"6th Gen" Fighter Jets

'Sixth Generation' Fighters Jets Are Already Taking Shape

The jets won't fly for another fifteen years, but are so complicated planning needs to start now.

By Kyle Mizokami

The United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Japan are all in early planning stages for a so-called "sixth generation" of fighter jets. The jets won't fly until the 2030s, but governments around the world are already exploring designs.

Fifth generation fighters were different from their fourth generation predecessors by incorporating stealth directly into the designs of aircraft, resulting in sleeker planes that carry weapons internally and have a reduced radar signature. The downside is while fifth gen jets are capable of carrying fuel and weapons externally, doing so breaks their carefully designed stealth characteristics. Other features of fifth generation fighters include active electronic scanning array radars and engines powerful enough to cruise above the speed of sound without afterburners.

The feature set for sixth generation fighters hasn't yet been nailed down, but longer range and payload are emerging as two key requirements. Artificial intelligence will likely play a role, sorting data and analyzing threats to reduce the pilot's workload. Optional manning is another likely feature, with the ability to fly fighters remotely. On the other edge of the manning spectrum, two seat fighters will probably evolve into something new. While "backseaters" used to control the jet's radar, their modern counterparts will likely control and orchestrate swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles.


Boeing's new sixth generation design. Via Aviation Week & Space Technology.

In the United States, the U.S. Air Force is seeking an extra $147 million to fund early development of the Penetrating Counter Air Fighter (PCA). PCA is an Air Force program designed to field a fighter to replace the F-22 Raptor. The Air Force has said little about what it wants in the new fighter, but range and payload are expected to be two main requirements.

Range is useful both to self-deploy in a crisis and to accompany the new B-21 Raider bomber on deep penetration strikes, one possible mission for the new fighter. Boeing has already released early concept art of its PCA candidate. PCA could fly as early as 2028.


Japanese DMU25 fighter concept art. Via Japanese Ministry of Defense Technical Research and Development Institute.

Elsewhere, Japan and Great Britain have signed a surprise agreement to explore the idea of jointly developing a new fighter for fielding in the 2030s. According to Aviation Week & Space Technology, the two countries will "exchange information on their ambitions" and "advise each other of their capabilities."

Japan is looking to develop a large, twin-engine, two crewman aircraft to replace the Mitsubishi F-2 fighter. The country's sixth generation fighter concept, nicknamed Future Fighter, is a large fighter designed for long range missions against China in the East China Sea and possibly North Korea. Currently Japanese F-15 and F-2 fighters flying missions in the East China Sea can only operate from a handful of local airfields—fighters with a longer range fighter could operate from more airfields farther away.

The UK's Future Combat Air System (FCAS) will replace the Eurofighter Typhoon starting in 2040. FCAS might be an unmanned aerial vehicle; the UK has been quietly testing the Taranis combat drone since 2012. Unlike current drones, Taranis is being developed to attack aerial targets in addition to ground targets. Unmanned is an option for FCAS, but the UK Ministry of Defense has admitted the program could still result in a manned fighter.

Could the agreement result in a fighter flown by both countries? Possibly, although the two countries sound like they want very different things. At this point it seems more likely the agreement will result in technology transfers rather than an actual aircraft that satisfies both countries.

The two countries had previously agreed on joint air-to-air missile development. The UK has worked to develop the Meteor missile, a long range, beyond visual range missile. Ramjet powered, the Meteor is extremely fast. Japan on the other hand has been a leader in missile seekers, producing the AAM-4B, the first missile with a built-in active electronically scanned array radar—the same kind of radar that rides on modern fighter planes such as the F-22. A joint effort would produce an exceptionally deadly missile: a ramjet-powered, AESA-equipped guided weapon capable of fitting in the internal weapons bay of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which both countries are purchasing.


Airbus Defence and Space's FCAS concept art.

Finally, Germany is also looking to develop a sixth generation fighter, also named Future Combat Air System (FCAS). FCAS will replace the German Air Force's aging fleet of Tornado IDS strike aircraft and supplement the Eurofighter Typhoon. According to Telegiz, the "FCAS will likely be a twin-engine, twin-tail aircraft piloted by two crewmen"—which actually sounds a lot like what Japan wants—to be operational in the 2030 to 2040 airframe. FCAS could be both manned and unmanned, and manned versions could fly alongside and control unmanned versions.