Is Iran Really Building a Stealth Fighter (Or a Paper Tiger)?

[DemolitionMan]

Dave Majumdar

Iran’s indigenous Qaher F-313 fifth-generation stealth fighter is allegedly about to enter serial production, according to a top Iranian military official. However, the reality is that the Qaher F-313—which was widely derided as a hoax when it was first rolled-out in 2013—is likely nothing more than an ill-conceived propaganda ploy.

“[Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier] General [Hossein] Dehqan underlined that the final stage of the production of the home-made Qaher 313 fighter jet has ended, adding that the plane is ready for different tests,” writes the semi-official Fars News agency. “Qaher is a logistic aircraft for short distances and is a light fighter jet used for military and training operations. Some military analysts have stated that Qaher is a fifth generation aircraft.”It’s not clear which analysts have stated that the Qaher is fifth-generation fighter, but the overwhelming majority of Western analysts treated the F-313 as a joke when it was unveiled. Indeed, as I stated at the time: “Perhaps, this is just me as a product of the 1980s, but this aircraft looks a lot like an old GI Joe toy.”
I stand by that statement as even a cursory examination of the many photos and video imagery of the aircraft with a purportedly ‘very small radar cross section,’ it was immediately apparent that this was not a serious development. At the very best, it was  a subscale test-bed—but that’s being generous. The “aircraft”—such as it was—was clearly a paper-machete mockup.
http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/iran-really-building-stealth-fighter-or-paper-tiger-22714

[DemolitionMan]

Where is the saw dust and nails?

[Smokin Joe]

Did they buy a copy of the F-35 stuff from the folks who hacked the Aussies?

[DemolitionMan]

Did they buy a copy of the F-35 stuff from the folks who hacked the Aussies?

The Aussies would not sell them one because they were the co-developed for the F-35.Level 3 partners are Turkey, US$195 million; Canada, US$160 million; Australia, US$144 million; Norway, US$122 million and Denmark, US$110 million. Israel and Singapore have joined as Security Cooperative Participants (SCP).[290][291][292] Japan announced on 20 December 2011 its intent to purchase 42 F-35s with deliveries beginning in 2016 to replace the F-4 Phantom II; Japan seeks 38 F-35s, to be assembled domestically.[293]They are Level 3 partners: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Turkey

https://www.f35.com/global/participation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II/australia

[Smokin Joe]

The Aussies would not sell them one because they were the co-developed for the F-35.Level 3 partners are Turkey, US$195 million; Canada, US$160 million; Australia, US$144 million; Norway, US$122 million and Denmark, US$110 million. Israel and Singapore have joined as Security Cooperative Participants (SCP).[290][291][292] Japan announced on 20 December 2011 its intent to purchase 42 F-35s with deliveries beginning in 2016 to replace the F-4 Phantom II; Japan seeks 38 F-35s, to be assembled domestically.[293]They are Level 3 partners: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Turkey

https://www.f35.com/global/participation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II/australia

I never said the Aussies would.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/australian-defense-firm-was-hacked-and-f-35-data-stolen-dod-confirms/

https://phys.org/news/2017-10-f-stealth-fighter-stolen-australia.html

[DemolitionMan]

I never said the Aussies would.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/australian-defense-firm-was-hacked-and-f-35-data-stolen-dod-confirms/

Oh, I apolgize. F-35 Joint Program Office acknowledges breach, says no classified data was stolen.A spokesperson for the US Department of Defense's F-35 Joint Program Office confirmed the breach to Defense News, stating that the Office "is aware" of the breach. The spokesperson reiterated that no classified data was exposed.Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne said in an interview with Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio on Thursday that none of the data stolen was classified, but it was commercially sensitive and restricted under International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). The attacker also had full access to company e-mails.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/australian-defense-firm-was-hacked-and-f-35-data-stolen-dod-confirms/

[DemolitionMan]

Oh, I apolgize. F-35 Joint Program Office acknowledges breach, says no classified data was stolen.A spokesperson for the US Department of Defense's F-35 Joint Program Office confirmed the breach to Defense News, stating that the Office "is aware" of the breach. The spokesperson reiterated that no classified data was exposed.Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne said in an interview with Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio on Thursday that none of the data stolen was classified, but it was commercially sensitive and restricted under International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). The attacker also had full access to company e-mails.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/australian-defense-firm-was-hacked-and-f-35-data-stolen-dod-confirms/

International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a United States regulatory regime to restrict and control the export of defense and military related technologies to safeguard U.S. national security and further U.S. foreign policy objectives.There has been no independent verification of the status of development of this aircraft, and some commentators have even claimed that the aircraft is a hoax, or a "laughable fake".[20] Media sources outside of Iran have raised the possibility that the demonstrated aircraft would not be able to meet stated performance and/or that it may be a scale prototype or mockup,[15][21][22][23] with Cyrus Amini, a BBC News Persian Service journalist[24] claiming that the aircraft "looks like a cheap copy of the American F22".[4] Iran does not release technical details on its arsenals, so many of its claims about the aircraft are impossible to verify.[25]Its looks like a home model kit to me that put together with glue.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/irans-cutting-edge-fighter-a-hoax-critics-claim/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Traffic_in_Arms_Regulations

[Smokin Joe]

International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a United States regulatory regime to restrict and control the export of defense and military related technologies to safeguard U.S. national security and further U.S. foreign policy objectives.There has been no independent verification of the status of development of this aircraft, and some commentators have even claimed that the aircraft is a hoax, or a "laughable fake".[20] Media sources outside of Iran have raised the possibility that the demonstrated aircraft would not be able to meet stated performance and/or that it may be a scale prototype or mockup,[15][21][22][23] with Cyrus Amini, a BBC News Persian Service journalist[24] claiming that the aircraft "looks like a cheap copy of the American F22".[4] Iran does not release technical details on its arsenals, so many of its claims about the aircraft are impossible to verify.[25]Its looks like a home model kit to me that put together with glue.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/irans-cutting-edge-fighter-a-hoax-critics-claim/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Traffic_in_Arms_Regulations

Yep, as far as the pictured Iranian fighter goes, it's likely a prop. Analysts said there is an absence of space for an engine, no apparent weapons bays, instruments are off-the-shelf civil aviation instruments, and there are no visible access panels for maintenance. (IOW, a fraud.)

[DemolitionMan]

Yep, as far as the pictured Iranian fighter goes, it's likely a prop. Analysts said there is an absence of space for an engine, no apparent weapons bays, instruments are off-the-shelf civil aviation instruments, and there are no visible access panels for maintenance. (IOW, a fraud.)