Department of the Navy Research, Development & Acquisition

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter

Description:
The Lightning II Program is a joint, multi-national program among the U.S. Air Force (USAF), U.S. Navy (USN), U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) and eight Cooperative International Partners: the United Kingdom (UK), Italy (IT), the Netherlands (NL), Turkey (TU), Canada (CA), Australia (AS), Denmark (DK), and Norway (NO). The JSF Program's objective is to develop and deploy a three variant family of highly common and affordable strike fighter aircraft to meet the operational needs of today’s and future warfighters.

Mission Roles:

USAF -- Multi-role (primary air-to-ground) fighter to replace the F-16, the A-10 and to complement the F/A-22
USN -- Multi-role strike fighter to complement the F/A-18E/F
USMC -- Multi-role, STOVL strike fighter to replace the AV-8B and the F/A-18C/D
UK -- Future Joint Combat Aircraft multi-role, stealth replacement strike fighter to replace the Sea Harrier FA2 and the Harrier GR7/9

Acquisition Information:
ACAT: ID
Development Phase: System Development and Demonstration (SDD) began Oct 2001
First Flights: Conventional Takeoff and Landing (CTOL) - FY07; Short Take-off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) - FY08; Carrier Variant (CV) - FY09
Production Phase: Begins in 2007 (CTOL) for first delivery in 2009 (deliveries of all variants will continue thru 2028)
Projected Inventory: 1763 CTOL, 680 STOVL/CV, 646 International
Projected Initial Operational Capabilities (IOC) dates: STOVL variant in 2012 (USMC); CTOL variant in 2013 (Air Force); CV variant in 2013 (Navy)

Major Contractors:

Lockheed Martin (System Integrator)
Northrop Grumman
BAE Systems
Pratt & Whitney
General Electric/Rolls-Royce

Point of Contact:
Joint Strike Fighter Program Office
200 12th St. South, Suite 600
Arlington, VA 22202
(703) 602-7390
Attention: Public Affairs Office

General Characteristics:

CTOL F-35A JSF

Overall Length: 51.4 ft
Wing Area: 460 ft2
Weight (Empty): 29,036 lbs (targeted IOC weight)
Internal Fuel: 18,840 lbs
Speed: 750 kts or 1.6 M (whichever is lower)
Ceiling: 50,000 ft+
Range: Current assessment 626 nm (Threshold 450 nm)
Power Plant: P&W F135 [Lead]
GE F136 [Interchangeable Engine]
Sensors: Fully integrated open architecture system; Air-to-Ground (A/G) Air-to-Air (A/A) radar/SAR, Electro Optical A/G Targeting system; A/A IRST, Electronic Support Measures (ESM), Short Range EO spherical coverage, and many others.
Crew: 1

STOVL F-35B JSF

Overall Length: 51.1 ft
Wing Area: 460 ft2
Weight (Empty): 32,161 lbs (targeted IOC weight)
Internal Fuel: 14,003 lbs
Speed: 750 kts or 1.6 M (whichever is lower)
Ceiling: 50,000 ft+
Range: Current assessment 648 nm (Threshold 450 nm)
Power Plant: P&W F135 [Lead]
GE F136 [Interchangeable Engine]
Sensors: Fully integrated open architecture system; Air-to-Ground (A/G) Air-to-Air (A/A) radar/SAR, Electro Optical A/G Targeting system; A/A IRST, Electronic Support Measures (ESM), Short Range EO spherical coverage, and many others.
Crew: 1

CV F-35C JSF

Overall Length: 51.4 ft
Wing Area: 668 ft2
Weight (Empty): 32,072 lbs (targeted IOC weight)
Internal Fuel: 20,085
Speed: 750 kts or 1.6 M (whichever is lower)
Ceiling: 50,000 ft+
Range: Current assessment 499 nm (Threshold 600 nm)
Power Plant: P&W F135 [Lead]
GE F136 [Interchangeable Engine]
Sensors: Fully integrated open architecture system; Air-to-Ground (A/G) Air-to-Air (A/A) radar/SAR, Electro Optical A/G Targeting system; A/A IRST, Electronic Support Measures (ESM), Short Range EOspherical coverage, and many others.
Crew: 1

F-35 (JSF)