אינדקס
מטוס הקרב האמריקאי מביס כל יריב, משלב חמקנות עם ביצועים מדהימים וכאילו תפור על צה"ל בעידן הלוחמה המתקדמת של ימינו. אבל לעולם לא נקבל כאלה - בגלל פוליטיקה ישראלית, כלכלה אמריקאית ויצירתיות איראנית מפתיעה
לכתבה המלאה באתר כלכליסט:
https://bit.ly/2IQRe2G
מטוסי הקרב ה-F22 הוא מטוס חמקן הכי טוב בעולם. למה לא מוכרים אותו לישראל?
Extremely Powerful F-22 Raptor Shows Its Crazy Ability
F-22 RAPTOR DOCUMENTARY
The $62 billion F-22 program would have certainly had some of the research and development costs alleviated had the sale of the fighter been approved for American allies, but the Obey Amendment to the 1998 Department of Defense Appropriations Act very specifically prevents the sale of the F-22 Raptor to any foreign government — and they were lining up to buy.
Ultimately, the F-22 program was ended because it was very costly and the need for an air-to-air fighter to counter Soviet fighters just wasn't the U.S. military's priority any longer. The U.S. military purchased 183 Raptors, well short of the proposed 381. But then China and Russia began producing next-generation fighters anyway, so the U.S. doubled down on the Joint Strike Fighter.
F-22 RAPTOR DEMO @ 2012 MCAS Miramar Air Show
Marine Corps Air Station Miramar Air Show
Miramar, CA (San Diego)
Sunday October 14th, 2012
2:53 - F-22 Raptor Engine Start-Up
5:47 - Control surface test
12:00 - Taxi-Out
12:54 - Take-Off (Start of the show)
22:33 - United States Air Force Heritage Flight
In this video:
Air Combat Command F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team, and United States Air Force Heritage Flight. Watch as Major Henry "Schadow" Schantz performs a demonstration on the third of three days at the Miramar Air Show on this hot, humid 86 degree day.
F-22 Raptor vs Eurofighter Typhoon: Who Would Win?
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is the US Military's crown jewel when it comes to air superiority. So are there any other aircraft that could give it a run for its money? What about the Eurofighter Typhoon? Glad you mentioned that!
Maybe that seems like a silly comparison, given the Raptor is a 5th generation fighter, and the Typhoon is only a 4.5 gen aircraft.
Surely with stealth, the US built F-22 should best anything in the sky, right?
But generation designation isn't everything, and comparing these two planes is not all that crazy.
And our conclusion on which is the winning aircraft may surprise you.
But before we talk about combat scenarios between these two birds and declare a winner, let's take a look at some of their impressive features & tech specs.
The Typhoon has a wingspan of 36 feet (11m) & is 52 feet long (16m).
The Raptor's wingspan is 44 feet (13.5m) & is 62 feet long (19m).
The Eurofighter sports 2 Eurojet EJ200 engines capable of 60kN each, and 90kN in afterburner mode.
The F-22 is powered by 2 Pratt & Whitney F119 engines that provide 116 kN each, and 156 kN in afterburner mode.
At Altitude, the Typhoon is able to reach speeds of up to 1550 mph (2500 km/h), and Supercruise at speeds of up to Mach 1.5.
The Raptor comes in at 1500 mph (2400 km/h), and a Supercruise of Mach 1.8.
The Eurofighter can climb 62000 feet per minute (318 m/s), with a service ceiling of 65000 feet (20000 m), and a Combat Radius of about 850 miles (1350 km).
The F-22 can climb 69000 feet per minute (350 m/s), also with a service ceiling of 65000 feet (20000 m), and a Combat Radius of around 500 miles (800 km)
The Typhoon has a 27mm Mauser cannon that can fire up to 1700 rounds per minute and carries 150 rounds.
Where the Raptor has a 20mm Vulcan cannon that can fire at up to 6000 rounds per minutes and carries 480 rounds.
The Eurofighter can carry several Air-to-Air and Air-to-Surface missiles, which are externally mounted, such as the IRIS-T & the Brimstone.
Since the F-22 does not mount its weapons externally, it would typically carry 6 AMRAAMs & 2 Sidewinders for an air mission, and in a ground attack scenario, just 2 of each along with 2 precision-guided bombs.
The Typhoon's most notable avionics feature is called PIRATE, or InfraRed Search and Track technology that can detect low-observable aircraft up to 50km away, and carries chaff to thwart radar-guided missiles.
