How America could build the best stealth fighter in history
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ย. 2024
- If you were put in charge of developing America’s next air superiority fighter-an aircraft purpose-built to dominate the skies over even the most hotly contested warzones of the 21st century-how would you go about doing it? What systems, capabilities and cutting-edge technologies would you build your new fighter around?
That’s a question that was actually posed to America’s premier defense contractors in recent years under secretive developmental programs like the Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) and the Navy’s F/A-XX effort. And it's one we aim to answer in this two-parter.
This video covers how to make the stealthiest fighter in history. Next week, we'll cover avionics, countermeasures, and the drone wingmen that'll fly alongside our notional fighter!
Huge thanks to Rodrigo Avella for the use of his incredible artwork in the thumbnail of this video and in our full write-up! Check out his website: rodrigoavella....
📱 Follow Rodrigo Avella on Instagram for more great artwork: / rodrigo.avella
📱 Follow Sandboxx News on social
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📱 Follow Alex Hollings on social
Twitter: / alexhollings52
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Facebook: / alexhollingswrites
Further Reading:
Read the complete write up: www.sandboxx.u...
Learn more about Active Flow Control:
www.sandboxx.u...
How America's new fighters are learning from the F-35: www.sandboxx.u...
Learn more about the NGAD: www.sandboxx.u...
Learn more about GE's XA100: www.sandboxx.u...
Citations:
"Active Flow Control Using Sweeping Jet Actuators on a Semi-Span Wing Model" in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics:
arc.aiaa.org/d...
"Energy deposition characteristics of nanosecond dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators: Influence of dielectric material" in the Journal of Applied Physics: aip.scitation....
"Multifunctional Ceramic Composite System for Simultaneous Thermal Protection and Electromagnetic Interference Shielding for Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Composites" in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces: pubs.acs.org/d...
Happy you’re feeling better Alex. Another excellent video…and we all can’t seem to get enough NGAD intel.
How about the next time you talk about something talk about this, a stealth aircraft carrier a stealth Destroyer and a, stealth Cruiser.
@@jerryshield1582 perhaps something I've missed but it feels a bit redundant to have stealthy assets of that size and slow speed. Seems like trying to hide an elephant with a blanket: you're still gonna notice all the poop piles and that strange fabric formation.
What about the Oregon from the Clyde Kessler series that was a stealth ship that was pretty amazing. It was kind of made up, but it was pretty incredible series. There from the Clyde Kessler the author who recently passed away it was pretty amazing ship and that story.
PS Brose may not a red car Kessler. The Oregon ship in the story had a I don’t know how to say this a needle or something rather, I forget how to pronounce this word suction water. It takes the energy by magnetism to power to ship instead of regular fuel and so like the Red October thing is kinda proportion thing it’s it takes all energy out the water to power it so it’s like quiet but also very fast so I don’t know how to exactly put that into words how describes in the book and I’ll pull to work.
Has any nation other than the US developed a fighter with a RCS of 0.05? Doubtful. Every step in the manufacturing process is difficult, given the insanely small tolerances required.
Exactly. That’s a major reason why the Russian and Chinese so-called 5th gen fighters aren’t nearly as stealthy as the US aircraft (although the J-20 is a lot closer than the Su-57). Even if they can make aircraft with the right shape, and even approximate the RAM coating, they don’t possess the machining technology to produce aircraft with the tight tolerances to reduce radar signatures nearly as much as the West does (and we won’t sell it to them). Any seam or uneven surface will greatly magnify radar returns.
@@bluemarlin8138 The application scenario of J-20 is different from F-22 and F-35. The J-20 focuses more on performance during supersonic cruise, and the US military places more emphasis on stealth. Chinese commercial satellites recently spotted the U.S. F-22, and Chinese and Russian meter-wave radars can also capture U.S. fifth-generation aircraft.
@@bluemarlin8138 There is also no clear RCS value of J-20. The aspect of its stealth performance that has been questioned is primarily the duck layout, not the stealth coating. The NGAD is currently only available as a prototype, and it will take a long time for the US to actually build it. An article (Radar cross-section effect of canard by GUO Zhanzhi, CHEN Yingwen, MA Lianfeng) compares the RCS of the F-35 and J-20 by a more accurate method, which can be used for your reference.
