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 Engineers have finalized the external design of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, with the resulting configuration nearly indistinguishable from the X-35 JSF demonstrator that underwent flight testing in 2000 and 2001. Design changes, though small, will bring overall performance gains to the stealthy fighter. The F-35 “lines freeze” milestone was achieved as scheduled on 27 June 2002. The design has been evolving incrementally since the configuration that flew as the X-35 demonstrator. Finalized changes include extending the forward fuselage by five inches to better accommodate avionics and sensors; moving the horizontal tail rearward by two inches to maintain stability-and-control with the newly extended forward fuselage; raising the top surface of the aircraft about one inch along the centerline to increase fuel capacity by 300 pounds and to extend range; adding slightly more twist to the wing camber on the aircraft carrier version to improve both handling qualities and transonic performance; and adjusting the position of the vertical tails slightly to improve aerodynamic performance. Earlier in the design phase, engineers also reduced the length of the engine inlet ducts, saving weight and improving performance.
“During the Concept Demonstration phase of this program, we believed the only way to validate the aerodynamic performance of our concept was to test-fly an aircraft that was representative of the one we intended to produce,” said Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and JSF program general manager. “When you look at this final design and compare it to the one we flew, it’s clear that the two aircraft are essentially identical, save for some fine-tuning. That means the outstanding performance of our X-35 JSF concept demonstration aircraft can also be expected of our production model, the F-35.”
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