Is the F-22 the last fighter jet with a human pilot?

[rip]

It is my opinion that in the incoming years survivability of aircraft will be the issue. Anti-aircraft warfare are right now challenging aircraft defense, deception and e-masking. Aircraft will benefit from the deletion of the crew: smaller size, fewer systems, higher sustained performance, slimmer lines to gain advantage over anti-aircraft systems and enhance survivability.
One final remark: a massive loss of UCAVs would be a sharp pain to the budget, but still tolerable, a massive loss of crews would be a intolerable to western countries.

I think the switch to un-manned air-craft will come but will occur to different mission sets at different times changing the battle space in ways that are not being considered.

The first set of missions to be adopted will be deep strike. In many ways they will become like reusable cruse missiles. And the last mission will be that of close air support for close engaged ground troops in a convention war setting. The more a mission can be pre-planned the sooner that mission profile will find an unmanned solution. The more lives that are at stake if a mistake is made the less likely it will be adopted until it is rock solid proven to work.

In the future the major difference in the air order of battle will be seen in reversing the recent trend from building just a few very expensive and complicated aircraft for general mission requirements. Requirements that are written so as that the aircraft can do everything. Which makes them so expensive because they have to be so complicated to be able to do everything, everywhere at any time, at least to some degree and going back to the older order of battle with had required far more specialized air craft for specific missions? Aircraft that will be smaller and cheaper and well as unmanned and made in greater numbers.

 

[ADMk2]

So is the 787 Dreamliner. Frankly, I'd bet on the F-22 winning the dogfight between the two.

Yes the Dreamliner is newer, but no, it isn't a fighter jet which is what this thread is about.

F-35, SU-35 and PAK-FA are...

 

[InCockpit]

I dont think it possible yet. But the way UAV's are going im sure unmanned fighter aircraft are not too far off.

 

[LGB]

No the F-22 will not be the last manned fighter. Besides the designs already under development that have been mentioned the USN has a program for an air superiority fighter, NGAD, that will go to technology demonstration in 2013. The USAF program to replace the F-22 is supposed to share systems from NGAD. We're not really near unmanned aircraft doing air superiority and when we approach that point we either totally rely on communications that can be disrupted or an autonomous or semi autonomous system and for tasks as complex as air to air combat we're not there yet.

The most likely first step will be fighters controlling one or more UCAS to either extend the sensor and/or weapons envelope in concert with other airborne systems. It's a big leap to go from direct links to a nearby aircraft to have either autonomous unmanned fighters or controlling them over SATCOM. The enemy is the enemy because they get a say and they can choose to go after your communications. Eventually we will have unmanned fighters; however, at first they will probably complement manned fighters instead of out replacing them outright.

 

[rip]

No the F-22 will not be the last manned fighter. Besides the designs already under development that have been mentioned the USN has a program for an air superiority fighter, NGAD, that will go to technology demonstration in 2013. The USAF program to replace the F-22 is supposed to share systems from NGAD. We're not really near unmanned aircraft doing air superiority and when we approach that point we either totally rely on communications that can be disrupted or an autonomous or semi autonomous system and for tasks as complex as air to air combat we're not there yet.

The most likely first step will be fighters controlling one or more UCAS to either extend the sensor and/or weapons envelope in concert with other airborne systems. It's a big leap to go from direct links to a nearby aircraft to have either autonomous unmanned fighters or controlling them over SATCOM. The enemy is the enemy because they get a say and they can choose to go after your communications. Eventually we will have unmanned fighters; however, at first they will probably complement manned fighters instead of out replacing them outright.

You have an interesting idea. But it does remind me a little bit of those naval ships they once made, way back when, that had both sails and steam engines installed at the same time, all just so as to just move across the oceans. They might have been better than what came before them but they were nether this or that. And another thing would you not need two pilots on your fighter jet? One pilot just to fly the drone and another one to fly the air-craft controlling the drone?

If you think about it wouldn’t it be a better idea to have parasitic drones (fighter or attack types) launched and recovered from a much larger aircraft like an Awax type airplane where you would be able to both control several drones at the same time in a coordinated manner with a high powered radar on board the mother ship to control all the elements together to do the job right?

 

[LGB]

You have an interesting idea. But it does remind me a little bit of those naval ships they once made, way back when, that had both sails and steam engines installed at the same time, all just so as to just move across the oceans. They might have been better than what came before them but they were nether this or that. And another thing would you not need two pilots on your fighter jet? One pilot just to fly the drone and another one to fly the air-craft controlling the drone?

If you think about it wouldn’t it be a better idea to have parasitic drones (fighter or attack types) launched and recovered from a much larger aircraft like an Awax type airplane where you would be able to both control several drones at the same time in a coordinated manner with a high powered radar on board the mother ship to control all the elements together to do the job right?

One can already see the pattern in subs and surface ships utilizing ROV's. A future UCAS doing air to air isn't going to be a drone requiring direct pilot control. There are UCAS now that can perform without operator input. Aircraft are already interacting with UCAS. It's not a big stretch to get one to fly autonomously at a distance and simply respond to fly ahead of the controlling fighter. The software would dictate whether this would work with a single pilot or not.

The USN might be thinking about this given their new fighter, NGAD, has a two crew requirement and it might itself be able to fly unmanned. A flight of NGAD might very well operate manned with a second flight unmanned in support.

 

[SABRE]

The F-22 is not the last manned aircraft. Several countries are working on manned fighter aircrafts as have been mentioned. On the other hand the F-35 is said to be the last manned U.S fighter aircraft. The USAF, USNavy, US Marines and US Army all have plans to deploy powerful UCAVs from 2050 and beyond.

 

[rip]

One can already see the pattern in subs and surface ships utilizing ROV's. A future UCAS doing air to air isn't going to be a drone requiring direct pilot control. There are UCAS now that can perform without operator input. Aircraft are already interacting with UCAS. It's not a big stretch to get one to fly autonomously at a distance and simply respond to fly ahead of the controlling fighter. The software would dictate whether this would work with a single pilot or not.

The USN might be thinking about this given their new fighter, NGAD, has a two crew requirement and it might itself be able to fly unmanned. A flight of NGAD might very well operate manned with a second flight unmanned in support.

What you say on a technical level is quite plausible, I believe but giving any unmanned adenomas platform kill authority, would be a complete political disaster. The very first time any one of these platforms kills an untended person, even if a man in the loop could have made the same mistake in the same way and for the same reasons, all hell will break out. It will make the controversies about land and sea mines, cluster bombs, and irritant gases look like a happy day in comparison and turn the users into instant villains. You could count on a worldwide effort to ban them out-right, one that might or might not succeed.