Sunday, September 25, 2016

A New Arms Race Over Warplanes

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Wall Street Journal: Big Spending on Warplanes Spurs Aerial Arms Race

Russia, China seek to challenge Western superiority in the sky with stealthy, next-generation jets

For more than two decades, combat aircraft flown by the U.S. and its European allies have pretty much owned the sky. Now, Russia and China are spending lavishly on new weapons that could challenge that superiority, spurring a new arms race.

Some of the hardware, both planes and antiaircraft capabilities, is expected to roll out in the next few years. The upgrades come as Moscow flexes its muscles in hot spots such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East and Beijing does so in the South China Sea—heightening urgency among Western military brass to push for their own, next-generation combat planes. (See interactive graphic: Comparing the World’s Fighter Jets)

“The most pressing challenge for the United States Air Force is the rise of peer competitors with advanced military capabilities rivaling our own,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein told lawmakers in June, days before being confirmed in the job.

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WNU Editor: Russia's production of the T-50 will not be large enough to threaten U.S. dominance. The Chinese have the means to become a threat to U.S. dominance, but what exactly are their future plans is still unknown.

Update: Special: F-35 vs China J-31 & Russia PAK-FA (Scout Warrior).

2 comments:

Jac said...

The J-20 looks as stealthy as my SUV...and what about the jet-engine?
T-50 PAK-FA is much more serious. I just have a question about the Infra Red stealth and the integration of the antenna in the "plane skin". But it has the jet-engine powerful enough for a stealth design which is not very "aerodynamic compatible".
For the Chinese side: why making a stealth fighter if a "simple quantic radar" make it not efficient?

Jay Farquharson said...

J-20 has frontal stealth. Neither the Russian's nor the Chinese "believe" in all aspect stealth, as from both the side and the rear, stealth aircraft are highly "visible" to IR and ES sensor systems.

Focusing on just frontal stealth, like the F-15 Silent Eagle and the F-18 SH Hornet, allows overall better performance for a multirole aircraft.