@@jingyangzhang1234 Capturing something on radar is child’s play. Stealth doesn’t mean it’s invisible to radar.
Nobody has come even close
The most comprehensive and well researched NGAD video on the net.. B21 next ?
I hope you can also cover all the classes of Drones that US/ Allies / Adversaries plan to fly..
(followed by a series on Submarines)
he make a video about the FCAS ?
Excellent suggestions, Manish.
and perhaps one on the Future Vertical Lift program
in addition to fly along drones for carrying addition weapons, how about forward visual drone(s) for even further out way beyond visual range and use them as decoys or defensive/offensive weapon?
Or even as a sort of AWACS, linking to the aircraft and giving the pilot an even better picture of the battlefield
Poobah’s Party! That was incredibly effective.
@@flyingplatypus7272
That’s a good idea! Good flying platypus! Good platypus! 😁
The decoy form of that exists already. Depending on what you mean by offensive/defensive weapons that would just be a fighter or a missile. Loitering munitions don’t really make sense for air to air combat.
Or what you do is send out some drones ahead of the aircraft. As soon as it gets there is links up with the drones and they become part of the family temporarily.
I think the combination of active flow control and TVC would indeed produce not only the stealthiest fighter jet ever, but the most agile.
I don't know if you recall a F-15 that NASA used as a technology demonstrator. That Eagle started out as the F-15 S/MTD, and wound up as the F-15 A.C.T.I.V.E.
In this variant, the Eagle had 3D TVC, Canards, and a flow control system. I saw a video of this thing flying that I suspect someone leaked, because it disappeared after about a week and I cannot find it anywhere. Just take my word for this- that Eagle was the most insanely agile jet I ever saw. Way more so than the Raptor OR the TVC Flankers. At one point they had it flying along a straight course at about 320 knots, when it just started tumbling about all 3 axes of flight! This was deliberate and the jet was under full control at all times. The pilot could make it tumble right, or left, the jet could _climb_ in a complete, tumbling departure!
It was insane what this thing could do. Radar guided missiles just might have a hard time maintaining lock on a jet that could tumble like that and still exhibit directional control. If the jet in question happened to be a 6gen design with full stealth ability, that might be an aircraft that no enemy would _ever_
want to encounter.
I honestly wouldn't be surprised. Active flow control can apply thrust in directions and ways impossible with even 360 degree thrust vectoring. With active flow control you can almost turn gravity and physics into suggestions
I believe it. In kerbal space program, I have made designs with similar maneuverability, even without advanced computer control, using the above systems. The main problem was high g-force loads, but I imagine that those could be reduced via some clever wing design and piloting, and the use of real engineering and math.
I saw that video, impressive as hell. The tumbling you're talking about is a maneuver called a snap roll. Any aircraft with aerobatic ability can do them, you get into it by putting flight surfaces into cross control and it'll keep doing the roll as long as you hold that input
Maneuverability costs speed, so let's hope both can be increased in correct proportions. This is probably the biggest reason thrust vector isn't as important as it was once thought because tight maneuvers can only be done at low speed which makes a jet vulnerable to even old missiles and even guns. Fly fast enough, you don't even need to worry about bullets, just hypersonic missiles whose maneuverability is also faster & cheaper to improve than with larger, heavier jets.
@@jamesmaddison4546 Hey James where can I find that video, please thanks 👍
I'm a farmer proudly hailing from Dayton, birthplace of aviation, and watching this video, knowing what Northrop Grumman and the Dayton community is doing for the NGAD reminded me why Dayton is the best city for aviation! Please keep these videos coming on the NGAD. Americans, be proud and thank your Air Force for keeping the world safer.
You have a Bhairab art from Nepal as your profile pic?
Drew Dutton 👋
@@Make-Asylums-Great-Again 🇺🇸 Asylum is great again, thanks to President Barack Obama's appreciation for those seeking it from countries in which totalitarian regimes oppress their people to the point that they leave everything to seek asylum in America 🇺🇸
This jet sounds incredible. A super stealthy wing-shaped platform that is basically invisible to radar, is super maneuverable, has lasers, long range air to air missiles, can control drones, 360 degree infra-red radar and cameras, can project holograms that fool enemy plane radars. This thing will be like fighting a ghost or a vampire. It will have opposing jets shooting missiles at ghosts and being shot down without even knowing another jet was there. Sounds like it would be terrifying for enemy planes to go against.
