Stealth Saga #59

Sixth Generation Fighters:

The USAF's NGAD appears to be on track - if it follows the same course as the LRSB/B-21 - to make a selection in 2023.

The USN's Next Generation Fighter appears to have either been cancelled or gone black.

A think tank created a forum for Australia, Japan and the US to discuss requirements for the next gen fighters.

Mike Griffin is deeply skeptical of lasers on aircraft.

The Franco-German FCAS has started the demonstrator phase.

The Germans are considering the ethics of the FCAS program.

Japan has decided to build their own next gen fighter rather than participate in foreign systems.

Japan wants their next gen fighter to carry a lot more missiles than the F-35.

Japan may consider exporting its next gen fighter due to its high costs.

Japan has picked American companies to work with on its next gen fighter, but will take the lead on the project.  They will not be joining the British led Tempest project.

Loyal Wingmen:

The USAF has started its Loyal Wingman program officially, called Skyborg.

Australia's loyal wingman drone has made progress.

Su-57:

A video suggests the Su-57 finally launched a missile from its small, side bay.

The Russians have been  testing an unmanned flight mode for the Su-57.

The Russians are also claiming the Su-57 has met almsot all testing goals.

B-2:

F-117:

The F-117 conducted missions over the pacific ocean twice off the coast of California.

F-22:

F-22s intercepted a Russian aircraft.  What happened next depends on who is telling the story.

An F-22 has crashed in Florida.

F-22s participated in an elephant walk in Hawaii.

F-22s in Alaska participated in an elephant walk.

F-35:

Trump is not happy parts of the F-35 are made overseas.

The F-35 is having some parts problems after removing the Turks from the program.

The Pentagon issued a contract for 78 F-35s from Lockheed.  48 F-35As, 14 F-35Bs and 16 F-35Cs.

The Pentagon is looking at how to extend the life of the OLEDs on the F-35 helmets.

In light of COVID-19, how is the testing continuing at Edwards AFB?

F-35 manufacturing will not meet its goals due to covid-19 impacts.

Some still are not happy about the F-35 program.

The total SSDs left for the F-35 have been reduced from 43 to 6, but the bulkhead cracking is still one of them.

USAF and Israeli F-35s exercised together.

A USAF F-35 crashed in Florida.

USAF F-35As returning to Hill AFB from the Middle East are coming back with unique nicknames.

Two F-35As flew to Eielson AFB.

The US military is considering removing the F-35 from Britain over the Huawei 5G plans.

The USMC does not have enough pilots to fly their F-35Bs.

The USMC won't cut their F-35 procurements for now, but that may change.  They are debating that.

USMC's F-35C equipped VMFA-314 has been declared safe for flight.

An Australian firm will produce cannon ammo for the F-35.

The US approved a support package for South Korean F-35s.

Collins will deliver the Tactical Combat Training Increment II for the F-35.

META:

Northrop is developing a gateway for networking 5th gen fighters.

Stealth Saga #58

Sixth Generation Fighters:

The USAF has stated manned fighters could start being replaced by UCAVs within 5 years.

Elon Musk agrees and stated the era of the manned fighter has passed.

The US Navy will cut F/A-18E/F production to speed up their next generation fighter.

France and Germany have started the demonstrator phase for the FCAS program.  Spain will join.

The French Neuron UAV will inform the FCAS program.

Dassault blames politics for the demise of the Anglo-French 6th gen fighter project.

Loyal Wingmen:

The USAF is plotting the course for when the Loyal Wingmen will be introduced.

The USAF/Kratos Valkyrie gets compared to the F-35 for capabilities vs cost.

The Australian/Boeing Loyal Wingman ATS is progressing.

KFX:

Elbit will provide TF/TA systems for the South Korean KFX system.

Su-57:

The Su-57 has been spotted testing the new engine.

B-21:

The B-21 renderings show subtle differences between the B-2 and the B-21.

B-2:

B-2s flew to Iceland and exercised with Norwegian F-35s and USAF F-15s.

A B-2 deployed to the Azores.

B-2 DMS-M upgrades will be limited to the cockpit.

F-117:

A stripped F-117 has been placed on a government website for sale on a government surplus website.

An F-117 has been spotted over Star Wars Canyon again.

