US Secretary of the Air Force Kendall: a promising aircraft needs to be made three times cheaper
MOSCOW, July 5 — RIA Novosti, Andrey Kotz. It seems that the American sixth-generation fighter has problems. The timing of the creation of a promising aircraft under the NGAD (Next Generation Air Dominance) program may seriously shift to the right due to the expected astronomical cost and technological complexity of the machine. The Pentagon is not abandoning the project, but is unable to say when the fighter will enter service. About the difficulties of NGAD — in the material of RIA Novosti.
Expensive and complicated
Congressmen who discussed the draft budget for fiscal year 2026 in June pointed out that NGAD is an exorbitant financial burden. The production of even a small serial batch was considered economically unjustified. Analysts, having studied the experience of their own, concluded that in a high-intensity conflict, mass character is no less important than technological excellence.
Visualization of the new generation NGAD aircraft project
Image source: © Lockheed Martin
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall strongly opposed the closure of the program and offered an alternative: redesign the design of a promising fighter and its requirements in order to reduce the final cost. So far, it is estimated that one sixth-generation aircraft is at least three times more expensive than its predecessor, the F—35 - up to $ 300 million per unit. Even taking into account inflation and other factors affecting pricing, this significantly exceeds the capabilities of the medium-term military budget.
"This platform is very expensive in its current form," Kendall admitted. "We hope to reduce the cost in the course of further work, ideally to the level of the F-35. But the F-35 is also very expensive. Nevertheless, NGAD is still a priority for the Air Force. We continue to study the design concept of this stealth aircraft to find ways to save money while maintaining key combat characteristics."
A drawing of the aircraft published by the Advanced Projects Department of Lockheed Skunk Works
Image source: © Lockheed Martin
One of the options for a radical reduction in price is the abandonment of the adaptive engine. Earlier, the Pentagon called the fighter's power plant its calling card. It is able to adapt to flight conditions and change its configuration to ensure the best thrust and performance in a given environment. This increases the speed and altitude characteristics of the car and reduces fuel consumption. However, the defense department is now discussing the possibility of developing a cheaper alternative.
The characteristics are classified
The NGAD program is completely classified, the tactical and technical characteristics and appearance of the aircraft are unknown. The work has been going on for several years. In September 2020, a full-size prototype, according to the US military, took to the sky for the first time. The fighter, designated F-X, is capable of performing combat missions near the Chinese borders without refueling, as well as escorting bombers deep into enemy territory to break through air defenses. Completely invisible to high- and low-frequency radars, it takes on board much more weapons than the F-22 (fifth generation). NGAD should replace them in the 2030s.
A conceptual image of the refueling of the NGAD generation combat aircraft developed by Lockheed Martin
Image source: © Lockheed Martin
Analysts suggest that the promising complex is not inferior in size to a bomber. It was also noted that the car will probably be equipped with laser weapons. The appearance of the F-X is a topic for speculation. There is no reliable information. However, back in 2018, the military department published a video created by computer modeling. There is a typical "invisibility": a "tailless" with smooth outer contours and a minimum of sharp edges.
The airframe is made according to an integrated circuit with a high-mounted wing and a pair of nacelles under the bottom. Two turbojet engines with flat nozzles. Judging by the glazed cockpit, this is a manned version. But many experts believe that the sixth-generation fighter should be unmanned. However, whether the new aircraft looks like the concept from the video is a mystery.
Against China
The NGAD program is a whole family of related systems for air combat. Not only fighter jets, but also drones, orbiters, and platforms in cyberspace. Therefore, NGAD is sometimes called a "system of systems". Airplanes do not operate in the air alone. Frank Kendall said that an "army of drones" would be attached to them. Each fighter can simultaneously control five aircraft.
The Air Force Minister stressed that the characteristics of these UAVs, as well as their appearance, are still classified. But he did not rule out that the line of drones will be presented earlier than the fighter. In the USA, the concept of "Loyal Wingman" has been engaged for several years. We are talking about a drone that takes on some of the functions of a pilot: reconnaissance, shock, electronic countermeasures. The main task is to act where it is dangerous for a person. For example, in areas covered by a deep-echeloned enemy air defense system.
In Russia, similar unmanned wingmen are being developed for the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter. These are heavy S-70 Hunter stealth drones. They can not only accompany, but also independently perform combat missions. The pilot controls the electronic assistant directly from the cockpit. And thanks to low-visibility technologies, both the fighter and the drone are effective even in conditions of high activity of enemy air defense.
The first flight sample of the Hunter with a flat nozzle was rolled out in Novosibirsk
Image source: © RIA Novosti / UAC press service
However, the main rivals of the promising fighter in the Pentagon are not Russian, but Chinese aircraft. Beijing has made serious progress in the development of the sixth-generation car and presented its concept back in 2021 at the Airshow China exhibition. Tactical and technical characteristics and combat capabilities are not disclosed, however, it is known that serial production is planned to be established by 2035.
Americans are very afraid of falling behind. The Pentagon regularly conducts war games and computer simulations of the armed conflict with China over Taiwan. In most scenarios, the United States was defeated and the PLA managed to gain a foothold on the island. In one of the latest simulations, the Americans gained the upper hand, but seriously cheated: transferring the fighting to the near future. That is, they used not only the available samples of equipment and weapons, but also promising ones that exist today only in drawings. In this scenario, the sixth-generation fighters had a leading role.