It's a comic book story. None of it is real.
@@BigSmartArmed its well documented that the US is working on a 6th generation fighter. No telling what it will be able to do. The F-35 already does some of these things.
Added to that there are two smiling projects in progress in Europe
I've been a union painter Sence 1997 and I've applied many different products and I would love to be involved in this new paint because I've spayed ceramic and metal based paints more then most people ever could believe! 👍
Good to see you back in action, Alex. You sounded great to me, I’ll be looking forward to that part 2.
Glad you’re doing better. Sight is precious. Your audio sounded great. Very clear. Excellent report, BTW. 🙏
im so happy to find an air force channel that does not spread lies keep it up
I think its still very important to have an airframe that can maneuver as well or maybe even better than the best fighters today simply because we don't know what threats we will be facing in the future. You want to be ready for anything, not just what we expect. Its not hard to imagine a future conflict where high end stealth aircraft from both sides force engagements to become WVR again.
This is where autonomous fighters will excel.
@@montithered4741 loyal wing men, I get it but what if the 6th gen fighter itself isn't maneuverable, and a new adversary stealth fighter with excellent WVR characteristics managed to get close. Yes it will die but it can also take the 6th gen down with it, it may also force the loyal wingmen to go down as well.
@@michaeld1170
That would be a net win because losing an AI UCAV is much less costly than losing a comparable manned aircraft.
@@montithered4741 no, what I mean is, what if the adversary manages to get close to the manned 6th gen.
Because the way I understood your statement is, its okay to have a slow and slugisg 6th gen as long as it is escorted by highly maneuverable UCAVs. My take is, what if the adversary gets close to the slow and slugish 6th gen.
All I'm saying is, the F-15, Su-27 and F-22 managed to have extreme maneuverability without sacrificing too much in other aspects. I hope 6th gen does the same.
@@michaeld1170
If they did get close to a 6th gen fighter, an AI UCAV would still have the advantage due to reduced size, reduced weight, increased reaction times, reduced g-limits, asymmetrical and negative-g maneuvering, greater sensor awareness, and increased accuracy with guns.
Excellent content as always. Dale Brown writes about missiles and hypersonic planes with adaptive 'lifting body' surfaces in his novels. Is this the concept you're referring to regarding flow control?
ello, engineer here. Active flow control, actively modifies fluid flow over a body. For a common example would be an inlet bleed, an inlet bleed are like tiny perforations on the inlet leading edge, and they are actively maintaining a succc to succ the boundary layer air (bad slow air that sticks to the body). Passive controls don't use powers (or very very less). Like a tail, flap, brakes they change shapes to modify the flow.
why use active? cuz tails and flaps and ailerons can fail. think about a plane, and it pitches up(that is what high alpha means by the way if u dk the terminologies). the tail, now is 'hidden' by the plane body, when viewed from front, can imagine xD? the tail dont get to use the fast and fresh moving air, instead it got the air flow that is stuck to the body of plane, slow and turbulent air flows. It reduces the effectiveness of such control surfaces.
how do we fix that with active systems? well it is never gonna be like what the creator of the video said, literally using little jets to steer the aircraft, because it is very inefficient. But u can do a few things:
remember about the little holes that succ bad airflow? we can use them not only on inlets but wings as well! we can modify the flow over the wings so they dont turn bad as quickly, if they dont turn bad at higher angles, tails and flaps and ailerons can be smaller, because they are more effective.
adaptive lifting body? oh boy, that is the holy grail of aerodynamic efficiency. all the above problems arise from the fact that we are trying to steer and fly a brick. Look, f 35 is a brick, fr. We gotta fly it, so we stick wings to it, now it looks a little more plane like. But like I said at certain angles, it doesnt look plane enough from the front anymore(high alphas). That is bad. If only we can change the shape of the brick.... wait wdym look at nature? well, look at the nature!
