A new manned fighter will be defined in an era when unmanned air vehicles (UAV) are ubiquitous and unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAV) are a reality. UCAVs will not replace manned aircraft but will influence the design of the next fighters by relieving them of some missions, such as suppression/destruction of enemy air defenses or stand-in electronic attack. One argument for the Navy’s RAQ-25 carrier-based air refueling system is that it can extend both the range and life of the strike-fighter force.
Directed-energy weapons will be a real factor. Technological breakthroughs, like the Missile Defense Agency’s projects, lie within the realm of the possible. More likely, the development of a practical weapon—such as a laser capable of defending a large aircraft against missile attack—will trigger a cascade of new applications, higher production rates and engineering improvements, analogous to the rapid development of targeting pods since the late 1990s.
Small precision-guided bombs, largely autonomous after launch, are a reality: A future fighter will be designed around many small weapons rather than a pair of 2,000-lb. heavyweights.
Major airplane contractors are pushing supersonic-cruising, long-range, agile aircraft with all-aspect, wideband stealth, powered by variable-cycle engines because it is a high-margin business with formidable barriers to entry for new competitors.
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Reposted via Next Big Future
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