Forget the F-22 or F-35: How a New Stealth Fighter Might Be Born

[rangerrebew]

June 22, 2020

Forget the F-22 or F-35: How a New Stealth Fighter Might Be Born

A California-based aerospace company recently put a mysterious new prototype up into the air.
by Caleb Larson

The airframe in question, Scaled Composites’ Model 401 first flew in 2018, though details on what the prototype plane is intended for are scant. The plane, tentatively called the “Son of Ares,” is a single-engine design that uses the same engine that Cessna’s Citation business jet used.
 

Interestingly, the engine’s air intake forms an arched arrangement on top of the plane’s fuselage and can reportedly propel the plane up to Mach 0.6 speeds. It has a maximum altitude of 30,000 feet.

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/forget-f-22-or-f-35-how-new-stealth-fighter-might-be-born-163226

[PeteS in CA]

Clickbaity headline, but:

* Gen6 fighters, from whatever source, are probably 20-40 years out; current defense work and such work for the foreseeable future will be done by Gen4 and Gen 5 aircraft;

* If this concept aircraft is capable of Mach .6, that's 1/4-1/3 the speed of current Gen4 and Gen5 fighters; this concept aircraft is a long way from the speed that will be needed for a Gen6 fighter, and if Gen6 fighters need to be hypersonic .......