The Super F-35 Lightning II is Coming
The F-35 Lightning II, manufactured by Lockheed Martin and also known as the Joint Strike Fighter, is due to receive a highly-classified upgrade that will make it a much more potent fighter. New developments include 17 new weapon systems, potent new radar, enhanced electronic warfare capabilities, potent propulsion modifications, and more; nevertheless, a large portion of these advancements remain hidden almost entirely behind a veil of enormous amounts of classified cash.
The platform itself, which has been hailed by pilots and Defense officials alike as a revolution in tactical airpower, has been beset by technical failures and cost overruns that are so severe that they frequently cast a shadow over it throughout its service life. The F-35 program may finally deliver a data-fusing aerial behemoth that quiets the platform’s most vociferous opponents now that this fresh round of improvements is on its way to service… assuming all goes according to plan, that is.
With the F-35 program being more than 20 years old, two very different perspectives have long been held. Some people believe that the F-35’s procurement process was such a disaster that it has come to define the aircraft as a whole, with its recurrent technical failures, budgetary overruns, and prohibitive sustainment costs obscuring any potential combat effectiveness.
Insiders frequently refer to the TR-3 update as the “IT Backbone” of the Block 4 F-35, which has about 75 significant improvements over current Joint Strike Fighters. While all of these improvements will be built into the familiar F-35 A, B, and C airframes, the system advancements and enhanced capabilities are expected to be so significant that they may even call for a new designation to distinguish these cutting-edge new fighters from their less capable siblings.
Unsurprisingly, though, there is still a lot about Block 4 that is unknown. Contractors working on the project are eager to provide broad remarks about the systems that will be enhanced, but they are reticent to provide any details. We can be certain that these 75+ upgrades will be released in steps denoted as Block 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, and so on. Many of these steps will, in fact, be software modifications designed to increase the functionality of hardware that is already in place or that is added in the early stages of the upgrade.
According to some reports, the Joint Strike Missile, the AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile Extended Range (AARGM-ER) for hunting enemy air defenses at standoff ranges, and the highly effective European Meteor air-to-air missile will all be newly integrated weapons that will make up a sizable portion of the Block 4 upgrade. However, not all of these new weapons are “kinetic,” or conventional munitions, indicating that the F-35 Block 4 upgrade also includes some new electronic warfare capabilities that have not yet been made public.
Newly integrated weapons, including the Joint Strike Missile, the AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile Extended Range (AARGM-ER) for hunting enemy air defenses at standoff ranges, and the highly effective European Meteor air-to-air missile, will make up a sizeable portion of the Block 4 upgrade. Nevertheless, not all of these new weapons are “kinetic,” or conventional explosives, indicating that the F-35 Block 4 upgrade also has a variety of new electronic warfare capabilities that had not yet been made public.
Today’s F-35s are equipped with the AN-APG-81 Active Electronically Scanned Array Radar from Northrop Grumman, which is widely regarded as the most potent and effective radar system to ever fly in a tactical fighter. This system is so effective that it may be used to identify and track targets both on the ground and in the air, as well as to engage in electronic warfare by jamming adversary radar arrays as it flies. Despite how effective this system may be, the AN/APG-85 radar array is planned to take its place.