DBAmn

99% of the sorties my unit flies are unarmed, simply because almost all the sorties we’ll fly in the AO are going to be Paveways or JDAMs in the internal bays, because they’re against asymmetrical targets, no need for 14 120s. Occasionally we will send up a sortie with 4 120s or 2 120s and 2 9s and a 4-6 Paveways or JDAMs, but a sortie that’s heavily loaded is rare, maybe a couple times a year right now.

I’ll admit, I’ve never seen 14 120s loaded on the jet, but the claim that the technology doesn’t exist is BS, and even if it was true, that makes the full load out only partial BS, as the column only addressed the air to air load. However, I place my own experience over civilian web columests almost a year ago, and I know, while the literal opposite of stealthy, double rack missile mounts exist and can be mounted on the F35, they’re just ugly as sin and not conducive with the stealth image. That’s why Lockheed is trying to reinvent the wheel, they want it covered in LO and minimizing radar cross section just like the pylons purpose made for it, but make no mistake, they’re fully capable of mounting the same double racks as legacy jets. Sorry about my little rant, but it’s this kind of misinformation that has been circulating about the 35 since it’s inception. Saying it doesn’t dogfight well, saying it can’t do one thing or another, it may not intentionally be misinformation, but without the full story, attempting to pass it on as truth is misinformation nonetheless. On the note of the dogfight issue in 2015, the F35 was operating under strictly enforced g limits, due to still being in the early testing phase, 3 years down the road the g limits aren’t nearly as strict and its most recent Red Flag appearance in 2017, it scored 20:1 kill ratio, mopping the floor with all other jets present. Additionally Israeli F35s decimated Syrian air defenses in May of this year, and a Marine B model striked Taliban positions in September, a day before we lost the B model in SC.

This is our current carry capacity on the F35A (don’t worry this isn’t classified information). I’ve seen them go up with similar loads, except the internal bays and stations 2 and 10 (the center pylons on each wing) had GBU-12s instead of GBU-31s. The inboard pylons can be mounted with fuel tanks, but I’ve only seen them mounted for TDYs, and they’re more for long distance travel, I’ve never seen the ones that would be mounted in a denied location.

So I’m not a weapons troop, so my knowledge of future upgrades is mearly speculation based on my limited knowledge of the weapons system, but I could get with a weapons buddy of mine and ask. Hypothetically, however, you could throw a double rack on the main launcher and mount 2 120s on it, and it wouldn’t take up MUCH more space than a GBU-31.

Hey there! Not sure if this has been addressed yet, but the your F35A is plagued with inaccuracies. I’m not trying to be a jerk because I know you guys worked hard on this and still are, but it’s immersion breaking for me, and, as an F35A Crew Chief, it’s a little painful to see my baby depicted incorrectly... One of the first things I noticed when I first downloaded and launched the mod and loaded up an F35 was that you have it as 08-0747 from Eglin AFB, tail code EG. Now 0747 is a beautiful jet, and I’m friends with one of her previous DCCs, but she’s not, and never will be a combat jet. The 33rd FW, and by association the 58th FS are part of the AETC, they train pilots and maintainers like myself. Currently the only combat capable F35A wing is the 388th in Hill AFB, tail code HL. We have the 34th FS, the 4th FS, and the 421st FS, as well as the 419th ANG, but they fly and maintain 34th jets. The next inaccuracy I noticed was that the model and texture was that of a CV, or C model, used by the US Navy and Marine Corps. The wing span is is 8ft longer than the CTOL, or A model, due to the need for extra fuel stores in the wings, and the need for foldable wings. Additionally the IPP exhaust is on the top of the jet, like on CV and STOVL, the B model, jets. On the CTOL model the IPP exhaust is about 1.5 feet aft of the IPP intake door, which itself is aft of the LH Weapons bay by about a foot. On top of the LH intake, where the GAU-22/A should be, there’s nothing, again this would be because she was modeled after a CV, which use a belly mounted pod on station 6 between the Weapons Bays, as opposed to the integrated gun above the LH intake. The arresting gear on the CTOL is much smaller and therefore doesn’t require the huge compartment below the engine like the CV does, making the back end more streamlined. you left the interior of the cockpit very bare bones and I can respect that, there’s a lot going on inside the cockpit and as far as I’m aware there aren’t many, if any, pictures of it floating around on the internet. There really aren’t any glaring inaccuracies that I can talk about there, it’s just simplified down to what is known about the interior of the cockpit. There’s a few things missing from the jet, like pitot tubes and flush ports, but those are of little to no consequence. However, I did notice that you managed to cram 4 AIM-120s and a JDAM into the Weapons Bay, which is a feat considering it can only hold 1 AIM-120 with a JDAM in there, 2 without a JDAM. The external pylons attach to those 2 6 sides polygons under each wing for heavier stores, as well as the outer most diamond for AIM-9s and 120s. In the end, I respect what you guys are doing, and I love that you’re trying to depict the USAF in all our glory! Thank you guys for doing what you do, because I know I lack both the time and skill to make any of these models! Keep up the good work guys!