U.S. New Military Hardware Is Unfit For Modern Warfare

U.S. New Military Hardware Is Unfit For Modern Warfare

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According to a leaked report based on a simulated combat, F-16 fighters are better in close-in dogfighting than the Pentagon’s mighty new jet – the F-35 Fighter, SputnikNews reports. The F-35 was not built and is not designed to fight at close quarters and is criticized to be fit only for best-case scenarios.

The F-16 Fighting Falcon was introduced into service almost four decades ago, in 1978. The F-35 Lightning II stealth multirole fighter, costing some $100 million apiece, is currently undergoing testing.ALLIED FORCE

This isn’t the first time the United States has been counting on unfit platforms, whether because of the battle platforms themselves being unfit or because of battle misconceptions. During the Vietnam war, the F-4 Phantoms were sent on missions without the guns needed for dogfights because the US Defense Department did not think it was necessary. Nevertheless, they found themselves fighting at close quarters against North Vietnamese MiG-21s, which were introduced in 1959 but still managed to shoot down the F-4 Phantoms.

The F-35 is by far not the only newest American weapons system unprepared for the harsh reality of a real combat.

According to testers, the $479-million warships the US Navy is buying will not survive in an actual battle. The KC-46 aerial refueling tanker, costing almost $190 million apiece, is not even fitted with defensive systems to protect it from anything higher than the “medium threat” level. They are expected to enter service in 2018.

According to the report, the U.S. defense agency is not trying to imagine what the worst day of battle might look like or keep in mind that uncertainty is at the core of any conflict, especially in extreme battle conditions.

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