NGAD: Contrary to popular belief, America’s new 6th generation fighter

To maintain continued air supremacy, the U.S. The Air Force is making progress with the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program, a family of technologies. There will be some surprises on the fighter jet.

Key Points: 

The program calls for the creation of sixth-generation fighter jets and allied combat aircraft (CCA) drones, or “loyal wingmen,” to complement the fighter’s mission, among other potentially surprising developments.

-Anduril and General Atomics have been selected to build flagship drones, which should come with more features and be more reasonably priced. Although much is still unknown about NGAD, the program is crucial in the global race to build next-generation fighter jets.

NGAD vs. The World: Unveiling America’s Secret Weapon

To build its new fighter jet, the U.S. The Air Force is working on the Next Generation Air Dominance Program, or NGAD.

The Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drone, which flies alongside the sixth-generation fighter jet, is the product of an award by the Army to two businesses in April for their development and testing. The NGAD, which is expected to operate as a family of aerial systems, relies heavily on these commanding wingman drones.

General Atomics and Enduril were selected to participate in the next phase of the CCA initiative.

Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall made the following statement following the announcement: “We [the Air Force] have implemented an acquisition and funding strategy for CCA with early operator, technician, acquirer and industry teams to quickly re-enable our fielding requirements.”Timetable A fundamental component of this course is the ongoing competition at every level. Cooperation and openness with government and industry greatly accelerated the process of developing the CCA program.

Introducing NGAD, a New 6th Generation Fighter 

Speeding up the NGAD’s path to service is US objective number one as Washington and Beijing compete to unveil the first sixth-generation combat platform in history.

The Air Force’s sixth-generation program began ten years ago as DARPA research examining potential air superiority systems. China’s air capabilities are developing rapidly, so the NGAD program aims to provide the necessary technology to maintain air force dominance. Technologies being targeted include digital design, propulsion, sophisticated weapons and stealth.

What We Know About the NGAD Program and Why This Fighter Jet Matters 

The program is classified in several ways. However, Lockheed Martin published several artist renderings of the NGAD fighter in 2023. The image also unabashedly promotes Lockheed’s LMXT tanker idea, showing a clean and streamlined aircraft refueling. These drawings indicate that the NGAD will be capable of aerial refueling.

Target pods mounted under the wings of existing fighter jets, or remotely piloted variants of electronic warfare, have been used as a feature of CCA drones. “The expectation is that these [unmanned] aircraft can be designed to be less survivable and less capable, but still fight in a mix where the enemy is very difficult to classify and engage,” it explained. By Kendall. “You can even intentionally sacrifice some to open fire, to expose yourself to the enemy,” Kendall added.

Reducing the overall cost of the NGAD program is another goal the Air Force will achieve with CCA. Anticipating that there will be a single sixth generation fighter, A Costing hundreds of millions of dollars, CCA’s extremely affordable price will help equalize costs. Kendall estimates that each UAV will cost between 25% and 50% of the cost of an F-35 fighter jet. These drones are less expensive, which would enable the Navy to “mass build” a large number of CCAs, comparable in size, to counter China’s fleet.

The PRC’s ‘NGAD’ Sixth-Generation Program

China is building its own NGAD as the Air Force has built its own. Engineering concept documents for China’s sixth-generation aircraft emerged in 2021, and a model of the aircraft was shown at the Zhuhai Expo the following year.

Chinese fighter jets are expected to fly alongside unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to improve situational awareness and increase firepower. According to analysts, the sixth-generation program is expected to prioritize stealth, superior aerodynamics and AI integration. But not much about the fighter has been made available to the general world. It is not known how China’s next generation fighter will fare compared to the NGAD.

NGAD Fighter Artist Rendering© Provided by National Interest

Summary: The U.S. Air Force is making strides with its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program, a family of systems designed to ensure continued air superiority. The fighter plane will include some surprises. 

NGAD© Provided by National Interest

Key Points: 

-Among those possible surprises, the program includes the development of a sixth-generation fighter jet and Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones, also known as “loyal wingmen,” to support the fighter’s mission.

-Anduril and General Atomics have been selected to develop these crucial drones, which are expected to be more affordable and provide additional capabilities. While much about the NGAD remains classified, the program is a top priority amidst global competition to develop the next generation of fighter aircraft

NGAD vs. The World: Unveiling America’s Secret Weapon

The U.S. Air Force is making progress on the Next Generation Air Dominance program, or NGAD, to develop its latest fighter aircraft. 

In April, the service awarded two companies the funding to develop and test the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones that will fly alongside the sixth-generation fighter jet. These loyal wingmen drones are a critical component of NGAD, which is expected to operate as a family of systems in the air. 

Anduril and General Atomics were selected to participate in the next phase of the CCA program.

Upon this announcement, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall noted that, “We [the Air Force] executed an acquisition and funding strategy for CCA with early operator, technologist, acquirer, and industry teaming to quickly iterate requirements given our fielding timelines. Continuous competition is a cornerstone at every stage of this program. The transparency and teamwork between industry and government really accelerated how quickly we could mature the CCA program.”

Introducing NGAD, a New 6th Generation Fighter 

As Washington and Beijing race to introduce the world’s first sixth-generation fighter platform, speeding the NGAD’s path to service is a top priority for the United States. 

The Air Force’s sixth-generation program originated a decade ago from DARPA studies exploring future air superiority systems. With China’s aerial capabilities rapidly advancing, the NGAD program sought to develop the technologies key to maintaining the Air Force’s dominance. Targeted technologies include stealth, advanced weapons, propulsion, and digital design. 

What We Know About the NGAD Program and Why This Fighter Jet Matters 

Much about the program is classified. But in 2023, Lockheed Martin released a series of artist renderings of the NGAD fighter. The sleek and tailless aircraft is shown refueling from Lockheed’s LMXT tanker concept, which the image is also clearly promoting. Based on these renderings, then, the NGAD will possess aerial

The CCA drones have been described as remotely controlled versions of electronic warfare or targeting pods positioned under the wings of existing fighter jets. As detailed by Kendall, “The expectation is that these [unmanned] aircraft can be designed to be less survivable and less capable, but still bring an awful lot to the fight in a mixture that the enemy has a very hard time sorting out and dealing with,” adding that “you can even intentionally sacrifice some of them to draw fire, if you will, to make the enemy expose himself.”

The CCAs will also serve another purpose for the Air Force – that of lowering the overall cost of the NGAD program. Since a single sixth-generation fighter jet is expected to come with a price tag of hundreds of millions of dollars, the comparably low cost of the CCAs will help balance out expenses. According to Kendall, the cost associated with each UAV would be somewhere between one-quarter and one-half that of an F-35 fighter. The lower price tag attached to these drones would help the Navy “create mass” with an abundance

The PRC’s ‘NGAD’ Sixth-Generation Program

As the Air Force plans NGAD, China is working to develop its own counterpart. China’s sixth-generation aircraft was featured in engineering concept reports in 2021, and a mockup appeared at the Zhuhai expo in 2022. 

The Chinese fighter is also expected to fly alongside UAVs that will enhance situational awareness and add firepower. Analysts also predict that the sixth-generation program will focus on AI integration, stealth, and advanced aerodynamics. However, little information about the fighter has been released publicly. How China’s next-generation fighter will match up against the NGAD has yet to be determined.

NGAD Photo Gallery 

About the Author: Maya Carlin 

Maya Carlin is a national security writer for The National Interest. She was previously an Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel and is an analyst at the Center for Security Policy. Her byline has been used by numerous publications such as The National Interest, The Jerusalem Post, and The Times of Israel.

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