The Raptor's Radar system can detect aircraft nearly 200km away, and uses flares to defend against heat-seeking missiles.
Alright, so down to brass tacks: who would win? The Raptor or the Typhoon?
Well, the answer depends on whether we are talking about combat that is Within Visual Range or Beyond Visual Range.
In the case of a dogfight scenario, the Eurofighter is impressive once in the merge.
Although the F-22 has thrust vectoring and a higher angle of attack tolerance, the Typhoon is able to conserve its energy better; a significant dogfighting advantage when climbing, turning, and diving are crucial to attaining a kill position.
So for the WVR scenario, we would give our nod to the Typhoon.
So now let's talk Stealthy Attack.
This is where the Raptor brings its A-Game.
Take its Stealthy design, combined with AMRAAM missiles that have a 100km range, and a radar that can detect enemy aircraft nearly 200kms away, and it's deadly advantages are clear.
Even with the Typhoon's PIRATE, we think most days the Raptor would take out a Typhoon before it even knew the Raptor was there.
However, soon the impressive METEOR air-to-air missiles may be carried by the Typhoon, and with its 300km range, we will be watching to see how that plays out.
But what are the chances these two aircraft would actually meet one another in the skies?
Well only the US Military has F-22 Raptors in service, and is not sold to other countries or militaries.
The Eurofighter Typhoon, on the other hand, has more than 500 planes currently in use by:
Austria, Germany, Italy, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and the UK.
Kuwait & Qatar have more than 50 on order.
And while its unlikely that the F-22 would encounter a Typhoon in actual combat, it is possible in the future, particularly if one of the countries with Typhoons no longer has a good relationship with the US.
We saw it when the US sold F-14 Tomcats to Iran, and it could happen again with the Eurofighter.
Ultimately, the success of combat between these two powerhouses comes down to a combination of the plane's capabilities and the skill of the pilot.
Watch Emma Stone (The First Civilia
n) Flying In F-22 Raptor Fighter jet
Back in April on 2016, congress ordered a formal study on the costs and feasibility of restarting F-22 Raptor production. The order came amid deteriorating relations with a militarily resurgent Russia and decaying technology supremacy over China's growing military apparatus, and over half a decade after the Raptor line was originally shuttered. The move made big news, and it stood as yet an another indication that what some of us had been saying for years was finally becoming the consensus inside and outside the USAF—that production of the world's first 5th generation super fighter was terminated far too early.
Unofficial estimates have varied drastically, from relatively affordable to horrendously expensive, on how much it would take to start building F-22s again.
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). The result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, the aircraft was designed primarily as an air superiority fighter, but also has ground attack, electronic warfare, and signal intelligence capabilities.[4] The prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, built most of the F-22's airframe and weapons systems and conducted final assembly, while Boeing provided the wings, aft fuselage, avionics integration, and training systems.
The aircraft was variously designated F-22 and F/A-22 before it formally entered service in December 2005 as the F-22A. Despite its protracted development and various operational issues, USAF officials consider the F-22 a critical component of the service's tactical air power. Its combination of stealth, aerodynamic performance, and situational awareness enable unprecedented air combat capabilities.[5][6]
Service officials had originally planned to buy a total of 750 ATFs. In 2009, the program was cut to 187 operational production aircraft due to high costs, a lack of clear air-to-air missions due to delays in Russian and Chinese fighter programs, a ban on exports, and development of the more versatile F-35.[N 1] The last F-22 was delivered in 2012.