An eagle wants to turn, it banks, it slants and pitch one side of wing , its body curves to the direction. There you go! adaptive lifting body. Instead of using control surfaces, we change the lifting bodies: the wings itself(not only wings, the fuselage can be changed as well) to better ACOMMODATE the air flow. Note the ACOMMODATE, this is inherently a passive process, we are not re routing air flow from engine and pump it into the air flow over the plane, we are changing the shape of wings, ACCORDING to air flow, like an eagle. That is ofc, extremely hard to do, the reason why we have not done this already hahahaha.
As you can see they are very different concepts, but achieving the same goal thru different methods. Hope my explanation helps!
@@the-core-experience Yes, that helps tremendously. Thanks for that vivid and detailed explanation.
@@the-core-experience dont super-cavitating torpedo's already use active flow control in a way? althought obviously in water, not air
@@cod6guy12 most designs seems to be relying on a passive system(a flat nose and speed) to create the bubble. I have read somewhere that on some torpedo gas are routed to the nose to enlarge the bubble. So yea they fits in the description of a active flow control, a weird connection indeed! hahaahaha
@@cod6guy12 yes, but it is not nearly as difficult in water, since it is so dense.
We're so glad that you're feeling better.
Active flow control sounds like a great concept. But I wonder how much maintenance would be required to keep the nozzles clear so it worked at peak efficiency. Could be great, could be a nightmare. Either way, it'll be interesting to see what future tests come up with.
Better question may be what the holes do to the rcs..
I hope you continue to feel better, Alex!!! the sound quality was good. thank you as always for the outstanding reporting!
I like the idea of pop up vertical stabs that can be extended when WVR combat ensues. Best of both worlds.
Wishing you continued recovery with the eye. I just recently discovered your channel. Both the content and the presentation are fantastic! Great work!
Man. Enjoying and loving this channel brother. Keep up the awesome work. Great edits and intro music.
The best fighter would have to be VR remotely piloted, a force projection that doesn't risk the pilots life. Paired with a loyal wingman it would be a killer combination.
Agreed. It takes years to produce a competent pilot. Maybe a month or so to make the vehicle.
Drones would be terrifying to enemy pilots. I know I would be terrified coming upon a swarm of machine gun drones in the field.
No because of electronic warfare that's an awful idea
@@cancelanime1507 Ummmm drones ?? Never heard of encrypted Comms ?
@@edwardfletcher7790 I’m talking about the connection between the pilot on the ground and the aircraft would be prone to electronic and cyber warfare
The sound sounds perfect it's absolutely perfect and I'm still really interested in the f36 king snake idea Thank you
"Doesn't need to be agile in a close in dogfight" I think are famous last words. They've been saying the same thing for a very long time, and it has never changed the fact that you still frequently need to get eyeballs on a bogey to make sure it's not a civilian or other friendly suffering an equipment failure or what. And once you are in eyeball range, you are in that exact close dogfight range that you happen to suck at.
An outstanding video once again, Alex! Sound quality was fine. I hope you have a full recovery from the eye problem.
I'm very curious about how the 6th Generation British fighter Tempest will end up. Especially interesting that I learned from this video is the BAE Active Flow Control. And The Tempest is also a BAE project. Time will tell!
The bae is 2 decades away. And might not even be developed
It will be another Britarded flunky like their previous efforts and the taxpayers will be shafted again.
BAE North America =/= BAE systems in UK
They don't tend to share technology due to a special arrangement put in place by the US government.
@@djl5634 If its BAE the jet should be ready in about 150 years ....SMH
2035 in service date. Also doing work with the Japanese fighter project to compliment each other. Tempest in service date works well as the typhoon replacement so can’t be delayed for a lot of years. America F35 block 4 is the current delay champion
Great episode! If you still feel like you're having trouble with sound, look for a good DAC (digital audio workstation) and watch some tutorials on how to process spoken word. In terms of microphones: I use a Rode NTG 1 shotgun mic, running it through a presonus preamp; this setup produces a really nice and audible sound, it is on the more expensive side though.
Alex, you give new meaning to "Blind man with great vision". The thing about military technology is that if anything is mentioned, someone will try it. Therefore, U.S. damned well better be bringing that new ceramic RAM into service.
