Some Hints of AFRL Thinking of Air Combat Circa 2030

Its a promotional video, to be sure, but if you've followed the general tech developments (out in public and what we've uncovered), this isn't too far off.

We see a drone swarm, Loyal Wingman drones, lasers, microwave weapons and even the sixth generation fighter, still called FX on its airframe.

Jump to 3:00 to see the new, conjectural stuff.

The War Zone also has a breakdown. Don't read too much into this stuff, but, as I said, it seems to be going in the way this is portraying.

www.thedrive.com...

Awesome trailer.

Love the 6th Gen, a direct energy platform.

Assuring American power.

Eat your heart out intpr... 😙

a reply to: Arnie123

As hard as I am on intrptr, this is just a concept and hasn't been built yet.

a reply to: Arnie123

and we got just the thing to power it with too

originally posted by: anzha
a reply to: Arnie123

As hard as I am on intrptr, this is just a concept and hasn't been built yet.

Concepts or not, this is the direction are forces are taking and I firmly believe that we can pull it off.

a reply to: Arnie123

We possibly could.

Unless we hurry up our development cycle, so too could China.

They've already started their 6th gen fighter project, too, and physics doesn't give a rat's patootie about the color of your flag.

Interesting video and far beyond most of the stuff in my days with them. I just may live to see it so we'll see how close they come. My best,

originally posted by: BASSPLYR
a reply to: Arnie123

and we got just the thing to power it with too

oh I believe it!

originally posted by: anzha
a reply to: Arnie123

We possibly could.

Unless we hurry up our development cycle, so too could China.

They've already started their 6th gen fighter project, too, and physics doesn't give a rat's patootie about the color of your flag.

not worried, they don't even have a TRUE 5th gen, despite the medias buzz.

a reply to: BASSPLYR

Man...

That thread I read two years ago just came in real handy.

lol

I hope that they finally bring that out into white world.

a reply to: Arnie123

And why do you say the J-20 is not a true 5th gen?

Honest question, not a bait or trap.

a reply to: anzha

Certain aspects of hi tech unmanned weaponry already exist. I was amazed at Russian announcement of mini stealth drone subs that can shadow fleets of vessels anywhere, undetected.

Mini explorer submarine drones already exist in the west, used for long term exploration of open ocean for research. Chinese Song class submarines have surfaced near US air craft carriers, they are a lot bigger than a mini drone.

Who needs super dreadnought battle fleets when a single mini nuke drone can glide along behind a fleet in silent mode?

One is probably shadowing every carrier strike group we have, right now.

defensenews

a reply to: intrptr

Russian nuclear subs are not super quiet.

And the Status-6 is, at least according to Russian sources, still in testing. Just like the Avangard and the Burevestnik.

It makes far more sense for the Status-6 to be sitting in habors waiting to go boom. At that low of power, even the Russian nuclear reactors are pretty quiet. They might even be waiting, eventually, off the coasts for our shipyards and, if I were a Russian, I'd be doing that.

However, it depends on how reliable you think your nuclear bomb is and how likely it is to be discovered. Finding it in a harbor would be an act of war. And nukes don't do limited exchanges.

But, as I have noted before, UUVs are something we've been working on as well. Large, torpedo carrying ones.

But, either of these is a little off topic for an aviation forum.

originally posted by: anzha
a reply to: Arnie123

And why do you say the J-20 is not a true 5th gen?

Honest question, not a bait or trap.

A true 5th gen, from my understanding, is a family of systems integrated to work together effectively and efficiently. The J20, at best my have a decent sensor suite, but not as robust as an F35 or 22 even.

There engines are a dead red flag itself.

Spike managment, combat displays designed to help the pilot out.

Course, this is just my OPINION and I believe that the Chinese are capable of pulling off what we have.

You see, I'm not dumb, I know that if we get careless, we can be surpassed.

As an American, I root for my Team and TEAM only. Yes, I'll take our small lead and call it a massive leap 😊

a reply to: intrptr

we've had those mini drone subs a decade before anyone else.
about the Chinese sub. sometimes it good to let a enemy show its hand. we let that sub do that. it was being tracked the whole time and the data we got on their capabilities has been priceless. at any point we could have stopped that Chinese sub but why not just give your enemy a false sense of security and let them hang themselves with their own ignorance and arrogance

a reply to: anzha

It makes far more sense for the Status-6 to be sitting in habors waiting to go boom.

No it doesn't. I'd want to know where every single strike carrier group is. Shouldn't be difficult, they are bobbing LSTs. They will be the first targets in any shooting war.

Just like the Japanese carriers were in the opening of WWII. Carriers represent the greatest threat, nowadays especially.

originally posted by: BASSPLYR
a reply to: intrptr

we've had those mini drone subs a decade before anyone else.
about the Chinese sub. sometimes it good to let a enemy show its hand. we let that sub do that. it was being tracked the whole time and the data we got on their capabilities has been priceless. at any point we could have stopped that Chinese sub but why not just give your enemy a false sense of security and let them hang themselves with their own ignorance and arrogance

Yah, now you admit they exist, after they were unveiled.

a reply to: intrptr

Of course, I admit they are real. I've been suspecting as much since December 2015 when it first leaked.

The problem is if you use a nuke, you cross a line. A big one. The Russians have a concept of escalating to deescalate. Use a nuke to make everyone stop. It doesn't work that way with the West. or at least the US. The Soviets, based on their war in europe plans, realized this and were willing to throw everything immediately into the fight: chemical weapons, nuclear weapons, etc. There was no boomski and see if everyone backs off.

Command and control of the Status-6 is the difficulty for tactical ops. The Russian space infrastructure is slowly decaying and sat comms are the only way to communicate with something like this. Perhaps that will change. I'd bet against it for the next 20 years or so though.

a reply to: anzha

Very cool video.

I think that 4th and 5th generation fighters can be game changers in the role of drone wingmen.

I see that technology as giving each pilot the ability to win an air war singlehandedly.

I imagine one day we will do areal refueling and rearming of drone armadas by near orbital "mother ships" capable of 24/7 patrols.

Carriers will be obsolete when we can do that easily.

Who knows. Its nice to see new developments anyway. Its a cool time to be alive.

a reply to: intrptr
amazing assumption there.
no, I've discussed it before in the years past. although, there's lots I know that exists I don't discuss until I see others bringing it out first.