i did the math, and for 1 MICA-EM you can buy 2 AIM-120D-3, considering the 120D is a more capable missile too, you cant really justify this
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Air superiority as a stealth fighter and SEAD. Then can be rearmed with additional pylons for CAS. It’s overall better at everything. Not saying the Gripen isn’t a great fighter, but a 4th gen fighter is severely limited in today’s world
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F-35 beats Gripen E in payload, and is a ton off the eurofighter
we have the F-15EX which slams anything else the world has to offer in its class
F-35 is not an air-superiority fighter. Its slow and has very limited payload without destroying its stealth capablities.
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It has 4 internal hardpoints and 6 external. So thats less than the Typhoons 12 hardpoints.
If you want stealth, that is barely anything in temrs of CAS.
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You are really underestimating the F35 and how air superiority is done. Ewacs will spot and link targets that are hundreds of miles away to the F35 and any fighter that are on radar are as good as dead.
it can carry 8 GBU-53 internally, which isn’t really good, but its still 8 SAM site pieces (im guessing itll go for 1 search radar, 1 fire control radar, and 1 launcher, so a flight of 3 F-35 in full stealth can take out 8 SAM sites
once SEAD is completed, you have your F-35’s with external hardpoints, your vipers, your strike eagles, your super hornets, your regular hornets, and your eagle II’s
dont forget stuff like the B-21, B-2, B1B, and B-52, which can either penetrate airspace or fire from so far away they dont have to
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Not really. Its a stealth aircraft with 4 missiles that is barely supersonic.
As soon as it fires anything, whatever has been shot at will know and defend and quite easily run away.
Typhoon can run 6 Meteors that outrange Aim-120D and CAPTOR-E outperforms the radar in the F-35 in all likelyhood. Its also supersonic and able to supercruise. If your mission is bombing a target surrounded by SAMs, send the F-35, if your mission is engaging a load of enemy fighters. Send literally anything else.
you do have to keep in mind, there is the brand new APG-85 radar for the F-35, which in all likelyhood beats the CAPTOR-E, and of course there is the AIM-260 entering IOC this year
block 4 will increase internal missile carriage to 6 BVRAAM, ie 6 AIM-260
Would you be able to prove it overly wrong? because there’s plenty of things beyond CR2 which heavily implies intent to keep the British tree below the big three.
Royal sovereign going to the russians as archangel while we don’t have one or that the only nation to not have a Vickers E family tank (of those with a history with them) is britain, I don’t think there’s any other nations where the native country doesn’t get a variant of its own export vehicle.
Solid shot AP being substantially worse and APHE when British testing of APHE showed that it wasn’t a big advantage and only weakened the shell (yes APHE should have a chance of shell shatters if its to be a mechanic)
Shell shattering being far too frequent and it affecting the British tree more than anyone else, its even used as a hidden nerf as RARDEN 30mm has been getting a hell of a lot more shatters in the last month.
Scimitar being probably the most gimped vehicle to be added in the last few years, near enough everything on it is inaccurate or non functional.
Canada and Australia being shafted in the crossfire of subtree concerns because they would fit best in the britain tree
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We wont know for years. But I would say its more than likely that the CAPTOR-E is at the very least equal.
F-35 is not a fighter aircraft, can it defend itself, sure. Will we see the US or literally anyone else sending F-35s in to conduct air policing or air superiority missions, extremely unlikely. In NATO those are handled by aircraft like the Typhoon, Gripen E, F-15, F-16, F-22. Actual fighter aircraft.
F-35 has an impressive suite of kit and is good, dont get me wrong. But its only exceptional for one mission and one mission only .SEAD. In everything else. its a gimmick that really wouldnt be sent into the heart of combat.
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the whole point of the F-35 is you can send it into the most intensely contestested airspace and have good chances of it coming back, even if its strike ability is subpar
they aren’t perfect but they can defend themselves and do their job well
In otherwords.
SEAD missions
I’m really not trying to bash the Gripen, it’s a fine fighter but not for today’s environment. The f35 while classified might or might not be able to supercruise and may hit mach 1.6. When they did the initial testing on the F35, alot of the capabilities were limited. 4x internal hardpoints are all you really need for air superiority.
soon to be upgraded to 6 with block 4
thats more of the F22s thing. F35 is more of a “we’ve mostly cleaned out the air defence. Have fun” kind of fighter
? i mean yeah your not wrong, F-22 probably will be deployed to escort F-35’s and B-21’s
but all 3 can go into contested airspace and come back out with good chances
More of a b1 lancer mission imo
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Point is. Even looking at the USs only arsenal of equipment. Assuming that any enemy SAMs have already been dealt with, what are you really going to send in to conduct air superiorty missions. F-15s/F-22s or F-35s?
all of them, use everything you got, except the eagles since they are pretty susceptible as much as theyve been upgraded with top notch ECM and sensors.
eagles would only really be used to fight weaker enemy aircraft like J-10, J-11, J-15/16
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