In 1981, the U.S. Air Force identified a requirement for an Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) to replace the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon. Code named "Senior Sky", this air-superiority fighter program was influenced by emerging worldwide threats, including new developments in Soviet air defense systems and the proliferation of the Su-27 "Flanker"- and MiG-29 "Fulcrum"-class of fighter aircraft.[8] It would take advantage of the new technologies in fighter design on the horizon, including composite materials, lightweight alloys, advanced flight control systems, more powerful propulsion systems, and most importantly, stealth technology. In 1983, the ATF concept development team became the System Program Office (SPO) and managed the program at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The demonstration and validation (Dem/Val) request for proposals (RFP) was issued in September 1985, with requirements placing strong emphasis on stealth and supercruise. Of the seven bidding companies, Lockheed and Northrop were selected on 31 October 1986. Lockheed teamed with Boeing and General Dynamics while Northrop teamed with McDonnell Douglas, and the two contractor teams undertook a 50-month Dem/Val phase, culminating in the flight test of two technology demonstrator prototypes, the YF-22 and the YF-23, respectively.[9][10]
Dem/Val was focused on risk reduction and technology development plans over specific aircraft designs. Contractors made extensive use of analytical and empirical methods, including computational fluid dynamics, wind-tunnel testing, and radar cross-section calculations and pole testing; the Lockheed team would conduct nearly 18,000 hours of wind-tunnel testing. Avionics development was marked by extensive testing and prototyping and supported by ground and flying laboratories.[11] During Dem/Val, the SPO used the results of performance and cost trade studies conducted by contractor teams to adjust ATF requirements and delete ones that were significant weight and cost drivers while having marginal value. The short takeoff and landing (STOL) requirement was relaxed in order to delete thrust-reversers, saving substantial weight. As avionics was a major cost driver, side-looking radars were deleted, and the dedicated infra-red search and track (IRST) system was downgraded from multi-color to single color and then deleted as well. However, space and cooling provisions were retained to allow for future addition of these components. The ejection seat requirement was downgraded from a fresh design to the existing McDonnell Douglas ACES II. Despite efforts by the contractor teams to rein in weight, the takeoff gross weight estimate was increased from 50,000 lb (22,700 kg) to 60,000 lb (27,200 kg), resulting in engine thrust requirement increasing from 30,000 lbf (133 kN) to 35,000 lbf (156 kN) class.[12]
Each team produced two prototype air vehicles for Dem/Val, one for each of the two engine options. The YF-22 had its maiden flight on 29 September 1990 and in flight tests achieved up to Mach 1.58 in supercruise. After the Dem/Val flight test of the prototypes, on 23 April 1991, Secretary of the USAF Donald Rice announced the Lockheed team as the winner of the ATF competition.[13] The YF-23 design was considered stealthier and faster, while the YF-22, with its thrust vectoring nozzles, was more maneuverable as well as less expensive and risky.[14] The aviation press speculated that the Lockheed team's design was also more adaptable to the U.S. Navy's Navalized Advanced Tactical Fighter (NATF),[N 2] but by 1992, the Navy had abandoned NATF.[15]
Production and procurement
As the program moved to full-scale development, or the Engineering & Manufacturing Development (EMD) stage, the production version had notable differences from the YF-22, despite having a broadly similar shape. The swept-back angle of the leading edge was decreased from 48° to 42°, while the vertical stabilizers were shifted rearward and decreased in area by 20%.[16] To improve pilot visibility, the canopy was moved forward 7 inches (18 cm), and the engine intakes moved rearward 14 inches (36 cm). The shapes of the wing and stabilator trailing edges were refined to improve aerodynamics, strength, and stealth characteristics.[17][18] Increasing weight during development caused slight reductions in range and maneuver performance.[19]
Prime contractor Lockheed Martin Aeronautics[N 3] manufactured the majority of the airframe and performed final assembly at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta, Georgia; program partner Boeing Defense, Space & Security provided additional airframe components as well as avionics integration and training systems.[20] The first F-22, an EMD aircraft with tail number 4001, was unveiled at Marietta, Georgia, on 9 April 1997, and first flew on 7 September 1997.[21][22] Production, with the first lot awarded in September 2000, supported over 1,000 subcontractors and suppliers from 46 states and up to 95,000 jobs, and spanned 15 years at a peak rate of roughly two airplanes per month.[23][24][25] In 2006, the F-22 development team won the Collier Trophy, American aviation's most prestigious award.[26] Due to the aircraft's advanced nature, contractors have been targeted by cyberattacks and technology theft.[27]