F-22:

F-22s and F-35s exercised in Hawaii.

For F-22 & F-35 demo pilots, aggressive maneuvering is the norm.

Watch F-22s arrive in Singapore.

F-22s returned from a short notice deployment in Qatar.

Watch an F-22 do a slo-mo take-off and vertical climb.

F-22s and CF-18s intercepted Tu-142s off Alaska.

F-35:

500 F-35s have been delivered.

The Pentagon is unsure if the new approach will fix the ALIS issues and lacks performance metrics for the system.

Captain Kristin "Beo" Wolfe joined the F-35 demo team.

Lot 9 and new F-35s are getting cracks after using their guns.

The newest F-35A squadron is showing off the F-35A's capabilities at Red Flag.

F-35As in the Middle East found a GBAD system.

F-35A store separation tests have completed ahead of schedule.

The F-35B will be flying at the Singapore airshow.

F-35Bs exercised off the USS America (which is flying the Captain America flag) in the South China Sea.

USMC F-35Cs have arrived at Miramar.

The first F-35C pilot has earned the Britannia award.

Australia and Britain are opening an F-35 reprogramming facility in the US.

Indonesia wants to buy the F-35 instead of the Su-35.

Israel is buying another 25 F-35Is.

The Japanese F-35 production line shutdown due to the COVID-19 virus.

The JASDF 302 Squadron emblem has been unveiled.

Norwegian F-35As in Iceland.

Norwegian F-35As (and others' Eurofighters) intercepted Tu-142s.

Lockheed could be financially liable for unmet SDD requirements.

F-35 profitability might suffer with the loss of Turkish manufacturing.

Stealth Saga #57

6th Generation Fighters:

Rolls Royce will develop a new engine for the British led Tempest fighter.

TF-X:

Turkey has invited Malaysia to join its program.

Su-57:

Another article on the first production Su-57 crash.

PAK-DA:

Supposedly (in russian), a contract was signed in 2017.  Testing of three prototypes is supposed to happen starting this fall (2020).  Development is supposed to continue through 2026.  State testing is supposed to take place between 2026 to 2028.

Chinese Stealth Aircraft:

Chinese aviation watchers are expecting to see new aircraft this year.

5GAT:

The USAFA and Sierra Nevada designed and built the 5GAT 5th gen target drone.  It might be useable as a Loyal Wingman.

XQ-58A:

DARPA's Valkyrie has had a successful 4th flight and expanded its flight envelope.

RQ-170:

Details of the RQ-170's first trip to South Korea get shown.

B-21: 

The USAF has released renderings of the B-21.  One of which I am very late to post.

B-2:

A B-2 overflew the Rose Bowl.

F-22:

An F-22 at Langley AFB had a landing gear failure.

The new Demo pilot for the F-22 does an interview.

F-35:

2019 was a very good year for the F-35 program.  134 F-35s were delivered.

OTOH, the F-35 has 873 deficiencies.  Including issues with its gun.

The F-35 program will be ditching ALIS for a new software called ODIN.

The F-35 now has a multi aircraft infrared search and track capability.

F-35 can now feed ground interceptors targeting info.

The Pentagon and Lockheed have signed a new sustainment contract.

A new rotor design is being tested for the F-35's engine.

Congress will only allow the USAF to use early F-35As as aggressors once there is some sort of plan.

The USAF released an RFI for the Stand in Attack Weapon for the F-35A.

The monster F-35A elephant walk by the USAF at Hill AFB gets another profile.

The USAF's 158th is training in Florida.

USMC F-35Cs will leave NAS Lemoore for MCAS Miramar.

Lt Col Bann is the first pilot to reach 1,000 hours in the F-35.

The USN is weighing what it takes to get the F-35C on the USS Kennedy.

The Australians have transferred their F-35 pilot training to Australia from the US.

British F-35s will get a DAS upgrade.

British F-35Bs went to Nellis AFB for Red Flag and diverted on the way.

British F-35Bs are conducting sea trials on the USS Queen Elizabeth.

Lockheed has started building Denmark's first F-35.

The Israelis have inaugurated their second F-35I squadron.

An Israeli F-35I appeared on a tracking website again.

Norway is deploying its F-35s to Iceland.

