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Comment by whalesalad

The F-22 is a single purpose machine like a Ferrari or Lamborghini, whereas the F-35 is more of a utility vehicle like a Toyota Hilux. The F-35 can do vertical takeoff (VTOL), carrier landings for the Navy (F-22 cannot), and has multiple variants to support these deployment scenarios. The F-22 doesn't really have any variants, it is an Air Force plane thru and thru. The A in F-35A designates air force, conventional take-off and alnding. Other variants exist, like the F-35B (this one can do VTOL) and F-35C (catapult-assisted, aka getting yeeted off of an aircraft carrier in the middle of the ocean). All of this comes at a trade-off / engineering cost, of course. The F-22 is more of a specialized scalpel, the F-35 is meant to be more versatile and operate in more environments. There is a sacrifice to be made there. The F-22 is more stealth, has more thrust, is faster and more maneuverable - meant to be used in air to air combat. The F-35 is smaller, slower, but can do things like vertical takeoff. It is designed more for ground assault type work, bombing runs, etc.

In a dogfight I do not think that there is an aircraft on this planet that can compete against an F-22. The F-35 is no slouch, either, but the F-22 is the alpha predator.

parent whalesalad 3 years ago

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