The USAF originally envisioned ordering 750 ATFs at a total program cost of $44.3 billion and procurement cost of $26.2 billion in fiscal year (FY) 1985 dollars, with production beginning in 1994. The 1990 Major Aircraft Review led by Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney reduced this to 648 aircraft beginning in 1996. By 1997, funding instability had further cut the total to 339, which was again reduced to 277 by 2003.[28] In 2004, the Department of Defense (DoD) further reduced this to 183 operational aircraft, despite the USAF's preference for 381.[29][30] A multi-year procurement plan was implemented in 2006 to save $15 billion, with total program cost projected to be $62 billion for 183 F-22s distributed to seven combat squadrons.[31] In 2008, Congress passed a defense spending bill that raised the total orders for production aircraft to 187.[32][33]
The first two F-22s built were EMD aircraft in the Block 1.0[N 4] configuration for initial flight testing, while the third was a Block 2.0 aircraft built to represent the internal structure of production airframes and enabled it to test full flight loads. Six more EMD aircraft were built in the Block 10 configuration for development and upgrade testing, with the last two considered essentially production quality jets. Production for operational squadrons consisted of 37 Block 20 training aircraft and 149 Block 30/35 combat aircraft; one of the Block 35 aircraft is dedicated to flight sciences at Edwards Air Force Base.[34][35]
The numerous new technologies in the F-22 resulted in substantial cost overruns and delays.[36] Many capabilities were deferred to post-service upgrades, reducing the initial cost but increasing total program cost.[37] As production wound down in 2011, the total program cost is estimated to be about $67.3 billion, with $32.4 billion spent on Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) and $34.9 billion on procurement and military construction (MILCON) in then year dollars. The incremental cost for an additional F-22 was estimated at about $138 million in 2009.[38][2]
Ban on exports
The F-22 cannot be exported under US federal law to protect its stealth technology and other high-tech features.[39][40] Customers for U.S. fighters are acquiring earlier designs such as the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon or the newer F-35 Lightning II, which contains technology from the F-22 but was designed to be cheaper, more flexible, and available for export.[41] In September 2006, Congress upheld the ban on foreign F-22 sales.[42] Despite the ban, the 2010 defense authorization bill included provisions requiring the DoD to prepare a report on the costs and feasibility for an F-22 export variant, and another report on the effect of F-22 export sales on U.S. aerospace industry.[43][44]
Some Australian politicians and defense commentators proposed that Australia should attempt to purchase F-22s instead of the planned F-35s,[45][46] citing the F-22's known capabilities and F-35's delays and developmental uncertainties.[47] However, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) determined that the F-22 was unable to perform the F-35's strike and close air support roles.[48] The Japanese government also showed interest in the F-22 for its Replacement-Fighter program. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) would reportedly require fewer fighters for its mission if it obtained the F-22, thus reducing engineering and staffing costs. However, in 2009 it was reported that acquiring the F-22 would require increases to the Japanese government's defense budget beyond the historical 1 percent of its GDP.[49][50] With the end of F-22 production, Japan chose the F-35 in December 2011.[51] Israel also expressed interest, but eventually chose the F-35 because of the F-22's price and unavailability.[52][53]
Production termination
Throughout the 2000s, the need for F-22s was debated, due to rising costs and the lack of relevant adversaries. In 2006, Comptroller General of the United States David Walker found that "the DoD has not demonstrated the need" for more investment in the F-22,[54] and further opposition to the program was expressed by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon R. England, Senator John McCain, and Chairman of U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services Senator John Warner.[55][56] The F-22 program lost influential supporters in 2008 after the forced resignations of Secretary of the Air Force Michael Wynne and the Chief of Staff of the Air Force General T. Michael Moseley.[57].jpg)
In November 2008, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates stated that the F-22 was not relevant in post-Cold War conflicts such as irregular warfare operations in Iraq and Afghanistan,[58] and in April 2009, under the new Obama Administration, he called for ending production in FY2011, leaving the USAF with 187 production aircraft.[59] In July, General James Cartwright, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated to the Senate Committee on Armed Services his reasons for supporting termination of F-22 production. They included shifting resources to the multirole F-35 to allow proliferation of fifth-generation fighters for three service branches and preserving the F/A-18 production line to maintain the military's electronic warfare (EW) capabilities in the Boeing EA-18G Growler.[60] Issues with the F-22's reliability and availability also raised concerns.[41][61] After President Obama threatened to veto further production, the Senate voted in July 2009 in favor of ending production and the House subsequently agreed to abide by the 187 production aircraft cap.[62][63] Gates stated that the decision was taken in light of the F-35's capabilities,[64] and in 2010, he set the F-22 requirement to 187 aircraft by lowering the number of major regional conflict preparations from two to one.[65]
