Comment by panick21_

> tracking a small target over large distances requires highly precise machinery. Exactly something that you want on a battlefield.

Lots of things on the battle field now, would have been considered highly precise in the past. The current generation is more relevant for ships.

> F-35 is not designed to bomb critical resources. It's a fighter jet.

No it isn't. That's complete nonsense.

> launching salvos of hundreds of Shaheed drones into YOUR critical infrastructure that you can't protect.

And my point that you ignored was that technology to do mass shoot-down of Shaheed is much more likely to exists then technology to prevent F-35.

If its a poor economic war the question is if your interceptor can be cheaper then what its preventing. And drones while cheap are not as cheap as, bullets, lasers or smaller drones.

And you say, 'launch from greater distances' that also comes with longer time to intercept because these things don't have radars and aren't that fast. Plus launching ever larger drones at longer range also increases the cost per drone.

But they can't do and F-35 can is that they can go in and take out exactly the vital air defense and other points so that your other aviation assets have an easier time.

Any conception that war in the future will just be two mass manufacturing lines splinting drones at each other is silly, technology and stealth have a major roll to play.

> That's the whole point of the article.

I think the point of the article likely is to convince people that drones should get more funding in the full knowledge of that F-35 wont go away.

Its funny how some of the people who know a lot about this stuff are still going forward with other next generation planes despite cheap drones existing.

Cheap drones are new part of the battle field, but just like with most weapons, the old stuff doesn't go away. Tanks and rifles are still useful. And so is the F-35 and stealth jets.