Friday, April 10, 2015

Are Fighter Jets Becoming Obsolete?

Lt Col Wade Tolliver, 27 FS director of operations, delivers the second permanent F/A-22 at Langley AFB on 8 June 2005 photo by TSgt Ben Bloker

Franz-Stefan Gady, The Diplomat: Adios, Top Gun: The End of the Fighter Jet?

Maverick and Goose would be terribly unhappy with this new CSBA study.

Is the old dichotomy between fighter jets and bombers becoming obsolete in air forces across the world? Yes, according to a new study, which argues small and highly maneuverable air-to-air combat planes may indeed be on their slow way out to be replaced by a new multi-role, stealthy, long-range aircraft the size of a bomber.

Yesterday, Breaking Defense reported on a new provocative paper, “Trends in Air-to-Air Combat – Implications for Future Air Superiority,” which analyzed “over 1,450 air-to-air victories” in the last 50 years across the globe. The report concluded that new technology “has fundamentally transformed the nature of air combat.”


WNU Editor: I doubt that the brass in the U.S. Air Force will accept the recommendations of this report.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

The brass wants 1/3rd of the fleet to be drones or or autonomous but pilotless air frames by 2030.

So they do get something.

Pilotless planes could handle higher gees have greater range without the overhead of a pilot and be more expendable.

Unknown said...

Here’s What You’ll Find on the Fighter Jet of 2030

http://www.defenseone.com/technology/2015/02/heres-what-youll-find-fighter-jet-2030/104736/

oldfatslow said...

Hmmm, Cordwainer Smith's
"War 81-Q" may yet be a
reality.

ofs