Jim Taiclet, CEO of the company, claims that by applying advanced F-35 technologies, 80 % of F-47 can achieve 50 % of the cost.
As news about Boeing’s victory in Next generation Air domination (NGAD) The President of Lockheed Martin and CEO of investors will host at a video conference on April 22, 2025, to make a presentation on the performance of the first quarter profits. TAICLET Directly Lockheed Martin is not planning to make a protest against the contract decision, noting that the company had received notes from the US Air Force on the plane while extracting the classified information.
“We are progressing and moving to the application of all the technologies that we have developed in our NGAD offer on our Based from the F-35 and F-22,” said Taiclet. ))
TAICLET refers to the proposed F-35 plane as the “Fifth Generation” plane, indicates a similar design used in models that are highly promoted by the fourth-generation fighter plane-for example, The F-15E Strike Eagle and F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
“Therefore, we will take the structure and turn it into Ferrari. It is like a NASCAR upgrade, if it is permissible to speak,” Taiclet continues. He says this option will provide both the American Air Force and agents abroad with the best possible value. The resulting F-35 variable is expected to be a exportable product, although it will be compromised if there is a desire to obtain certain capabilities more restricted in its spread.
A solid price point is not available for The Boeing F-47But some reports from 2024 suggested that the cost of each NGAD unit could reach $ 300 million. This number will be expensive for USAF, not to mention other limited budgets. If this price point turns to the F-47, the F-35, which is upgraded, will come about $ 150 million. This is still an inexpensive plane, but it is more comparable to the current models. In 2024, the average cost of each unit for the F-35a was 82.5 million dollars, but for variables B and C, this increased to $ 109 million and $ 102.1 million, respectively.
If the export option is available, Lockheed Martin can take advantage of a firm customer base and solid supply chains. More than 1100 F-35s has now been delivered all over the world, and the company is currently on the total production to 3500 aircraft. We do not know if the F-47 will be exported, but we know that The other generation fighters It is described for external sales. The upgraded F-35S may need to go to the soles of the feet to get orders with Consortium Build Global Combat Air (GCAP) and future combat air system (FCAS).
Emerging techniques
Among the capabilities that are likely to be listed in the suggestion of Lockheed Martin is the advanced applicant (Mum-T). The company has already glimpsed to F-35 has strong potential In this regard, it is likely that this field is likely to increase the increase in the contract of the cooperative combat of the US Air Force.
In previous versions, F-35 is described with the new CCAS as using a Podded system. This may be that part of the upgrade “super shipping” will see this function in an integrated structure of the plane organically, which removes the need for an external pod that somewhat, to some extent, the performance of the aircraft.
TAICLET also noticed the appearance of negative infrared sensors as a major feature of combat aircraft. Several Russian and Chinese designs merged them again for some time, and the same can be said to the Eurofighter Typhoon and Dassault rafale. American designs, however, must be equipped Infrared search sensors and their path (IRST)Because they were not originally designed with them.
The main exception to this is the F-35 itself, which includes the IRST capacity in the EOS electric targeting system (EOTS) on the chin of each F-35. EOTS is said to depend on the XR sniper that targets – Improving versions It was already placed on the table by Lockheed Martin, but it has not been eaten yet.
The IRST devices are reduced by the ghost plane feature using infrared signatures instead of radar signatures to gain the target and follow it and stifle it. Although reducing infrared signatures was already a source of concern for martial aircraft designers for some time, due to the use of infrared researchers in missiles like AIM-9 Sidewinder recently. It seems more severe in the test.
The upgrade will undoubtedly include many invisible programs and electronic elements externally, but that may have a revolution completely in the F-35 capabilities in the areas of electronic warfare, communications, intelligence, monitoring and response (ISR). Although the F-35 is new for the fighter, the naturally lengthy development cycle of any modern combat aircraft means that the technology that is now inserted is now at least several years, often more than that.
Huge steps have been taken forward in computing and electronics even in the past decade, allowing more miniaturization before, while allowing the processes of upgrading the most speedy and reliable programs and devices. The phones that we carry in our pockets come every day with more RAM (RAM) and storing data from many PCs in full size that are still being used daily. If the same level is derived from the technological progress of the defense industry, there are definitely many things in the development facilities classified at the present time that many may consider it impossible.
It has long been predicted that it increases the line in which the current lineup of the F-35 variables will grow. Some used this idea to put ideas Radical difference of F-35 variables. Although we may not see such a big change in the outer template in the structure of the plane as some of these artworks depicts concepts, it seems that the Lockheed Martin advertisement is our best sign yet we may see F-35D, F-35E or perhaps f-35f.