Sound quality and level is great. I watch on cell phone and it matters a lot. No problems here..thanks
IMO we already have the 2 best fighters the F-22 and F-35 are on top 👌
Alex, you are the best a d most interesting air power commentator I have listened to. Keep up the great work. You have me hooked.
Somehow I don't think Close range dogfights are over and done. Two Stealth fighters, from rival/enemy nations, evade everything air defense only to come nose to nose with each other and the only option left is to dogfight in a furball, because once the pilots or fighters sees the other you are not getting away until one surrenders, runs for it, or is shot down. It is amazingly HARD to sneak away in the sky, even on a cloudy day.
I agree.
Alex, I am so glad you are feeling better. The audio is great. I am looking forward to next week. Keep up the good work.
I read the article after you put it out. Glad to see a follow up video. I hope you’re eye continues to heal, get well soon.
Audio sounds great. Keep up the great work. Glad you are doing better!
Phenomenal content. Your knowledge of the subject matter is impressive. Can hear you better but the room reflections are still there. Doesn't change anything for me. I can't wait till next episode!!!
Your voice was perefectly clear and the article is very interesting.
Most excellent. Stay frosty, Alex 🤜🤛
Last month saw a convoy heading west bound on 10 frwy near desert center in California. In this convoy was a wide load truck with a large aircraft wrapped in a blue tarp. But exterior outline was pretty visible. Looked like a YF-23 with delta wing and canards just below canopy.
Actually it was on April 7th late afternoon when I was heading to a wedding in lake Havasu. Anyone else see the convoy? It was pretty long.
@@geraldlundgren8836Awesome, as someone who frequently drives thru the desert portion of California. I love seeing these convoys traveling late at night.
If it was a top secret Aircraft then they would divert traffic so they would not come into contact with it. In other words they would close the route ahead of it until it is way past.
@@billymiles6870 it was too secret something. All police of about 30 vehicles out in front of it and a bunch behind. If you were traveling in that direction you would not be able to see it.
X-59 probably is what you saw:
www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/4.18-3.jpg?itok=4BkInyGZ
Very nice video sir. One thing to consider, several times in history experts have said that a close aerial combat is a thing of the past. I will no longer happen because of long-range missiles. And then we started losing planes and pilots and we started top gun to reteach dogfighting.
Especially with a near pier, there will always be a potential need for a good dog fighting fighter
Those times were half a century ago. Sensor and tracking technology have matured to the point where missile shots are pretty damn reliable
Besides the NGAD itself I would like to see you make a video about the next generation of weapons that NGAD should/will be armed with.. From the long range a2a missile currently in development to replace the venerable AMRAAM, known as the AIM-260, to the extremely long range LREW (Long range engagement weapon) to very small AIM-9X replacement that was known as the CUDA missile. Of course we should also hear something about the hard kill defense systems that were also rumored to be in development, from the small hit to kill interceptors to lasers. And last but not least, will NGAD be capable to launch some kind of tactical hypersonic cruise missile?
Anything big enough to carry a cruise missile internally probably isn’t going to be a very good fighter. Best to launch those from outside enemy airspace with more conventional aircraft.
Ayyy bro, I love the f-22 raptor and you made a great video about it and you got my attention. Great work.
Good to hear you are feeling better. Your audio is sounding really good! Looking forward to Part 2!
I understand the advantages of no near vertical stabilizers. However, lacking other means of control, a lack of rudders can be a problem especially the slower the plane moves. Lacking rudders would mean using drag to control yaw. When landing extra drag can lead to dangerous situations. My example comes from a high speed catamaran surface vessel, boat. There was a design that utilized drag induced control with curved surfaces that would drop down into the flow of water along the hull. At speed this worked. However in slow maneuvers this method was useless. One could not adequately control the vessel at all. Another mistake made on some vessels was to not mount the rudders directly behind the propellers. In that case the prop wash could not be deflected at slow speeds thus hindering maneuverability. One needs to account for the entire maneuvering envelope in design decisions.
I've thought of this before. How about a v-tail that is stored flush with the body surface and then deploys at low speeds?
Not a bad idea, though it would probably be very expensive to keep stealthy and hard to maintain.
