F/A-22 recent news

highsea

New Member
Raptor 4042 rolled off the final assembly line in Marietta on Nov. 18. This was the last Raptor in this years contract, and the 42nd production F/A-22. It will be stationed at Langley.

On Nov. 17, Raptor 4024 made it's final acceptance flight, a full afterburner takeoff flight, and is now undergoing coatings restoration. A number of other Raptors are in their final acceptance phase.

Lot 5 production and advance procurement for Lot 6 was given final approval on Nov. 10. (Lot 5 is for 24 AC for 2005, and Lot 6 (should be) for 36 AC for 2006)

Approval for full rate production is expected to be given early next year. The rate will be 3 AC per month.

Source:
Lockheed Martin Newsletter "Raptor Watch" Nov. 22, 2004
(no link).
 

SABRE

Super Moderator
Verified Defense Pro
hay highsea gotta question.

How stealthy is F-22. I mean is it stealthy like B-1 or B-2 or F-117. Or its visible on radar. Just tell me whats its stealth status? & is JSF-35 also stealthy?
 

highsea

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Well, details are classified, so specifics are not available. But it's pretty safe to say it's RCS is quite a bit lower than a B-1 or F-117, and probably lower than a B-2, if for no other reason than because it's smaller to start with. (and newer)

Stealth is a relative thing, it's more than just low radar observability. There's IR, EM, Visual, and Aural footprints to consider also.

In general terms, the Raptor probably has a radar cross section of a medium size bird. The JSF (likely) has a frontal RCS about the same as the Raptor, but it is more visible from the rear, due to the exposed engine nozzle. Obviously the internal weapons carriage helps reduce RCS on all of these AC. The exterior shape is designed to reflect away or scatter the radar energy that hits the AC, rather than reflect it back to the source. Exterior coatings and internal materials and structure are designed to absorb what is not reflectd away.

As far as IR, the Raptor has the others (except maybe the B-2) beat. Supercruising without afterburner and cooling the exhaust gases keep the IR footprint down until the burner is lit. A lot of effort has gone into minimizing the heat buildup on the skin of the AC through shape and heat dissipating materials, etc. I have heard that the heat on the leading edges is even sinked away and used to preheat the fuel.

The radar is a big factor, since it is the #1 EM emitter on the AC. Most radars emit high energy pulses in a narrow frequency band. The AN/APG-77 emits low energy pulses over a wide frequency band. When multiple echoes are returned, the radar combines the signals to get a target. Since the pulses are a much lower energy signal, it's more difficult to detect. And Raptors share data, so they can acquire and lock on targets without even transmitting anything. They can get targeting data from another Raptor or an AWACS operating away from the hostile airspace.

Electromagnetically, they can minimize their footprint by using tight beam transmissions between aircraft or sattellites, so they are not broadcasting any omnidirectional radio signals for passive detectors to pick up. Undoubtedly there are other tricks used to minimize the EM footprint also.

They can still be picked up visually (weather permitting), but they have a paint scheme that is designed to blend into the background and disguise the outline of the AC. The US is developing active coatings that can change hues based on the surrounding light hitting the AC. Whether these ever end up on the Raptor is anyone's guess.

There is much more that is not known, such as active radar cancellation technologies, EM masking, etc. It's anyones guess just how much tech is on the thing, but something is running up the price, and it's more than a neat shape and RAM coatings. ;)
 
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