Ядерный удар F-35 оценили в Military Watch Magazine: до городов России не дотянутся, но по Арктике ударят

Amid discussions in the United States about annexing Greenland, Military Watch Magazine analyzed the benefits of such a move from the perspective of a potential conflict between NATO and Russia. It is noted that in this case, "[Greenland's] strategic location near the Arctic provides a number of advantages."

F-35 Squadron
Image source Lockheed Martin

The main bonus will be the strengthening of the US Air Force's Pituffik Space Base in Greenland with F-35 fighters capable of carrying nuclear weapons. This base houses elements of the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) from the Arctic direction. Pituffik also serves as the base for the 1st Detachment of the 23rd Space Operations Squadron, part of Space Delta 6 — a global satellite control network. While the fighters have been temporarily stationed in Greenland, their permanent basing there is now being considered.

Military Watch Magazine recalls that Russian diplomats have expressed concern that the deployment of F-35s in Greenland could destabilize the situation in the Arctic region. Diplomats also feared possible nuclear strikes on Russian territory: the new B61-13 tactical nuclear bomb, which the F-35 carries, is capable of killing about 360,000 people.

F-35 dropping a B61 training nuclear bomb
Image source Military Watch Magazine

[...] The threat to Russian security posed by their nuclear strike capabilities remains limited. Greenland is located approximately 3,800 kilometers from the Russian border, while the F-35's range is only about 1,000 kilometers. Even the world's longest-range fighters, the Russian Su-34 and the Chinese J-20, have a range of only about 2,000 kilometers on internal fuel, and no Western fighter is capable of covering distances close to that. Although the deployment of F-35s is often supported by tankers, such as the KC-135, even with this support, increasing the fighters' range by a factor of four remains unlikely.

Military Watch Magazine

Powerful networked sensors allow these fighters to monitor the situation over vast areas during patrols. Therefore, the F-35 can be used for purposes that are no less dangerous for Russia. The article emphasizes that "although the threat of F-35 nuclear strikes on Russian territory appears limited, the F-35 can nevertheless be used to threaten shipping in the Arctic."

F-35

A fifth-generation multirole fighter-bomber developed by the American firm Lockheed Martin.

The F-35C fighter — an advanced long-range fifth-generation strike fighter — on the deck of an American aircraft carrier
Image source Lockheed Martin

It has three variants:

F-35A — a land-based fighter for the Air Force;
F-35B — a fighter with short takeoff and vertical landing;
F-35C — a carrier-based fighter (CV) for the Navy.

The fighter can carry:

AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-132 ASRAAM, and AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles;
Storm Shadow and AGM-158 JASSM cruise missiles;
JDAM guided bombs weighing up to 910 kg;
CBU-103, CBU-104, and CBU-105 WCMD (Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispencer) cluster bombs;
AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon guided aerial bombs;
Brimstone В anti-tank missiles;

B61 tactical nuclear bomb. The fighter's nomenclature includes two such munitions with a capacity of 0.3 to 340 kT in TNT equivalent on an internal suspension.

Its main feature in all three variants is stealth. «Stealth» technology does not make the visually «gray» F-35 completely invisible, but significantly complicates the enemy's task of detecting and hitting it. Its geometric shapes and angles prevent the reflection of radar signals, scattering or absorbing them.

Built-in internal sensors and weapons allow maintaining the fighter's stealth and aerodynamic characteristics, and the engine design minimizes infrared «thermal» visibility. The «Pratt & Whitney F135» allows maneuvering with full armament with filled fuel tanks with an overload of 9 units.