@@DAAllan82 I got the idea from the retractable opening on the f35b
The B2 gets by without a tail, instead using split-ailerons as aerodynamic brakes to affect yaw. It uses a computer system to keep it inside a safe aerodynamic envelope and tame any oscillations or instabilities that are inherent to the design, but it works. Its predecessor, the YB-49, lacked any such computer stabilization systems and was still airworthy as long as the pilot was skilled enough and kept it inside the approved flight envelope.
As for drag-controlled yaw, that's actually a very safe and well-proven method. On the general aviation side, there are the many Burt Rutan designs that do employ vertical stabilizers but rely on drag for yaw control. Many of those aircraft are still being built and sold today, like the Velocity.
@@ParadigmUnkn0wn Interesting. I was not aware Rutan's designs worked by that method. I have recently seen vids that show ideas that have vertical tail surfaces during slow flight that fold to horizontal at higher speeds. Pretty cool but probably expensive, heavier and with great complexity.
Rather than traditional thrust vectoring nozzles (TVN), I would go with fluidic TVN. These have fixed external geometries and no moving parts (combining agility with greater stealth). Instead, the exhaust is controlled by injecting bleed air into the nozzle to selectively block the flow. When activated symmetrically, these injectors constrict the exhaust towards the point of blockage. Such nozzles allows the external geometry to be optimized for radar and IR stealth. Plus, the lack of mechanical actuation systems means fewer parts and lower weight. And as you stated, with thrust vectoring external aerodynamic control surfaces can be made smaller or eliminated all together, thereby improving stealth. In addition to this, I wouldn’t necessarily go for a pure delta and instead I would go for a switchblade design, made famous by the F/A-37 Talon from the ‘05 movie “Stealth” and the X-02 Wyvern from the Ace Combat franchise. Provides all the advantages of the delta but with the additional advantages of forward swept wings. Alternatively, having forward swept gull wings with all moving wingtips and close-coupled forward canards is another option. Without going into too much detail, this combination drastically increases agility and stability while at the same time shielding underwing stores from radar, if carried.
IMO, fighters will still need high agility to at the very least help them to try to dodge incoming missiles as well as providing the necessary agility edge in a close range dogfight. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard the argument that the short range dogfights won’t happen. Just look at Vietnam (yes I know that it was partially due to lots of missile malfunctions but there’s a reason why Top Gun was established and is still in use today). Not to mention what is probably happening over Ukraine today. The point I’m getting at is that dogfights will still happen in peer on peer conflicts due to the sheer numbers of aircraft involved as well as the fact that total air superiority like those we’ve seen over Iraq in both wars, the Balkans and Afghanistan can be argued to be the exception to rule.
Great to hear that you’re feeling better Alex. Here’s to a full recover
Forward swept wings tested on one F-16 model and Su-47 Berkut have some....structural challenges. As for agility - well, for F-16 it is the PILOT that is limiting factor but these attributes also help to land in strong crosswind, take off and land using shorter runaways.... all sorts of useful stuff.
@@piotrd.4850 if you’re referring to the X-29, that was actually a heavily modified F-5A
The FA-37 Talon is not really a stealthy air frame. It lacks the general geometric symmetry, and a switchblade design decreases G load limit for the wings itself. The reason why the NGAD is what is now is because its made from lessons learned from all aicrafts
@@WarDaddy8917 could you please explain the g-load limit? Not all that versed beyond high school level aerodynamics.
The only reason I mentioned the Talon was because it was a switchblade design. I’m not advocating for it to be built IRL (although I would love to see some of its capabilities/technologies be incorporated into NGAD and FAXX)
Dude it sounds amazing! I was enthralled. Absolute different vibe, and my god it's so much clearer like you're giving me a presentation in my living room. 100/10
I have generally terrible hearing, need but don't use hearing aids, and I heard you very well, everything is very clear and diction is excellent. I didn't miss a word. You did well buying better equipment and apparently you've learned to use is so well, you can maintain those settings forever. Congratulations. Get well soon!
The goal is to gain total control of airspace. What is the best way (most reliable and fastest) to achieve this? First you want to remove enemy aircraft. It seems that it is missiles which actually kill the target. Rather develop fighter aircraft that can operate in an extremely hostile airspace, shouldn't more effort be put into developing next generation missiles that can deal with all known threats?
