Saturday, November 3, 2012

A Surprising F-22 Critic

Niemi talks to reporters during his F-22 unit’s visit to Australia in March 2011. Air Force photo / Lt. Col. Kenneth Hoffman

Unfriendly F-22 Fire -- Mark Thompson, Time

At $358 million a copy, it’s fairly easy to find folks in the Pentagon critical of the value-added of the Air Force’s F-22 fighter. It’s a little tougher to find someone in the Air Force to take on the $67 billion program. Really tough to find a fighter pilot willing to do so.

So Lieutenant Colonel – and not only an F-22 pilot, but an F-22 test pilot, and F-22 squadron commander – Christopher Niemi will be raising eyebrows with his precision-guided fire against the F-22 Raptor in the latest issue of the Air Force’s own Air & Space Power Journal. It’s a gutsy, clear-eyed piece. He doesn’t disparage his plane so much as the way the Air Force created it.

Read more
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My Comment: When you have pilots like Christopher Niemi raising questions .... you will have to listen. He is ... of course .... also pointing a critical finger at the F-35.

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