“A Just as the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is set to make its debut, and one of the nation’s top Marines says if recent tests are any indication, things won’t go well for the “bad guys.” Another test pilot, however, has some very, very bad news about the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter,” writes David Axe. “The pricey new stealth jet can’t turn or climb fast enough to hit an enemy plane during a dogfight or to dodge the enemy’s own gunfire.”
“The fateful test took place on Jan. 14, 2015, apparently within the Sea Test Range over the Pacific Ocean near Edwards Air Force Base in California. The single-seat F-35A with the designation ‘AF-02’ — one of the older JSFs in the Air Force — took off alongside a two-seat F-16D Block 40, one of the types of planes the F-35 is supposed to replace… The stealth fighter proved too sluggish to reliably defeat the F-16, even with the F-16 lugging extra fuel tanks.”