unding for an upgrade to the F-22 sensor will only come later in the 2021s and is likely to include an electro-optical module similar to the F-35 zots and Das systems to operate in heavy interference environments, such an upgrade would reflect the f -15x which recently received a similar system, while a lot of attention has recently been focused on the F-35 and f-15x, not much attention has been paid to the main air superiority fighter of the US Air Force. .,
the F-22 Raptor, while the Raptor was one of the most advanced aircraft. In the world when it entered service in the early 2000s, the radar sensor and dazzling technology has advanced since then, the Raptor has received relatively few upgrades compared to legacy fourth-generation F-15 and F-16 jets. generation and is now significantly outdated in some respects for example f-16s f-15s and f818s are all equipped with jhmcs missile tail technology which allows a pilot to lock on an aircraft just by looking at it the f-22 currently does not have this capability The USAF up to now has largely been following a software upgrade strategy to the F-22,
allowing the F-22 to more effectively use the sensors it already has while incorporating minor hardware upgrades. to allow the integration of new weapons, but is this strategy sustainable like radars and electro? -optical sensors get more powerful and smaller the answer is complicated while the F-22 airframe is perhaps the most capable chassis in USAF service with thrust vectoring and super cruise capability its stealthy nature makes it make it difficult to add additional sensors and pods without compromising stealth characteristics limit its upgradeability the closure of the F-22 manufacturing facility in 2011 also limited the F-22’s upgrade potential so how does the military plan to solve this ?
The latest update for the F-22 comes in two parts of a hardware and software update, the updates are called Baseline 3.2 B and Update 6. They have a couple of goals: to integrate the latest air-to-air missiles and improve. e the network warfare capability of the F-22, these upgrades are the first step to fully integrate the aim-9x and aim120d air-to-air missiles into the F-22 avionics, it was planned to integrate the aim-9x into the F- 22 since 2014,
but the update has been continuously delayed, the missile itself was finally integrated in 2017, but in the jhmcs to be combined with it was not integrated, the latest update will finally add a jhmcs-style helmet to the F-22 to the Conversely other USAF and US Navy aircraft have been using aim-9x with jhmcs since the early 2010s, the upgrades also add new cryptographic technology to the F-22, a critical upgrade given the shape where
the F-22 is expected to operate in hostile electronic warfare environments, this is paired with a transmit module for link 16 dattling that would allow the F-22 to share and receive radar and other target data from other aircraft , the F-22 only had one A Link Module 16 received prior to the F-35’s success as an aircr target after it uses its Superior Sensor capability to create an image of the battlefield and then pass it on to older aircraft likely prompted
the USAF to install a improved datalink on the F-22, the combination of the new datalink and new missiles will bring the F-22 on par with modernized fourth-generation aircraft in weapons and network warfare capability, the F-35 still remains at the forefront of sensor technology, while the F-22 may have been allowed to lag behind the F-35 in some respects during Iraq and Afghanistan.
Wars where the military refocuses on appearance or close peer engagement have brought the F-22 back into the spotlight with upgrades to match, while such upgrades have been planned since 2013, only recently have they been They were fully funded and prioritized with increased budgets in fiscal year 19. If all goes well, the F-22 will remain at the forefront of air superiority until the 2060s, by which time a fighter jet is planned. sixth generation take over