Sat, Apr 01, 2023
F-22 Block 50 Upgrades Focus on High-Altitude, Low-Speed Balloon Combat
Special 04.01.23 Parody Edition: After capping off its first air-to-air successes with the F-22 Raptor, the US Air Force is doubling down on a new niche for the aircraft as the premier anti-lighter-than-air-aircraft asset.
The new mission focus will be a change for the F-22 program, taking a high-speed, stealthy fighter and reforming it into a high-altitude, low-speed missile platform. Air Force secretary Frank Kendall said that the change was the perfect fit for the F-22, being the highest-performance asset in USAF inventory.
"With increasing tensions over American airspace, the F-22 is the only reliable, high-performance option we have to take out high-altitude spy balloons. The Block 50 modification will do wonders to increase our capability to secure the skies from unwanted, stratospheric snooping."
The modifications will hamper the F-22's performance against traditional fighter aircraft, however. "Nothing comes free," said Kendall. "In order to make sure it has enough time on target while lining up an attack run, the F-22 really needs to be slower, which really puts it at a disadvantage without additional lift."
"We expect a few additional lift devices, spoilers, and flaps will be able to let the F-22 maintain an appropriate level of stealth efficacy while providing an 80-knot attack run," said Chet Fahr, head engineer over the F-22 Block 50 program at Lockheed Martin.
"Sure, the final aircraft will have a top speed somewhere around 120 knots, and a range of about 300 nautical miles, but it's gonna be a whole lot easier to knock those balloons out of the sky."
More News
Option Approach An approach requested and conducted by a pilot which will result in either a touch-and-go, missed approach, low approach, stop-and-go, or full stop landing. Pilots >[...]
"Emirates is already the world's largest Boeing 777 operator, and we are expanding our commitment to the program today with additional orders for 65 Boeing 777-9s. This is a long-t>[...]
(Pilot) Reported That There Was A Sudden And Violent Vibration Throughout The Airplane That Lasted Several Seconds Analysis: The pilot was returning to his home airport at an altit>[...]
“This recognition was evident during the TBMOPA Annual Convention, where owners and operators clearly expressed their satisfaction with our focus on customer service, and enc>[...]
Overhead Maneuver A series of predetermined maneuvers prescribed for aircraft (often in formation) for entry into the visual flight rules (VFR) traffic pattern and to proceed to a >[...]
ANN's Daily Aero-Term (11.19.25): Option Approach
See All