In 2010, USAF initiated a study to determine the costs of retaining F-22 tooling for a future Service Life Extension Program (SLEP).[66] A RAND Corporation paper from this study estimated that restarting production and building an additional 75 F-22s would cost $17 billion, resulting in $227 million per aircraft, or $54 million higher than the flyaway cost.[67] Lockheed Martin stated that restarting the production line itself would cost about $200 million.[68] Production tooling and associated documentation were subsequently stored at the Sierra Army Depot, allowing the retained tooling to support the fleet life cycle.[69] There were reports that attempts to retrieve this tooling found empty containers,[70] but a subsequent audit found that the tooling was stored as expected.[71]
Russian and Chinese fighter developments have fueled concern, and in 2009, General John Corley, head of Air Combat Command, stated that a fleet of 187 F-22s would be inadequate, but Secretary Gates dismissed General Corley's concern.[57] In 2011, Gates explained that Chinese fifth-generation fighter developments had been accounted for when the number of F-22s was set, and that the U.S. would have a considerable advantage in stealth aircraft in 2025, even with F-35 delays.[72] In December 2011, the 195th and final F-22 was completed out of 8 test EMD and 187 operational aircraft produced; the aircraft was delivered to the USAF on 2 May 2012.[73][74]
In April 2016, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee proposed legislation that would direct the Air Force to conduct a cost study and assessment associated with resuming production of the F-22. Since the production halt directed in 2009 by then Defense Secretary Gates, lawmakers and the Pentagon noted that air warfare systems of Russia and China were catching up to those of the U.S.[75] Lockheed Martin has proposed upgrading the Block 20 training aircraft into combat-coded Block 30/35 versions as a way to increase numbers available for deployment.[76] On 9 June 2017, the Air Force submitted their report to Congress stating they had no plans to restart the F-22 production line due to economic and operational issues; it estimated it would cost approximately $50 billion to procure 194 additional F-22s at a cost of $206–$216 million per aircraft, including approximately $9.9 billion for non-recurring start-up costs and $40.4 billion for aircraft procurement costs.[77]
Upgrades
The first aircraft with combat-capable Block 3.0 software flew in 2001.[78] Increment 2, the first upgrade program, was implemented in 2005 for Block 20 aircraft onward and enabled the employment of Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM). Certification of the improved AN/APG-77(V)1 radar was completed in March 2007, and airframes from production Lot 5 onward are fitted with this radar, which incorporates air-to-ground modes.[79] Increment 3.1 for Block 30 aircraft onward provided improved ground-attack capability through synthetic aperture radar mapping and radio emitter direction finding, electronic attack and Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) integration; testing began in 2009 and the first upgraded aircraft was delivered in 2011.[80][81] To address oxygen deprivation issues, F-22s were fitted with an automatic backup oxygen system (ABOS) and modified life support system starting in 2012.[82]Increment 3.2 for Block 35 aircraft is a two-part upgrade process; 3.2A focuses on electronic warfare, communications and identification, while 3.2B includes geolocation improvements and a new stores management system to show the correct symbols for the AIM-9X and AIM-120D.[83][84] To enable two-way communication with other platforms, the F-22 can use the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) as a gateway. The planned Multifunction Advanced Data Link (MADL) integration was cut due to development delays and lack of proliferation among USAF platforms. The F-22 fleet is planned to start receiving Increment 3.2B as well as a software upgrade for cryptography capabilities and avionics stability in May 2019. A Multifunctional Information Distribution System-Joint (MIDS-J) radio that replaces the current Link-16 receive-only box is expected to be operational by 2020. Subsequent upgrades are also focusing on having an open architecture to enable faster future enhancements.[85]
In 2024, funding is projected to begin for the F-22 mid-life upgrade (MLU), which is expected to include new sensors and antennas, hardware refresh, cockpit improvements, and a helmet mounted display and cuing system. Other enhancements being developed include IRST functionality for the AN/AAR-56 Missile Launch Detector (MLD) and more durable stealth coating based on the F-35's.[85][86][87]
The F-22 was designed for a service life of 8,000 flight hours, with a $350 million "structures retrofit program".[88] Investigations are being made for upgrades to extend their useful lives further.[89] In the long term, the F-22 is expected to be superseded by a sixth-generation jet fighter to be fielded in the 2030s.[90]
Design
Overview
The F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation fighter that is considered fourth generation in stealth aircraft technology by the USAF.[91] It is the first operational aircraft to combine supercruise, supermaneuverability, stealth, and sensor fusion in a single weapons platform.[92] The F-22 has four empennage surfaces, retractable tricycle landing gear, and clipped delta wings with reverse trailing edge sweep and leading edge extensions running to the upper outboard corner of the inlets. Flight control surfaces include leading-edge flaps, flaperons, ailerons, rudders on the canted vertical stabilizers, and all-moving horizontal tails (stabilators); for speed brake function, the ailerons deflect up, flaperons down, and rudders outwards to increase drag.[93]
