The US Air Force is in no hurry to commit to a next | next generation fighter
BERLIN—TheU.S.AirForceistakingitstimetosettleonanext-generationfighterdesign,awaitinginsteadlessonslearnedfromtheF-35jetandplayingthefieldwithpromisingtechnologies,accordingtoaseniorserviceofficial.Optionsbeingkickedaroundarestillintheconceptualstage,asAmerica’snewestfighter,thefifth-generationF-35,isonlynow“comingofftheline,”accordingtoLt.Gen.DavidNahom,theAirForce’sdeputychiefofstaffforplansandprograms.“We’renotinahurry,”NahomtoldDefenseNewsonthesidelinesoftheInternationalFighterConference...
BERLIN — The U.S. Air Force is taking its time to settle on a next-generation fighter design, awaiting instead lessons learned from the F-35 jet and playing the field with promising technologies, according to a senior service official.
Options being kicked around are still in the conceptual stage, as America’s newest fighter, the fifth-generation F-35, is only now “coming off the line,” according to Lt. Gen. David Nahom, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for plans and programs.
“We’re not in a hurry,” Nahom told Defense News on the sidelines of the International Fighter Conference, an air power-themed confab of industry and government officials held in Berlin, Germany. He noted that expected deliveries of the F-35 and the relatively young age of the F-22 fleet enables the service to be picky about moving forward with the envisioned Next Generation Air Domi...