Poland should sign a deal for 32 F-35s shortly.  And they did.  32 birds for $4.6B.

Singapore has requested the F-35B.  The US State Department approved buying 12.

The majority of the parts made in Turkey for the F-35 will be moved to other locations by March.

Lockheed expects F-35 production to rise to 180 annually.

Stealth Saga #55

6th Generation Fighter:

The USAF thinks it has a 5 year window to reinvent the fighter industry in the US.

The FCAS team reports good progress on the concept study phase.  They will be defining the requirements before the demos start.

LOUT:

Airbus unveiled its stealthy UAV test article paid for by Germany.

XQ-58A Valkyrie:

The USAF is testing the Valkyrie as a comm link between the F-22 and F-35.

Loyal Wingman:

Australia's Loyal Wingman program has surrogate UAVs flying.

KFX:

South Korea's KF-X will use the meteor missile.

Su-57:

The Su-57 has been given the awesome NATO code name of 'Felon.'

And there are some stunning photos from MAKS'19.

The first production Su-57 is supposedly ready to deliver to the Russian aerospace forces and supposedly will be delivered before the end of the year.

Russia will not sell the Su-57 to Turkey until demand from the Russian aerospace forces is met.

Russia claims the UAE may help produce the SU-57.

B-21:

Even on schedule, the B-21 is under pressure.

A report to congress on the B-21.

B-2:

China has been testing a wind tunnel model of the B-2.

F-117:

The Reagan Library is getting an F-117 for display.  Here are some pictures and videos of its preparation for display.  And more pix.

F-117s continue to fly over Nevada.

F-35:

Congress is cooling to the idea of multi year production contracts for the F-35.

The Pentagon has made an agreement with Lockheed for Lots 12, 13 and 14 for the F-35 that puts the price for the F-35A lower than $80M each.

The Pentagon is in a bun fight with Lockheed over ALIS, the logistics system.  The bun fight is a legacy of how the contract was awarded,

The Pentagon has found replacement manufacturers for all but a dozen parts as part of removing Turkey from the F-35 program.

The recent problems with the F-35 have been tied to the scaling up of production.

F-35 readiness has increased to 75%.

F-35s can now talk to F-22s.

The USAF 4th Fighter Squadron returned home after combat deployment.

F-35As were flying with MQ-9 Reapers near Area 51.

Two USAF pilots were the first to fly the USMC's F-35B operationally on the USS America.

More on the USMC's test of the Lightning Carrier concept on the USS America.

USMC F-35Bs returning from Afghanistan have interesting bomb markings.

The USS America is steaming to its new homeport in Japan.

Brits were qualing their F-35Bs for night ops on the HMS Queen Elizabeth.

The Brits are planning on integrating their new carriers into US Navy carrier ops.

Israeli F-35Is will be participating in Exercise Blue Flag and have.

Japan has ordered more JSM for its F-35s.

Japan is being pitched the next gen amphibious ship, which may carry F-35s.

Netherlands greeted their first F-35A to be based in their country with an accidental foam bath.

Norway declared IOC for its F-35As.

The first sale of the F-35 tot he UAE could be a long way off.

Lockheed won a $25M contract for a new GPS for the F-35.

Lockheed also won a $114M contract for durability testing on the F-35B.

Lockheed won a $184.6 M contract mod for depot work for the F-35.

Lockheed foresees potential sales in Portugal and Spain of the F-35.

Raytheon's JSOW is getting certified for the F-35.

META:

The F-35 and B-21 buys must continue, but where's the money, some ask.

Stealth Saga #52

6th Generation Fighters:

BAe is exploiting 'syngeries' between the Typhoon and the Tempest.

BAe is imagining what the Tempest factory might be.

BAe is working on advanced cockpit controls that will inform on the Tempest.

MBDA showed off some of its work on Tempest.

Italy has signed a contract to study joining the Tempest project.

Is Italy joining the Tempest project actually a bad thing?

The FCAS vs Tempest: WHO! WILL! WIN! europe's budget.

The USAF may switch over to fast iterations of new fighters every 5 years.

F-3 Fighter:

The Japanese MoD is rumored to be placing the start of the F-3 program in the 2020 budget request.

