This strange mod to the F-35 kills its stealth near Russian defenses — and there’s good reason for that

When the F-35 flies over friendly countries for overseas deployments, you may notice some strange tags on the body of the otherwise sleek jet.

What are those? Lockheed Martin

Every angle and surface of the F-35 has been precisely machined to baffle radar waves, so little notches like the ones on the picture above would defeat the purpose of the weapons system that has cost about $400 billion so far.

Here’s the Marine Corps‘ F-35B flying clean:

An F-35Bs taking off from the USS America. Lockheed Martin

The notches, which are called Luneberg reflectors, serve a purpose. The reflectors increase the F-35’s radar signature several hundred times over so that a plane that would normally be nearly impossible for civilian air traffic controllers to spot would give off a big, safe blip.

Perhaps the F-35B above didn’t need the reflectors because it took off from the sea, away from potential spotters.

Read the whole story from Business Insider.

Featured image courtesy of Lockheed Martin