I agree. However, whilst the best defence may be a good offence, relying solely on it is foolish. If you can evade the enemy's attacks whilst dishing out superior firepower, why wouldn't you? Having it as a backup would be beneficial in situations has gained an advantage. Also, I'm sure you know, but the development of aircraft and weapons systems are done independently meaning there doesn't have to be a choice between them, and you can do both provided you are willing to fund them.
Active flow control was attempted in the 1980s on the Sikorsky X-Wing, but didn't work out.
DARPA is testing AFC now, it’s been going quite successful. Also NATO avt-239 was also testing for possible tailless next generation aircraft.
Rodrigo's work is stunning. But those little red afterburner flame lines coming out the exhaust may look cool, they would completely blow any stealth capabilities, making it very IR lit
Audio's BEEN good. And 9 min is nothing to apologize for. Looking forward to pt 2.
I’m glad that stealth technology is improving rather than getting obsoleted by radar improvements! USA leads the way!
*YOUR AUDIO IS PERFECT.* 👍
Welcome back and hope you are feeling better.
8:48 - The B-2 has used highly charged leading edge systems to ionize the boundary layer air making it more “malleable” for trailing edge control surfaces.
There is also the added benefit of reduced RCS of any surfaces inside what essentially amounts to a plasma sheath, or bubble as incoming EM energy is scattered inside the plasma layer.
9:58 - Either 1-piece molded or printed bodies. I THINK the B-21 may already be putting that idea to work. Photos from below taken on its maiden flight showed very few seams or panels in the lower half of the body. One contiguous piece = less RAM = less weight = lower RCS + added range.
"The days of acrobatic close quarters dog fights are widely believed to be over thanks to the advent of beyond visual range sensors and very capable long range air-to-air weapons." - McDonnell Douglas, F-4 Phantom II sales pitch, 1954.
Pretty freaking awesome presentation, Alex!
I think electronic warfare is a feature we don't think about too much as it's complicated and classified. However this could be a very big thing in a next gen fighter. Apparently during exercises the Gripen could get scary close because of it's EW suite. Next Gen stealth plus next gen EW seems like a combo that will make you practically invisible under some circumstances. They would not even know what hit them.
EW will never make you invisible, and will actually make you incredibly visible. EW is the context you describe it is jamming, which is flooding radars with massive amounts of noise. This will make it incredibly obvious that you are there, but will make it more difficult to get a bead on exactly where you are, thus making targeting difficult.
@@jonathanpfeffer3716 no that was how first gen ew worked... Now ew along with stealth allows to manipulate the signals in way to confuse the enemy radar.
@@nighthawk4028 It is speculated that the newest types of EW pods can do something like what you describe. The vast majority of tactical level airborne EW is still just jamming.
The Gripen's EW suite, that was describe above, is just a jammer.
Everytime designers say oh they are Designing a New Technology Aircraft. They say it doesn't need a gun or close in rockets, they find out after they build a Aircraft that it needed the closing gun and the close in rockets. Build the Aircraft for all Contingency. PILOTS and AIRCRAFT are Irreplaceable. Give the Aircraft all the Different types of Offensive and Defensive Abilities It will need in all fields of Battle.
Great audio with a great channel 👍 Thank you 🙂
I think the active thrust control will definitely be a thing. All you'd need for it to work would be an air compressor, and that's exactly what jet engines (and really, all engines) do.
They already have built the best stealth fighter in history
I hope that the reporting of the death of close in combat is not premature once again. If near peer adversaries deploy their own 5th gen stealth aircraft in quantity, there is still the possibility of an adversary fighter (or several) slipping inside the envelope of a 6th gen fighter. If our smart air to air weapons have difficulty locking onto such fighters, then lacking agility or a cannon could be a real scary situation. Same with a laser. You still have to be able to track the adversary.
I hope the thrust vectoring and massive thrust surplus or top end speed might be enough to allow them to disengage. Also a large number of loyal wingmen robots could also compensate for any surprise adversary fighters.
A really cool video. Your detailed explanations and thorough aggregating of large amounts of info available saves us all a lot of time. You are a great resource.
