[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: The question is not if the F-35's can address the
S-300 system. The real question is how long it might take Iran to implement
Chinese and Russian technology to intercept F-35's. Iran certainly will have
the money and the technology is "defensive" in nature and thus not even
technically covered by restrictions. The answer to this question delineates
the "window" Israel has to act against Iran. ]

Eyeing Iran, Israel Readies for Stealth Strike Fighter
By Barbara Opall-Rome 4:11 p.m. EDT September 5, 2015
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/air-space/strike/2015/09/05/eyeing-iran-israel-readies-stealth-strike-fighter/71608464/


TEL AVIV — With an eye on Iran and other complex, heavily defended theaters,
Israel is building up the infrastructure and indigenous capabilities needed
to begin operating its first F-35 Adir (Awesome) stealth strike fighters by
the end of 2017.

Its first pair of Adirs isn’t scheduled to arrive here until December 2016,
when they join the Israel Air Force’s Golden Eagle squadron at Nevatim Air
Base in the Negev desert.

But between now and late 2017, with expected declaration of initial
operational capability (IOC), work is progressing on parallel tracks, one
within the overall multinational program and the other at the bilateral
level, where Israel is counting on continued US government support for
integrating weaponry and other program elements.

“The stealth and other advanced capabilities provided by this
fifth-generation fighter are self-evident,” an IAF officer told Defense News
when asked how the F-35 would maintain superiority over advanced anti-air
systems, like the Russian S300 slated for delivery to Iran.

“Your options for attacking the enemy are much more numerous and practical,”
said Maj. E., an Adir project manager and one of the initial cadre of pilots
tapped to fly the F-35.

“The things that we could do before will entail much less risk, and the
things we might not have been able to do before will be rendered doable,”
said the officer, whose full name was withheld from publication for security
reasons.

“It changes the psychology of the arena by allowing you to hit the enemy
without him being able to stop you. ... It really is a game-changer and the
enemy knows that,” he added.

In interviews here and in the United States, program officials said prime
contractor Lockheed Martin, at Washington’s behest, is working with
state-owned Rafael to adapt locally built air-to-ground weaponry for the
belly of the plane.

Similarly, the contractor is assessing Israeli concepts for external wing
tanks to augment the 18,000 pounds of fuel carried internally by the F-35.

“We’re studying proof of concept trade studies on carrying extra fuel,” a
Lockheed Martin program official told Defense News. “After you own the air
space, you won’t have to worry about stealth. So then you can add external
tanks because you won’t be worried about being detected.”

Israeli defense and industry sources said that ultimately they hope to
develop F-35 conformal fuel tanks that are stealthy. Nevertheless, they say
it is well worth the effort given that it will more than double the range
with very low risk of detection.

“It’s short-sighted to expect that all the smart people working here on
conformal fuel tanks will not manage to make them stealthy," the IAF officer
said.

As for supporting the new assets, Israel already secured an exemption from
F-35 program protocol to perform sustainment and all but very major
maintenance work in country, rather than at Lockheed Martin-established
logistics centers.

Program officials here said work is progressing steadily to stand up an Adir
logistics center at squadron headquarters at Nevatim Air Base. From there,
the IAF will have full access to Lockheed Martin’s Autonomic Logistics
Information System (ALIS), a worldwide sustainment network that gives
operators the ability to plan, maintain and support the aircraft through
their projected 55-year lifespan.

“The ingenious, automated ALIS system that Lockheed Martin has built will be
very efficient and cost-effective, but the only downfall is that it was
built for countries that don’t have missiles falling on them,” said the IAF
official.

“When those missiles start falling, it means less flights coming into Israel
and less ships docking at our ports. That’s why Israel will maintain a
unique option to do our own logistics and maintenance in wartime,” he added.

Steve Over, Lockheed Martin director for F-35 International Business
Development, said Israel will have “plenty of capability to do light
maintenance in-country” precisely due to concerns of wartime disruptions.
But heavy maintenance of the airframes and engines will be done at Joint
Program Office-managed, company-established facilities “just like we do with
all our other partners,” Over said.

In a recent interview, Over explained that heavy maintenance must be
performed under strict security, with program-mandated oversight measures.
“When you tear an airplane down, you expose its magic. So that type of work
must be performed in designated places.”

Lockheed executives noted that Israel also would be able to add specific
capabilities or upgrade support functions as long as it did not affect the
overall design or the software programmed into the aircraft. They pointed
out that Norway, for example, is adding a drag chute to its fleet due to
concerns of icy runways.

“The Israelis have an ability to do some unique things. But anything
wholesale that would impact the design or capabilities driving all the
airplanes for all the countries would have to be done by consensual
agreement,” Over said.

Meanwhile, the IAF is gearing up to send its first cadre of pilots to train
in Arizona at the US Air Force Luke Air Force Base by the middle of next
year. In parallel, the IAF plans to send dozens of maintenance professionals
to train at US Air Force logistics bases at Eglin, Florida, and other places
in the United States.

Of the 75 F-35s approved by Washington for export to Israel, Tel Aviv has
contracted for 33 aircraft, a first batch of 19 signed in 2010 and another
14 finalized in February of this year.

Defense sources here said Israel hopes to be in a position to sign on for
another 17 planes during the course of its newest multiyear plan, which
extends through 2020. All planes on order, as well as the additional
purchases needed to reach a 50-aircraft fleet, are for the F-35A
conventional takeoff and landing version.

At some later point — or perhaps nearer term, depending on the level of
additional security assistance forthcoming from Washington — Israel may opt
for 25 F-35Bs. Short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) capabilities
designed for the F-35B version, sources here said, may be more compelling if
Israel determines that its runways are vulnerable to enemy missile threats.

“There’s no dilemma on the first 50; those will be F-35As,” said the IAF
program official. “After that, if we go to a full 75 airplanes, the STOVL
version is something to be considered. There are advantages and
disadvantages in this option. But it’s always nice to retain the option,” he
said.



Email: bopallrome@defensenews.com