Lockheed Martin executives say they aim to create a “supercharged” fifth-generation fighter jet by integrating groundbreaking technologies developed in the company’s failed bid for the Air Force’s Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) platform into its current fifth-generation fighter jets, the F-35 Lightning II and F-22 Raptor.
Lockheed CEO Jim Taiclet said on Tuesday in an earnings call with investors that the company will not challenge the Air Force’s March 21 decision to award the F-47 contract to Boeing (the presumed winner of the NGAD program). Instead, Lockheed Martin will focus on comprehensively upgrading its F-35 and F-22 Raptor fighter jets with sixth-generation technologies, he said.
NGAD Technologies to be Integrated into the Fifth Generation
“We’re basically going to take the chassis [of the F-35] and turn it into a Ferrari,” Taiclet said, emphasizing that there are important techniques and capabilities developed for the NGAD proposals that can now be applied to existing platforms.
The CEO suggested that this retrofit of fifth-generation fighters would allow Lockheed Martin to deliver “potentially 50% of the capability at 80% of the cost per aircraft.” Taiclet claimed that there would be around 3.500 F-35 chassis in various stages of technology and capability around the world, adding, “We think we can get to sixth generation at half the cost.”
Block 4 Upgrades and Autonomous Drone Collaboration
Taiclet also told investors that some advanced technologies are already underway for the F-35’s current Block 4 upgrades. He also noted that Lockheed Martin has successfully used F-35s and F-22s to control autonomous drone wingmen, which the Air Force calls “collaborative warfighters,” demonstrating the potential for manned and unmanned aircraft to operate together in future warfighting scenarios.
Beyond Fifth Generation Definition
The concept of upgrading one generation of fighter jets with technology from the next has been seen before, with Boeing’s F-15EX Eagle II project, which is a modernized version of the fourth-generation F-15 equipped with fifth-generation technologies such as advanced avionics and electronic warfare capabilities. Taiclet also referred to the potentially upgraded F-35s as “fifth generation and above,” a designation similar to how the F-15EXs are sometimes referred to as 4.5th generation aircraft. The CEO said the government is funding some of the sixth-generation technologies Lockheed is considering for the F-35 as part of its NGAD study, while others are being developed by Lockheed Martin with its own resources.
Future Fighter Aircraft Technologies
Taiclet emphasized that one of the critical technologies that future fighter jets will need is more advanced passive infrared (IR) sensors that will allow the jet to detect enemies from much further away without alerting them to your location. Taiclet noted that President Donald Trump said at a meeting at the White House, “We don’t want to dogfight in air-to-air combat anymore. We want to hit the other guys before they even know we’re there,” and that this statement summarized the concept of future air combat.
Taiclet also said that the stealth technology Lockheed Martin developed for the NGAD project, which includes special materials, geometries and countermeasures that provide low observability (stealth), could make it significantly harder for enemy forces to detect these upgraded jets. He suggested that sixth-generation surveillance technologies and longer-range, more precise weapons could also make the F-35 a much more lethal platform.
Export Potential and Government Approval
Taiclet emphasized that the U.S. government will get first look at any sixth-generation technology Lockheed Martin might add to the F-35. He also noted that the company would like to be able to export those technologies to friendly countries that buy the F-35, but that the final decision on what will be exportable will be up to the U.S. government. “Our goal is to make as much of this capability as possible exportable to allies,” Taiclet said. “We’re trying to design [the technology] in a way that makes it an easier decision than a harder decision in terms of exportability.”
Finally, Taiclet said the Air Force has informed Lockheed Martin of the NGAD decision and that the company is carefully analyzing the service’s feedback. He declined to share details, saying the NGAD briefing is confidential. Lockheed Martin’s strategic move demonstrates its commitment to maintaining air dominance by equipping the current fifth-generation fleet with sixth-generation capabilities, despite the failure of the NGAD bid.
