The F-111s were not popular when we first got them either, the flying pig or some similar name they used to call them. I would advise waiting till our lads have the F-35s before being too quick to follow the opinion of non flying folk. Easy to poo poo on something you will never actually use.
Defence wouldn't buy anything sub standard, off plan and over budget would they?.......... Need a dog but a cat is cheaper and the dog breeder thinks you will be a bad owner and won't let you have one anyway. So you buy said cat and discover that you still need a dog. Don't have money for a dog now so you send the cat to dog school (read performance upgrades) to teach it to bark. Discover that the Cat refuses to bark and the bastard won't come when it's told either so you're now left with a useless cat you still have feed but you still don't have a dog and so your place gets knocked off because who's scared of a bl..dy cat?!?
Guys you make me laugh.
The F35 is new technology. If it was to into an style dogfight with an aircraft made to dog fight, it would probably lose.
But its not designed like that. It is like comparing an old wall phone in your house (F111) to the latest I Phone.
The new fighters don't have the same range or fire power as an F111.
The F111 certainly does not have the same speed or range when it has 12x 1000 lb bombs hanging off its wings, then it is slower and less manourvarable, and has shorter range than than an F35 that carries its stuff internally. Also, the F35 is networked, so it does not even have to turn its radar on, the AWAC,s do that and data link the in infoi top the F35 from 400km away. The F35 can blind its opponent with its systems and fire a missile at its enemy, before the bad guy even knows its there.
Would you prefer an old carby powered 2 stroke motor and a graph paper sounder on your boat or a lowrance side scan and fuel injected 4 stroke?