I am:
Long term lurker, recent member.
Middle aged white man
Retired MSgt, 24 years in service with 3 deployments in SWA. I was not a trigger puller. I fixed communications systems
Life long Democrat from coal mine country, now living in the flat lands of the mid-American prairie
Married for close to 30 years, with two adult children.
I have a 65 pound mongrel from the humane society and she is the smallest dog my wife and I have ever had...
That should tell you all that anyone would ever need to know of me.

CAP/area denial is still a vital mission. Theoretical abilities limits and ideal (imaginary) aircraft aren't the point. No one is going to dog fight like Me 109s vs. P51s.
Speed vs. maneuver is an argument already settled - jets and missiles are the order of the day.
But from the article I read and the excerpts of the after action report available on line speak of slow turn in, low power to weight ratio, poor tracking and an inability to hold radar lock in aerobatic maneuver. Meat against the older TRAINER VERSION of the Falcon.
This turd is supposedly capable in all fighter-interceptor-deep strike-CAS roles and is shitty at all of them.
That was the point of my rant.

P.S - I would also love to see the F35 go against an F4 - just for giggles.
I love the Phantom even though the Weasels woke my ass up every morning back in George

The contempt for our service members that the Congress and the defense contractors that have kept this gravy train rolling display is breathtaking.
$1000000000000 so far for an underpowered wallowing pig of a strike fighter.
Not capable of beating a block 40 2 seat F-16 trainer in aerial combat. (the current generation of the Falcon is block 60, and the operational aircraft are faster and lighter single seat models)
Cannot carry the air to ground payload of the F-15, and it's slower
Cannot loiter and survive in close air support like the A-10 and is also seriously under gunned compared the Warthog
Yet the JCS will replace all of these more capable air frames with this turd?
The potential loss of pilots is appalling enough, but military doctrine for the last 40 plus years assumes air superiority in the battle space, and with this P.O.S we will not be assured of having it.
How would our soldiers react if it's them hunkered down in holes while the enemy planes rain bombs on their heads?
Probably not much better than the Republican Guard did during DESERT STORM
Seriously, this is treasonous