Ohotnik-B:

The Russians are showing a model of the Ohotnik-B with a very different exhaust nozzle than the current aircraft.

Su-57:

Three Su-57s were spotted practicing for the MAKS 2019 airshow.

Development testing is supposed to be complete in 2019 for the Su-57.

The Su-57 was caught doing an interesting deployment of its drag chutes.

Turkey is considering buying Su-57s instead of F-35s.

Sukhoi unveiled the Su-57E, an export version of the Su-57.

An Su-57 was sent to Turkey as part of the airshow.

The impressive aerial display by an Su-57 gets discussed.

Chinese Loyal Wingman:

The Chinese showed off a Loyal Wingman concept at MAKS.

J-20:

A dubious report has come out that the J-20 will be the basis for the J-XY.

B-21:

Northrop is applying lessons learned from the B-2 to the B-21 program.

The B-21's first public flight route has been announced.

The USAF will probably need more than the 100 B-21s currently planned.

The USAF is considering dumping the B-1 to fund the B-21 to completion.

B-2:

A video has emerged of the B-2 dropping practice 500 lbs bombs.

Even as the B-21 is coming, the B-2 is still being upgraded.

The B-2 visited Iceland for the first time.

Watch 3 B-2s land at an RAF airbase.

Take a look at B-2s flying with RAF F-35Bs.  They were training together.

A B-2 flew a long duration flight over the Arctic.

Take a look at these close up pictures of the B-2.

The B-2 practiced hot pitting in the Azores.

F-117:

An F-117 fuselage was spotted being hauled on the California highways.  It was headed to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.

The first flight of the F-117 gets discussed.

51 F-117s remain in the inventory.

F-22:

The USAF is working on a plan to fix the maintenance capability of the F-22's stealth tech.

The F-22 has some stunning images from its flights in Chicago.

Upgrades needed to the facilities in Germany so F-22s can be deployed there for long term have been cancelled as part of the funds transferred for Trump's stupid border wall.

The F-22 will not reach the readiness rates ordered by ex SecDef Mattis.

The F-22s from Tyndall are now active and integrated in Alaska.

F-35:

F-35s struggle with readiness rates.  Parts availability and the oldest aircraft are the biggest issues.

Female pilots are involved with the F-35 program.

The F-35A finally gets chaff countermeasures next year.

USAF F-35As deployed to an austere Middle Eastern base.

The USAF plans on deploying F-35As to South Korean next year.

The USAF F-35A demo team is moving to Hill AFB for the 2020 season.

F-35As along with F-15Es bombed an ISIS stronghold.

Check out these Luke AFB F-35s in 'Beast Mode.'  Something once called a fiction by F-35 haters.

An F-35 was able to detect a missile launch and could be used in an early warning fashion.

The USMC has been invited to operate its F-35Bs off of the Japanese mini carriers.

A F-35B has fired the first AIM-9X in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Vermont ANG got two F-35s this week.

The British has had problems with ALIS.

Watch an F-35B land on the HMS Queen Elizabeth.

The British will send the HMS Queen Elizabeth to Canada and US with 7 F-35Bs aboard.

The British HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier intended to carry F-35Bs set sail for the first time.

The first Dutch F-35 assembled in Italy has made its maiden flight.

Has the Israeli campaign against Iranian backed militias spread to Iraq?  (they use F-35s for these attacks)

Israel has received two more F-35Is.

Japan has formally selected the F-35B for its V/STOL aircraft.  42 aircraft will be ordered.

Japan hopes by ordering more F-35s it will get more contract work for the aircraft.

Poland has been approved to buy 32 F-35s.

South Korea is about to get 4 more F-35As.

Taiwan has revealed it has been told it can only buy the F-35 after 2030.

There is a path for Turkey to return to the F-35 program.

BAe has won contracts to upgrade the EW suite of the F-35.

BAe thinks it can reduce costs on F-35 support by applying Typhoon lessons.

Lockheed won a $32M contract to retrofit USAF F-35As.

Lockheed also won a $2.4B contract for spare parts for the F-35.

Lockheed spelled out how Poland will benefit industrially if they buy F-35s.

Lockheed got a $266M contract for F-35 tooling.

Lockheed is preparing to improve the F-35s targeting capabilities.

