Four United States Air Force F-35A stealth aircraft flew a secret mission in the western Black Sea, near Ukraine’s Snake Island, which is currently under Russian control.
A group of four US F-35A jets was believed to be on a secret mission near Snake Island in the western Black Sea,. In addition to the F-35A fighter, there is also the British EF-2000 fighter, which is known to have departed from the Graf Ignatievo airbase in Romania.this set of fighters was also accompanied by a refuelling plane, indicating that their mission was lengthy.
Although the US F-35A stealth fighters’ transponders were turned off, making it impossible to identify their exact flight route, the Russian side found this set of aircraft about 50 kilometres from Snake Island. The presence of NATO fighters, particularly F-35A stealth aircraft, near Snake Island demonstrates the area’s complexity. Snake Island, which was once the scene of violent battle between Russia and Ukraine, is now under Moscow’s hands.
The F-35A is a stealth fighter aircraft for the United States Air Force and its allies. The Marine F-35B and Navy F-35C are the smallest and lightest variants of the F-35 family, and it is significantly more agile. This is also the only version of the F-35 that has a GAU-22/A gun with a 25mm calibre.
The F-35 has been produced by Lockheed Martin in the United States since 2006, and over 1,000 aircraft have been delivered to far, demonstrating that it is well-liked around the world, despite the opposition’s critiques. “The F-35 is not only the best fighter of the twenty-first century, but it is also the best fighter ever constructed,” said HotCars’ military column.
The F-35 has a large arsenal of weaponry, which are housed inside the fuselage to keep the radar reflector region hidden. The first is a 25mm aviation cannon with 180 rounds, air-to-air missiles (AIM-120 AMRAAM, AIM-9X Sidewinder, AIM-132 ASRAAM, MBDA Meteor) There are also air-to-surface missiles (AGM-88G AARGM-ER, AGM-158 JASSM), anti-ship missiles (AGM 158C LRASM), bombs (including laser guided, AGM-154 JSOW), and a slew of other weapons.
They can only carry 2.8 tonnes of weaponry in stealth mode, but up to 10 tonnes of weapons can be carried in “beast” mode, which does not favour stealth. The F-35 pilots’ helmet display system (HMDS) helps deliver the most up-to-date information with “unparalleled levels of situational awareness.” The F-35’s AN/ASQ-239 electronic warfare system allows for the identification, monitoring, analysis, and response to threats on the ground and in the air, as well as a 360-degree view of the combat zone.
An active phased array radar on the F-35 can detect threats up to 500 kilometres away. The F-35 can use passive surveillance devices and receive data from other aircraft in this situation. All of these characteristics enable this type of aircraft to perform well in the responsibilities that have been allocated to it. In Afghanistan and Syria, the F-35 has shown to be a formidable combat aircraft.
The price of this advanced fighter now ranges from 80 to 110 million dollars, depending on the type, and is likely to drop to 78 million dollars in the next years as production volume increases.
