields is beyond me.

The Raptor is an expensive anachronism…Though the F-35 is not likely to be much cheaper to buy at the end of the day, it will be more flexible and cheaper to operate, though neither are required for the most likely scenarios.