Raytheon demonstrated JPALS to the F-35 partners.

META:

Who is more impressive?  The F-22 or Su-57 demo teams?

Check out these stunning pix from NYC of F-22s, F-35s and more.

Stealth Saga #45

Loyal Wingman:

Australia and Boeing announced a new Loyal Wingman aircraft called the BATS.  It is designed to be built in Australia without American components so it can be exported pretty much anywhere without American approvals.  First flight is expected to be next year.
India's HAL has shown off its concept.

Kratos' XQ-58A Valkyrie was to make its first flight.   It did and it was beautiful.  The intent is to make the Valkyrie a Loyal Wingman where a flock of them could be managed by an single F-35.  In the process, Kratos stole Boeing's thunder.

6th Generation Fighters:

The USAF head of acquisition seems unhappy with the answer the USAF came back with about what its next gen fighter will be and seems to want to derail the effort.

Analysts are stating the US Navy needs its 6th gen fighter and unmanned assets for its carriers to stay relevant.

Is it better for India to order F-16s, ahem F-21s or join the Tempest project?

MTU Aero Engines may join the Franco-German FCAS project.

Dassault is warning against turning the FrancoGerman FCAS into another Eurofighter.

AMCA:

India's indigenous stealth fighter has supposedly begun the detailed design phase.

Su-57:

The Russians will only take delivery of ONE Su-57 in 2019 and ONE in 2020.  Not 12 in 2019.  More will not be delivered until the improved engine has been perfected.

Russia is trying to convince the Indians to buy the Su-57 again.

J-20:

Chinese J-20s deployed to Cangzhou air base.

F-117:

At least one F-117 is still flying.

A Dutch magazine claimed F-117s conducted airstrikes in Syria.  The Drive semi convincingly argues the F-117 returning to combat for strikes in Syria were unnecessary because the US gov has at least 8 stealthy Avenger drones capable of conducting strikes.

B-2:

What a shot!  The B-2 gets the full hawaii experience.

F-22:

13 F-22s participated in an elephant walk.

An Australian pilot has been trained on the F-22.

F-35:

The Pentagon is proposing buying 78 F-35s instead of 84.

Some doubt the F-35 can carry weapons capable of intercepting North Korean missiles.

F-35s were photographed in the Sierra mountains.

US Generals are coming out strongly against the F-15X buy and advocating buying more F-35s.

The USAF's F-35As apparently clobbered the older fighters at the Red Flag exercise pretty handily.

Watch the F-35A demo team at Luke AFB.  They debuted new aerobatics.

The USAF isn't worried by the F-35As gun being inaccurate.

The USAF conducted an exercise where they did forward refueling for the F-35A.

The USAF is trying to fix ALIS...by moving it to the cloud: *head desk*

USMC's deployment of the F-35B on the USS Essex has ended and hints at new roles for the amphibious group.  The F-35Bs conducted over 100 combat missions.

The US Navy has declared IOC for the F-35C finally.

The US Navy is preparing for its first carrier deployment of the F-35C.

The US Navy F-35C commander is focused on the first deployment of the bird and transitioning the first USMC wing.

The US Navy ordered repair materials for 7 F-35s.

The US Navy paid a beltway bandit to help with the F-35 program.

The US Navy gave Lockheed a $14M contract mod for improving the ground avoidance system.

One analyst believes the Navy should not develop the 6th gen fighter yet and instead develop an F-35C derived interceptor/bomber escort.

The Pegasus finally refueled an F-35.

Australia's F-35 repair work by Northrop gets detailed.

Australia signed an agreement with Lockheed to increase local industry participation.

Australia is happy with the F-35 operations so far.

Israeli F-35s may have destroyed a Chinese made antistealth radar in Syria.

Japan is gearing up for supporting the F-35.

Poland might buy 32 F-35s.

The Russian Embassy in DC made some weird threats to the F-35 with Vietnam era footage.

Singapore is buying 4 F-35s with options for 8 more.

US Generals are pushing for Turkey to lose its participation in the F-35 program due to the purchase of the Russian S-400 missiles.

BAe is updating the EW suite on the F-35.

Lockheed is working to reduce F-35 operational costs.

Northrop has finished the 500th center fuselage for the F-35.