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Mike Pryce

Mike Pryce

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Lots of coverage today of the naming of the new Queen Elizabeth carrier in the UK.

One thing of interest is the presence of an F-35 model on the ski-jump (and the absence of one in the sky!).

What caught my eye was that the model does not appear to be a 'B'. Judging by the canopy it looks like it's an A or a C. Of course, it may just be a generic model that is none of the above.

Image from https://www.flickr.com/photos/greg-urquhart/14558106074/

Shots from above I have seen (e.g. at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2679893/A-glimpse-Royal-Navys-future-Britains-biggest-warship-pictured-air-official-naming-The-Queen.html) don't seem to clarify things, but TV coverage was what made me wonder if it's a C left over from the 'flip flop' a few years back.

P.S. The threads this seemed to fit (STOVL vs STOBAR and F-35 no holds) are locked. I do hope having a thread that fits both themes does not lead to a flame war. Please keep any comments civil! :D


P.P.S. I am doing this on my phone, so if the details are clearer on a big screen.. :eek:
 

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Looks like a C (tail hook bulge).
 

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It's a generic model. If it was a C, the trailing edge of the wing would overlap the stabilators, similar to the F-22. You can see a clear separation between the trailing edge of the wing and the stabilator, so it has the smaller wing of the A/B models. It has the canopy of the A, but not all of the details of the USAF A model.
 
F-35A, then. Smaller A/B-wing, with not all of the A's details in place?
 
So far i know, order Britain 48 F-35B for Queen Elizabeth II
and that Lockheed Martin already delivered two F-35B (BK-1 BK-2) to Britain.
 
It's back at RIAT:


http://web202.ssvc.com/news/articles/raf/3009
 
This full scale F-35A model was built in 2003 to the then current design release and that is why it has different bumps and curves from current F-35As.
 

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