Lockheed Martin Plans to Upgrade F-35 and F-22 with Sixth-Generation Technology
Lockheed Martin is planning to upgrade its F-35 and F-22 Raptor fighters with sixth-generation technology, company executives have announced. This move comes after the company lost out on the US Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) contract to Boeing.
According to Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet, the company will focus on integrating advanced technologies developed for the NGAD bid into the F-35 and F-22. "There are techniques and capabilities … that were developed for [our NGAD bid] that we can now apply here," Taiclet said during a recent earnings call, as reported by Defense News. "We’re basically going to take the [F-35’s] chassis and turn it into a Ferrari."
The upgrade will enable the F-35 and F-22 to deliver "80% of the capability, potentially, at 50% of the cost per unit aircraft," according to Taiclet. With over 3,500 F-35s in production, Lockheed Martin believes it can achieve significant cost savings by retrofitting existing aircraft with advanced technology.
Some of the advanced technologies already in development for the F-35’s Block 4 upgrades will be incorporated into the upgrade, Taiclet said. Additionally, Lockheed Martin has successfully demonstrated the ability to control autonomous drone wingmen using F-35s and F-22s, which the Air Force refers to as collaborative combat aircraft.
This concept of upgrading one generation of a fighter with technology from the next generation is not new. Boeing’s F-15EX, for example, is a modernized version of the fourth-generation F-15, equipped with fifth-generation technologies such as advanced avionics and electronic warfare capabilities.
Taiclet referred to the potential upgraded F-35s as "fifth-generation-plus" – a description similar to the way F-15EXs are sometimes called 4.5-generation aircraft. The US government funded some of the sixth-gen technologies Lockheed has in mind for the F-35 as part of NGAD research, while Lockheed self-funded others.
The upgrade will include advanced passive infrared sensors, which could enable the jet to detect enemies at a greater distance without alerting them to its presence. Stealth technology developed for Lockheed’s NGAD bid, including low-observable materials, geometries, and countermeasures, could also make it harder for enemy forces to detect the jets.
According to Defense News, Taiclet noted that during a White House meeting, President Donald Trump emphasized the importance of long-range capabilities, stating, "Dogfights are not what we want anymore in air-to-air combat. We want to shoot the other guys before he even knows we’re there."
The US government will have the first look at any sixth-gen technologies Lockheed might add to the F-35, Taiclet said. The company also aims to export these technologies to friendly nations that purchase the F-35, but the US will have the final say on what can be exported.
"Our goal is to make as much of this capability that we can" exportable to allies, Taiclet said. "We try to design [technology] in a way that’s hopefully an easier decision for exportability than a harder one."
Lockheed Martin is currently analyzing feedback from the Air Force’s debriefing on the NGAD decision, according to Taiclet. However, details on the NGAD debriefing remain classified.
As reported by Defense News, Stephen Losey, the air warfare reporter for the publication, has been covering US Air Force operations and has traveled to the Middle East to report on military activities. His expertise provides valuable insights into the developments in air warfare technology.
