#5b — Public Fediverse posts

@Lazarou A few considerations: 1) The F-35 is currently a "force multiplier" with various electronic capabilities Europe can't replace or reproduce in the next few years even with the best effort, on top of current cutting-edge low-observable design. Having F-35s in the mix together with European air superiority fighters (Eurofighter Typhoon, Rafale etc.) is really, really helpful.

The latest F-35 Block 4 / TR-3 (still awaiting clearance, essentially software certification) will enhance those electronic capabilities further.

2) Customers can buy localized "server/mainframe" capability essentially removing the need to depend on the USA for that service. If the USA cut off access to e.g. the constantly updated "threat libraries", Europe could do their best to manage their own sharing.

3) Europe simply can't depend on the USA acting in Europe's best interests for the foreseeable future. Building more Typhoons and Rafales and perhaps increasing investment in their further development is a rational option and IMO should be done in any case (esp. the latter; see #5b below).

4) Invest in European manufacturing (i.e. orders) of locally designed missiles (consumables) such as the Meteor and Mica.

New options:

5a) Invest in European twin-seaters and speed up the development of the "unmanned wingman" type aircraft to take responsibility of the frontline stealth/low-observability (LO) missions (South Koreans are also developing these).

5b) Join forces with South Korean (ROK) KAI and licence/collaborate/fast-track the fully 'LO' next versions of the already flight-cerfified KF-21, except replacing its GE F414 engines with roughly similar European engines used in the Typhoon and Rafale (both of which are slightly slimmer and longer, requiring tweaks to the airframe). ROK ought to be interested in a dependable alternative source for engines too.

Europe could be churning out Korean-European 5th gen fighters with no dependency on the USA within two years. Some argue that stealth/LO designs will become moot with advancements in radar and AI tech, but they will always have advantage over non-stealth designs.

#EuropeanDefence #SouthKorea #KF21 #F35 #Typhoon #Rafale #Gripen