"What will the battlefield look like in 2030? Nothing like today. Robotic armor, robotic jets, maybe even some robotic soldiers. AI will be in just about everything. In the next few years, changes will be coming fast and furious. Why? We are truly living on the edge of tomorrow..."
It just seems like yesterday that our F-22 and F-35 were best fighter jets in the world. But that was yesterday. And speaking of yesterday, that is when the grand reveal was announced. Our Commander in Chief and Secretary Hegseth, announced the award of our new "tomorrow land", 6th generation fighter jet. And it is going to be a doozy.
After years of secret testing, Boeing was awarded the contract for the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter jet. The first thing which went through my mind when I heard this story was this - Boeing? Isn't that the company who could not get a capsule working to bring two astronauts' home from the ISS? Isn't that the company who has stuff falling off of passenger jets in mid-flight? When I was in the business, a winning company needed to be responsible and responsive. With Boeing, the responsible thing is questionable.
In any event, it seems like every country who is now out of the stone ages is either developing a 5th or 6th generation fighter or are working as a teammate with other countries to do the same. Why is this such a big, hairy deal? After all, we are still flying the F-18 Super Hornet, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the F-15 Strike Eagle, the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightening. What is so special about this new F-47? Short answer - plenty.
One of the criteria for the new NGAD fighter was that it would operate well with "loyal wingman" drone planes. In other words, you might see six advanced fighter jets coming at you, and only one being manned. Behold the age of robotic aerial dog fights! These new F-47 are going to be practically invisible to radar, have a huge standoff advantage with missiles, and have the ability to fly very fast and very high. But what about our existing inventory which I just listed? In a word - the F-47 will make them obsolete.
Wait a minute! Isn't Elon and the DOGE team looking at the Pentagon for some serious cuts? And won't this new plane cost trillions to manufacture and maintain? Yes, and yes. But here comes the dose of reality. If we don't do this, if we don't build this plane, the baddies of the world who are also developing 6th generation fighters, will be able to pick off our existing fighter jets with abandon. Yes, 6th generation technology will be that much of a game changer. With it, you dominate. Without it, you lose. It is as simple as that.
What will the battlefield look like in 2030? Nothing like today. Robotic armor, robotic jets, maybe even some robotic soldiers. AI will be in just about everything. In the next few years, changes will be coming fast and furious. Why? We are truly living on the edge of tomorrow...
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