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So much for the F-22 in Japan: Gates says the F-35 is good enough

May 23, 2009
By Ken Worsley


Earlier today, the Nikkei reported that US Defense Secretary Robert Gates recommended that the F-35 fighter jet become Japan’s next generation mainstay to Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada when the two met earlier this month at the Pentagon. It seems as though Gates is looking at ending production of the higher-end F-22, and thus wants to see the F-35 replace Japan’s aging fleet of F-4EJs.

Japan is currently considering adopting the F-22, F/A-18, F-15FX, F-35, the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Rafale. Of this group, only the F-22 and F-35 are stealth fighters, and I can’t see the point in buying F-18s when Japan has no offensive carriers. Likewise, the F-15 is scheduled to go out of commission around 2025; it’s a bit late to be buying more of them. Edit: See LB’s note in the comments about the F-15.

Japan is eager to upgrade from F-4s, but the F-35 is not scheduled to be fully deployed until 2014, and shipments to Japan could be later than that.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out, as Japan attempts to upgrade 48 of its existing F-15s while a decision on what will be the next generation fighter is further delayed. Given the bilateral alliance, this observer sees little choice for Japan other than waiting for the F-35 to become available. It appears as though the F-22 program will be (sadly) cut short, and that the aircraft will (rightly) not become available for export.

In this video, it looks to me as though the F-22 is pulling off a Pugachev’s Cobra into a flatspin at about 1:30

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Comments

9 Responses to “So much for the F-22 in Japan: Gates says the F-35 is good enough”

  1. LB on May 24th, 2009 11:13 am

    “I can’t see the point in buying F-18s when Japan has no offensive carriers”
    Finland, Switzerland, Spain, Malaysia, Australia, Canada and Kuwait do not have offensive carriers either (although Spain has a small helicopter and Harrier-capable carrier), and all have bought the legacy-model Hornets. Australia will operate the Super Hornet, and Denmark and Brazil are evaualting the type (Brazil does, admittedly, have a carrier). Just because a plane was designed for use on carriers does not mean it must be used on carriers, after all.

    “Likewise, the F-15 is scheduled to go out of commission around 2025″
    That is incorrect, the USAF currently plans to keep nearly 200 C-models and over 200 E-models in-service beyond 2025. Variants of the E-model are still in production, and will be for several years to come. It is far from “too late” to buy more F-15s - Boeing is still actively marketing the type!

    I think you are correct in that Japan will, for better or for worse, end up buying yet anther US type. The JASDF has concerns (and the US tends to nudge those concerns along) that operating non-US-made types will cause difficulties with joint operations with US forces. I think they should talk to the Europeans, who seem to have somehow managed to build and deploy their own aircraft and operate them alongside the US with no problems - Rafales have even recently conducted operations off a US carrier, so “compatibility” doesn’t seem to be much of an issue.

  2. Roos to Japan | East Asia Forum on May 25th, 2009 9:01 pm

    […] for Japan, it is natural for Japanese officials to worry about every signal from Washington (like this signal, which will undoubtedly be another source of discomfort in Tokyo). But the Roos appointment should […]

  3. Matt on May 25th, 2009 9:30 pm

    They cost waaaaay too much. If you’re going to spend that kind of jack, make research and development of a Japanese fighter part of a national stimulus program.

  4. Scott Peterson on May 28th, 2009 7:08 am

    Since Japan is apparently preparing to allow exports of domestically produced weapon systems; developing their own 5th-gen aircraft and selling to other countries could be a good economic boost. There’s no question that Japan has the technical capability to do this.

  5. Ken Worsley on May 28th, 2009 1:38 pm

    Scott, I agree. But, seeing how the Regional Jet civilian aircraft project has gone, I’m not putting my money on that.

  6. jay on June 4th, 2009 8:00 pm

    I just think Gates has a hate relation with the F-22 Aircraft. Look at it this way…If your back is hurting and you have a choice in a mattress that will do the job but will fall short over time or one that has a lot more but will last alot longer just that it cost $2,000.00 not $1,200.00 hundred which will you buy? It is plan to see that the f-22 cost more that’s because you put more into it. Americ is blind and is lied to all the time in the press this is a aircraft we do need but it’s unmatched by any other, yet we want see it until it’s to late and you can’t start building them again. Sell to Japan a water bown version make the money for OUR Nation but make sure that all of the aircraft is builded here at home! This will save jobs in these hard time.

  7. Ken Worsley on June 5th, 2009 1:01 am

    jay,

    Fighter aircraft technology has nothing to do with mattresses.

  8. peter jones on June 21st, 2009 2:54 pm

    Lets get this right, the F35 is not a stealth fighter ! its an advanced technology
    light bomber designed mostly for the export market as a replacement for the F16 / A10, with reasonable self defence capability ,and in US service most dammingly is designed to hover over the battlefield on call to support troops in contact, but only after the F22s have established air superiority and taken out the vast majority of short and long range air defence systems, in this scenario the F35 is still rather vulnerable to overlooked aa systems that pop up and engage from its weakest least stealth directions, eg, from underneath from the side and from the rear.
    The X35 had quite good stealth capability but lost this when the manufacturerncreased the size of the internal bomb bay

  9. peter jones on June 21st, 2009 2:58 pm

    Also the aircraft is more political in design than many and reminds me of the handly page halifax whose combat performance was substantially downgraged by the british air ministry (by shortening its wings) so it would fit in their standard air force hangers of the time.
    When time came for combat well the saw the difference between what beaurocrats and accountants like and what you need to successfully prosecute an air war.

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