The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: One of America's Worst Fighter Jets Ever?

Dave Majumdar

Security,

Here are the 5 worst U.S. Fighter jets of all time. And yes, the F-35 makes the list. 

The United States has built many great fighters over the years. The P-51 Mustang, the F4U Corsair, F-86 Sabre, F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon and the F-22 are among the best warplanes this country has ever produced. This article is not about those machines.

There have been plenty of times when American ingenuity has fallen flat on its face. This article is about the dregs of U.S. warplane designs—the worst of the worst. But from each of these failures, we can learn something and make sure it never happens again. It’s only a failure of you don’t learn something from it.

Bell P-59 Airacomet:

Bell’s P-59 Aircomet was America’s first attempt at building a jet fighter. However, compared to its British and German contemporaries—the Gloster Meteor and the Messerschmitt Me 262—the P-59 was an abysmal failure.

In fact, during tests against Lockheed P-38 Lightnings, Republic P-47 Thunderbolts and a captured Mitsubishi Zero, it was discovered that the P-59 offered no advantage over the conventional piston-engine fighters of the time. Moreover, in many cases the piston-engine fighters outclassed the new jet.

The P-59 had a top speed of only 413 miles per hour—roughly equivalent to the P-38. Ultimately, the P-59 proved to be of little use except as a test vehicle, but it did set the stage for later, more successful projects.

Vought F7U Cutlass:

The U.S. Navy didn’t have an easy time introducing jets onto the carrier flight deck. One early effort was the Vought F7U Cutlass—known derisively to its pilots as the “Gutless Cutlass.” The Cutlass was not only severely underpowered with its pair of Westinghouse J46-WE-8B turbojets; it was also plagued with immature systems—especially its problematic hydraulics.

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