The aircraft's dual Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100 augmented turbofan engines are closely spaced and incorporate pitch-axis thrust vectoring nozzles with a range of ±20 degrees; each engine has maximum thrust in the 35,000 lbf (156 kN) class. The F-22's thrust-to-weight ratio at typical combat weight is nearly at unity in maximum military power and 1.25 in full afterburner. Maximum speed without external stores is approximately Mach 1.8 at military power and greater than Mach 2 with afterburners.[94][N 5]
The F-22's high cruise speed and operating altitude over prior fighters improve the effectiveness of its sensors and weapon systems, and increase survivability against ground defenses such as surface-to-air missiles.[96][97] The aircraft is among only a few that can supercruise, or sustain supersonic flight without using fuel-inefficient afterburners; it can intercept targets which subsonic aircraft would lack the speed to pursue and an afterburner-dependent aircraft would lack the fuel to reach. The F-22's thrust and aerodynamics enable regular combat speeds of Mach 1.5 at 50,000 feet (15,000 m).[98] The use of internal weapons bays permits the aircraft to maintain comparatively higher performance over most other combat-configured fighters due to a lack of aerodynamic drag from external stores. The aircraft's structure contains a significant amount of high-strength materials to withstand stress and heat of sustained supersonic flight. Respectively, titanium alloys and composites comprise 39% and 24% of the structural weight.[99]
The F-22's aerodynamics, relaxed stability, and powerful thrust-vectoring engines give it excellent maneuverability and energy potential across its flight envelope. The airplane has excellent high alpha (angle of attack) characteristics, capable of flying at trimmed alpha of over 60° while maintaining roll control and performing maneuvers such as the Herbst maneuver (J-turn) and Pugachev's Cobra.[100] The flight control system and full-authority digital engine control (FADEC) make the aircraft highly departure resistant and controllable, thus giving the pilot carefree handling.[101][102]
Avionics
Key avionics include Sanders/General Electric AN/ALR-94 electronic warfare system, Lockheed Martin AN/AAR-56 infrared and ultraviolet Missile Launch Detector (MLD) and Westinghouse/Texas Instruments AN/APG-77 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The MLD uses six sensors to provide full spherical infrared coverage.[103] Among the most technically complex equipment on the aircraft is the ALR-94 system, a passive radar detector with more than 30 antennas blended into the wings and fuselage for all-round radar warning receiver (RWR) coverage. Its range (250+ nmi) exceeds the radar's and can cue radar emissions to be confined to a narrow beam (down to 2° by 2° in azimuth and elevation) to increase stealth. Depending on the detected threat, the defensive systems can prompt the pilot to release countermeasures such as flares or chaff. The ALR-94 can be used as a passive detection system capable of searching targets and providing enough information for a radar lock on. Tactical communication between F-22s is performed using the directional Inter/Intra-Flight Data Link (IFDL).[104][105]
The APG-77 radar has a low-observable, active-aperture, electronically scanned array that can track multiple targets under any weather conditions. Radar emissions can also be focused to overload enemy sensors as an electronic-attack capability. The radar changes frequencies more than 1,000 times per second to lower interception probability and has an estimated range of 125–150 mi (201–241 km) against a 11 sq ft (1 m2) target and 250 mi (400 km) or more in narrow beams. F-22s from Lot 5 and on are equipped with the APG-77(V)1, which provides air-to-ground functionality through synthetic aperture radar mapping and various strike modes.[79][106] Radar and Communication/Navigation/Identification (CNI) information are processed by two Hughes Common Integrated Processor (CIP)s, each capable of processing up to 10.5 billion instructions per second. In a process known as sensor fusion, data from the radar, other sensors, and external systems is filtered and combined by the CIP into a common view, reducing pilot workload.[107]
The F-22's ability to operate close to the battlefield gives the aircraft threat detection and identification capability comparative with the RC-135 Rivet Joint, and the ability to function as a "mini-AWACS", though its radar is less powerful than those of dedicated platforms. This allows the F-22 to rapidly designate targets for allies and coordinate friendly aircraft.[106] The IEEE 1394B bus developed for the F-22 was derived from the commercial IEEE 1394 "FireWire" bus system.[108] In 2007, the F-22's radar was tested as a wireless data transceiver, transmitting data at 548 megabits per second and receiving at gigabit speed, far faster than the Link 16 system.[109]
The F-22's software has some 1.7 million lines of code, the majority involving processing radar data.[110] Former Secretary of the USAF Michael Wynne blamed the use of the DoD's Ada for cost overruns and delays on many military projects, including the F-22. The integrated nature of the avionics have also made upgrades challenging; consequently, open-system architecture for the aircraft is currently planned in order to facilitate future upgrades.[85][
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