"japan May Buy Eurofighter" - Drops intrest in F-22

[PR19_Kit]

Maybe not the Reds themselves, but the accountants who seem to run MoD (Air) these days....

There was an issue a while ago about the use of the RAF roundel for 'commercial purposes', which included things like decals I understand. I think they got round that one on the grounds of 'established practice', but the MoD (Air) guys seem to be taking lessons from Boeing.

[Jennings]

Maybe not the Reds themselves, but the accountants who seem to run MoD (Air) these days....

Regardless, it killed a large scale Hawk project

J

[Shasper]

Well, we could see a rekindled interest in the F-2Kai project, or a F-15EJ (which could lead to a US F-15E+ buy to offset the limited numbers of the -22).

Shas

[Shasper]

Well at least a Mudhen is cheaper than the Craptor . . . .

Shas

[pyro-manic]

...which could lead to a US F-15E+ buy to offset the limited numbers of the -22.

we're never in a billion years going to defeat Islamic militant terrorists with laser guided bombs.  All the F-15s or F-22s in the world won't do it.  It'll just bankrupt us even more than we already are.

J

Isn't that incredibly short-sighted, though? That is a mistake that many governments (particularly the British government) have made - planning based on current conflicts, rather than looking ahead to future threats. yes, at the moment most high-profile military action is focussed on the "war on terror", but to focus entirely on that kind of asymmetric conflict is a very bad idea. It leaves you completely unprepared to fight any kind of conventional conflict. We're badly affected by this in the UK - the Navy escort fleet is being run down to nothing, the Jaguar fleet was scrapped early, the QE-class carriers have been delayed again, all to pay for operations in Afghanistan. What happens when these now non-existent assets are needed in a hurry?

[tinlail]

I'll tell the Carthaginian that.

[Maverick]

Unfortunately, Western nations in particular have painfully short memories and tend to look at current conflicts only forgetting the lessons taught time and again.  Add to that the industrial & political pressure for 'whizz bang' stuff (the Craptor is a classic case of this) and the given nation is frequently unable to fight a more conventional 'brushfire' war than an all out, singing and dancing 'world war'.  At this point one really has to ask what is the F-22 particularly useful for, except for chewing up taxpayer dollars and giving the owners an ego boost.

Regards,

Mav

[Joe C-P]

One of the common complaints about the US services is that they all plan to fight the last war. It is true to some degree; the voices that call for new ideas aren't repressed, more ignored with polite pats on the head. Perhaps the new administration will do something about this, but they also have to get past Congress' constant meddling, forcing projects to be spread across many constituencies, forcing buys of items not wanted or needed, and therefore causing unnecessary extra costs.
The F-22 is very effective at being a fighter, but the US's most likely opponents won't have many modern fighters. A small number of F-22s will be sufficient to sweep those from the skies, and allow upgraded older planes to move in and start ground-pounding. Eventually the F-35 should complement the F-22s, striking SAM and AAA sites early in a conflict, along with unmanned attack aircraft.
What is being missed is a replacement for the A-10, a good bomb truck for supporting troops on the ground. However, Japan, having a defense-only military, doesn't really need such, so I'm getting away from the original thread. Sorry about that.

[B777LR]

What is being missed is a replacement for the A-10, a good bomb truck for supporting troops on the ground.

Helicopter gunships, AC-130 + AC-27J gunships, fighters, and some nice upgrades for the current A-10s should do. Wont solve the problem 20 years out though...