F-35 is getting old. Such will be his successors

The fifth generation of fighters is a fruit of peaceful times. American F-22 and F-35, Chinese Chengdu J-20 or even the Russian Su-57 were created at a time when the vision of the great confrontation of world powers seemed very distant.

Especially in the West, there were questions whether it is worth allocating giant funds for the development of new aircraft. Projects from the US had to be struggling with constant budget cuts and delays – as well as with construction problems. Especially the F-35 project was very unlucky in this respect.

However, the world has changed a lot. The war in Ukraine continues, it is restless in many other areas of the globe – and the confrontation of the greatest powers does not seem impossible. Therefore, work on the sixth generation of machines accelerated in the powers. And it's hardly surprising. The fifth generation is getting old-the F-35 was already held in 2006. In the case of Chinese Chengdu J-20 it happened in 2011. If in peaceful times decision-makers could conclude that it is not worth hurrying so much, in the current situation they think that you need to accelerate with projects.

Let's check who prepares sixth generation fighters – and then we'll see what they will look like.

Several projects in the game

Of course, Americans have their project, it will be F-47. Malicious say that the name is to refer to the fact that Donald Trump is the 47th president. Interestingly, the project is dealt with by Boeing, not Lockheed Martin, who was responsible for the F-35 project. This may partly result from construction problems that have been found in the F-35 in recent years.

The project from China is much more mysterious. Or even projects. At the end of last year, the network was circulated by photos and videos from a trial flight of the aircraft, which probably was Chengdu J-36. But in the military world there is talk of another project-Shenyang J-50. Are these competitive or rather complementary projects towards each other? This is not fully known. On the other hand, the Western analysts are sure that work on projects is advanced in the Middle Kingdom – maybe even more than those in the USA.

Probable recordings that show J-36

Another interesting project is Tempest – the fruit of cooperation between the British, Italians and Japanese. The first violin is to play here the British consortium Bae Systems.

This is not the only project from Europe. Germans, French and Spaniards are working on their own. Its initial name is simply New Generation Fighter. Dassault Aviation, Airbus and Indra Sisteras are key companies here.

These four projects are currently the most advanced. But there were also reports about projects from Brazil, India or Sweden. There are many indications that Russia is a great absent in this race, although there was also a MIG-41 project-while available information shows that it is not very advanced yet.

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So what will the new super -meals be like?

While the fifth generation was created in relatively calm times, it cannot be said about six. Project designers are very urgently following the situation on the front – above all the Ukrainian – and draw conclusions. The Economist weekly notes that they all will probably have one common feature – They will be very large.

Where does it come from? Anti -aircraft systems are increasingly advanced, and therefore “cheating radars” is becoming a priority. The designers decided that it is better to put all bombs or rockets inside the machines-because if they “hang” on the wings, for example (like in F-16), then it is easier for the opponent to see the opponent.

And so: the current F-35 is 15.7 m long, in the meantime it is to be 19.2 m. And it will probably be one of the smaller fighters of the sixth generation-Chinese competition is to be much larger.

The range will also be crucial. Here, the reason is that the military expect that the future conflict can take place on the Pacific's waters. That is why-according to the Defense One portal-F-47 is to have 70 percent. Greater range on one refueling than the F-22. In turn, the British-Italian-Japanese Tempest is able to cross the entire Atlantic on one refueling.

It will probably not be a surprise for anyone that new fighters will be much faster than these fifth generation. The F-47 will be able to move at a speed of 2 machines when the F-35 can reach 1.6 waves.

However, all this will not be the most important. Gen. Dariusz Parlak recently told us that It is artificial intelligence that will decide on the fate of future wars. The designers of new aircraft certainly realize this. “The Economist” describes that new machines will not only be aircraft, but also with movable data centers, connected to tanks or ships. Data can be transferred to “artificial intelligence centers”. This artificial intelligence will be able to decide on the goals of the attacks – or the moment when the attacks are to be carried out.

It is hard not to ask questions about the role of pilots. For now, most projects – if not all – are based on the fact that people will sit at the controls. There is a lack of people who would like to go in a completely different direction. At the end of last year, Elon Musk complained that “idiots” want to develop classic aircraft, such as F-35, instead of drones.

However, it seems that AI is not yet developed to completely replace pilots. However, there are analyzes that their role will be reduced to someone like “an officer responsible for choosing weapons”. The key decisions will be made by commanders who will have access to the data collected by AI. It cannot be ruled out that AI will make decisions herself, and the officer on the plane will only verify and perform them. Nevertheless, it is very likely that the sixth generation of fighters will be the last to need a man in the cockpit.

See also: Boeing is fighting for a contract for the Polish army. The giant from the USA promises investments

Okay, but when will these machines appear?

According to the information of the Defense One portal, there is pressure to make the F-47 machine ready for the first flight in 2029-that is before the end of Donald Trump's term. It usually takes a long time to implement the machine for production and service. For example-the first F-35 flight took place in 2006, and the plane entered the service nine years later. With such complicated projects – and yet the sixth generation will be much more technologically advanced than the fifth – you can expect countless problems and delays.

On the other hand, the British-Italian-Japanese Tempest is planned to enter service in 2035, German-French-Spanish competition-in 2040. Of course, the Chinese can overtake all. Or … geopolitical situation. “The Economist” emphasizes that in many capitals there are questions whether it is really worth investing gigantic money in projects, of which will not be useful for at least a decade. And in a situation where a large conflict can come much faster.

Author: Mateusz Madejski, Business Insider Polska journalist