The F-35 strike fighter has just added another blockbuster movie to its screen credits, and finally gets some hero treatment. It features in “Ender’s Game,” the Harrison Ford space epic that hit theaters on Nov. 1. In this film (don’t worry, no spoiler here), thousands of F-35s, circa 2040, tangle with alien ships in the skies of the Earth. In previous films—such as “The Avengers,” “Man of Steel,” “Green Lantern,” “Superman Returns,” or “Die Hard 4,” the F-35 is portrayed as ineffectual at best, and, at worst, causing a whole lot of collateral damage in various battles with the bad guys. The F-35—on film, rather than as a computer-generated image—is also likely to get heavy screen time in the planned “Top Gun II,” but that project is on hold since the death of its intended director, Tony Scott.
Amid a high-profile recruiting crisis, Air Force leaders and experts have increasingly noted the challenging long-term trends the service will face in enticing young Americans to sign up—decreasing eligibility to serve, less propensity to do so, and less familiarity with the military. But while those same leaders say there’s no “silver…