Thanks.
as an A&P I found this very instructive thank you!
The Audio sounds good on my 60” tv with built in speakers. As usual great job on your presentations. 👍🏼
sounds good Alex.
Hope your vision recovers! Feel better, great video!
great video as always! glad your feeling better, and the audio quality is way way better. muy bueno
Oh my… I’m so great full your vision is recovering and you can continue making these informative videos.
The sound is good. No problemo. Looking forward to the drone mission fly alongs.
Hi Alex; yes the sound, as well as the topic, are very good. Get well and keep up the great work!
Great vid, definitely will be back to see the follow up. Audio was fine, didn't even notice till you drew attention to it. Maybe a little echo?
I can just see the delays and the raising costs as you speak!! lol no really though I’m glad you’re feeling better I always enjoy your content!!
We love it don't stop ❤️ coverage enjoy your segments
From a guy who has only had sight in his right eye since 1982, don't stress too much mate, one eye is all you need. .) Audio is fine.
Audio sounds super! 👌🏻
Glad u r fine brother!
Get better soon!
Active flow control using bleed air (compressed air off the jet engine) is fine as long as the engine is still running. If the engine quits, there will be no "dead sticking" it in to a landing because you will lose flight controls.
Alex, I am glad to hear that you are feeling much better. You should get a job at Lockheed Martin or Boeing and help design new fighters for the USAF.
nice to hear ur doing better now .
I live in Nevada and they have some interesting things flying around out here I haven't seen before.
I'm old enough to remember when experts said the age of the close in dogfight was over so built F4 jets with missiles but no guns during Viet Nam. A $100M fighter plane that can't dogfight close in is like a combat soldier that only gets a sniper's rifle.
I remember that the F35A got the gun added because of ground support not air to air. The gun is amazing at CAS for the fellas on the ground and by the nature of CAS they need support ASAP. You aren't going to send in an A10 from the nearby base when you can just vector in a nearby F35 with a gun to do the same thing effectively.
But in terms of air to air, the gun is pretty redundant with modern close range IR missiles that can lock on at any angle. By the time you get close enough to use your guns, both of you would have had to used up all of your missiles. And if you are out of missiles you should be turning back towards your allies or a base since you are basically cannon fodder.
The maturity of BVR combat when the F4 was introduced was in its infancy. It's all about BVR in our current age as we have matured our doctrines, thinking, and technology.
What a well put together video👍
Excellent video Alex!
Tejas is also a delta wing
Oh gods below, once again your choice of footage is ghasting my flabber something fierce!
May all of your medical results be good. Don't worry about the sound. Most of us are just happy to hear a human voice. Nice video.
Sound is good as far as I can tell.
Sounds great! Informative too!
Your mic audio sounds great! Great level, EQ, and body. And you don't suck, either! Congratulations!!
Good luck with your eye sitch.
You are above Everything else because you are continuously and On Top of your game where everything else can only hit on extremely short sighted views either by Limited knowledge, for the site-comentary or producer but you are actually all in one! Thank you!
Great Vid, Alex. Lots of good material for my ever-growing curiousity of fighter jets.
Sound was really good. You are a fine presenter. Keep up these terrific videos!
Audio sounds great!
Congrats, Alex, on 100,000 subscribers. Keep the work up!
Honestly if we give the f22 the same upgrade package we're giving the f15, we will have built the best stealth fighter ever.
We're the ones setting the bar for this
Save your eyesight, switch hands.
Alex, you sound much better. Before, you sounded like you were on a speakerphone. And glad you're healing; you know to take care of yourself. Love your content because you show a side of weapons systems that goes beyond the obvious statistical performance of a system; logistics, limitations, optempo, operability, etc. Thank you for bringing your perspective. And talking about concepts I've heard nowhere else.
Hope you heal up quickly! Saying a prayer for you.
Great vid and info. The sound is good.
News flash we already have it’s either the f22 or something we don’t know about
sound quality is very good!
It's critical to keep ahead of the worlds military especially in aircraft design, the F22 raptor has done this and the next will do the same, war is always going to be part of human nature, every 30 to 50 years there will be a major conflict, we need to keep that step ahead as protection and an edge on our adversaries.