To the editor:

As the United States struggles to respond in a timely manner to ongoing crises with ISIL in Iraq and Syria and the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, we need to take note that we need to be prepared and ready to respond as a country and a military.

Our military needs to be equipped to respond in a timely manner when situations arise around the world that promise to threaten our national security and the safety of our citizenry.

One way to help ensure our military is prepared is to continue development and fleeting of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Having a new, fifth-generation fighter jet that will be flown by the U.S. Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps and an aircraft that will be flown by our closest allies is absolutely essential to protecting our national security and preserving the peace.

Russia and China are once again rising up towards Cold War-era aggression, and the Middle East is in the greatest turmoil in recorded history, and we need to provide our military with the greatest advantages we can give them.

We are neither the largest military nor the biggest economy, capable of overwhelming our enemies by sheer numbers. The best thing we can do is to maintain a technological advantage, which gets harder and harder to do in the modern world.

Delaying programs now makes them obsolete before they ever reach the field. The F-35 is one program that will provide us with the advantage we need, and it is imperative that we finish developing it.

Bruce Avants

Norfolk