Lockheed F-35 Lightning II / X-35 JSF (Joint Strike Fighter)

The F-35 Lightning II is a next generation multi-role platform appearing in three variants. It is a single-seat fighter offering up some of the most advanced technology and avionics systems available and incorporates new stealth elements and technology into its design. The system is predominantly being headed up by Lockheed Martin and partnered with UK firm BAe Systems and American firm Northrop. The system was born out of the Joint Strike Fighter program of the late 1990's, to which the system was then known as the X-35 and faced off successfully against Boeing's own X-32 technology demonstrator.

Visually, the F-35 Lightning II appears very much like its F-22 Raptor predecessor, incorporating the similar "diamond" angled shape into the fuselage and wings. The twin vertical tail surfaces are each angled and fitted over the supercruise-capable engine exhaust ports at rear. Angled intakes are mounted on either side and to the rear of the single seat cockpit area. The powerplant consists of a single General Electric/Rolls-Royce brand turbofan generating some 40,000lbs of thrust. The vertical take-off and landing model will feature an additional Rolls-Royce lift fan system fitted in the center of the fuselage and delivering some 18,000lbs of vertical thrust.

Based on lessons learned in the development of the F-22 Raptor, the F-35 Lightning II will also feature internal weapons bays, reducing the radar signature of the aircraft. Additionally, the system will also have provision for up to four external hardpoints if needed. A 25mm cannon will be made the standard close-in weapon. A variety of "smart" air-to-air and air-to-surface munitions will be the backbone of the Lightning II arsenal.

The Lightning II will be featured in three principle designs, each maintaining external similarities but differing in dedicated roles. The F-35A model is the true Conventional Take-Off and Landing (CTOL) variant model, operating from runways in the traditional role. The F-35B is the Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) derivative in the series, operating in the role most closely associated with the AV-8B Harrier II system. The F-35C model is a dedicated carrier-based (CV) model designed specifically for operations on aircraft carriers that require their systems to feature strengthened internal structures and landing gear and space-saving capabilities.

Some 3,100 F-35 systems are on order though it remains to be seen who many will actually be purchased and delivered for operational use. The system is slated to appear in the US military inventory in 2011. As a whole, the F-35 has a proposed technology shelf-life up until 2040. The F-35 Lightning II is named after the other famous Lockheed product (of World War 2) in the propeller-driven, twin-boom P-38 Lightning. The British Aircraft Corporation (or "BAC", a forerunner to BAe or "British Aerospace") also produced a Cold War fighter designated as the English Electric/BAC Lightning.