The cost of one aircraft alone is an estimated $334 million which includes research and development (unit cost of $150 million). Air Force had to stop production early on the F-22 because of soaring project costs. The U.S military is better off investing in the retention of its best pilots and/or purchasing more F-15s and F-16s (and upgrading them), which is a more pragmatic and beneficial strategy given the implications of trying to make more F-22s.The F-22 is expensive. However, the blind pursuit of an all-stealth fighter fleet is financially untenable, and creates new vulnerabilities and weaknesses. military needs the stealthy F-22 to deter and deny conventional adversaries abroad, as it serves an important purpose in the military arsenal, providing first strike capabilities, which are crucial for attaining air dominance. Diversification of America’s fighter fleet means retaining specific roles for certain aircraft, not just putting all of our eggs in the costly F-22 basket. Finally, with the possibility of drone swarm air combat, F-22s may become effectively worthless against thousands of cheaply produced drones. However, within-visual-range-dogfight exercises have shown that the F-22 is not immune against fourth-generation fighters. In beyond-visual-range engagements, F-22s handily defeats any and all fourth-generation fighter aircraft, even when greatly outnumbered. The future of radar technology and electronic warfare will create highly contested battle spaces, where an F-22, which is overly reliant on networks and sensors to be effective, could be reduced to a flying paperweight, forcing the Raptor into within-visual-range dogfights, something it was never designed to do. Such aircraft systems will be designed to operate in anti-access/area-denial environments with “reach, persistence, survivability, net-centricity, situational awareness, human-system integration, and weapons effects.” Buying more F-22s now just undermines American airpower dominance 20 years in the future. Since the United States already has a massive fifth-generation edge, we should be looking beyond the F-22, and invest in sixth-generation aircraft. Although, given the recent economic slowdown in China, these ambitions might be tempered by financial realities much as they were in the United States and Russia. Similarly, China has only built eight stealthy J-20s, with supposed intentions of building 500 to 700 at an estimated price tag of $110 million per aircraft. For example, Russia has only built six stealthy T-50 fighter jets with intentions to only build 60 due to rising costs. military possesses more than 200 combat ready fifth-generation fighters, which is exponentially more than any other potential adversary.
![f22 raptor f22 raptor](https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2020/12/31/article_5fee10a32454a2_59121211.jpeg)
Need to focus on sixth-generation fighters. What’s the point of a fancy fleet of F-22s if you don’t have the experienced cadre of pilots to effectively employ them in combat? Congress needs to provide the necessary resources to entice highly experienced combat aviators to stay in service, be it through larger bonuses or more manpower to reduce administrative burdens on aviators.
![f22 raptor f22 raptor](https://media.wired.com/photos/5932c6eaaef9a462de984a57/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/110921-F-KE165-287w.jpg)
It should be no surprise that military aviators are leaving in droves for airline jobs, which offer a higher quality of life and better pay. However, budget cutbacks have caused pilots to shoulder more administrative duties in conjunction with less flight hours. Retaining cadres of highly experienced aviators is vital to maintaining the utmost of readiness, while training the next generation of combat pilots. Air Force reports that it costs about $60,000 per flying hour for a Raptor, while the F-15 and F-16 cost about $20,000 to $40,000 per flying hour (depending on aircraft mods).įinally, American pilot combat experience is second to none, given the last couple decades of aerial warfare. From a long-term perspective, operational costs matter too, as the U.S. The current cost of fourth-generation fighters such as the F-15C/E and F-16 are about $30 million and $55 million respectively. When F-22s were last built, they cost about $150 million per aircraft. Stealthy F-22s should be used prudently for the right mission and job. Worse yet, due to design limitations of stealth aircraft, F-22s cannot carry anywhere near the same level of firepower found on an F-15E Strike Eagle or F-16 Viper.
![f22 raptor f22 raptor](http://www.fi-aeroweb.com/NQT/WS/Photos/F-22-Raptor.jpg)
However, if there is no credible enemy air defense or aircraft, stealth aircraft just aren’t necessary as it is inefficient to use them due to their prohibitive operating expenses. In both scenarios, stealth aircraft helped create permissive environments where non-stealthy aircraft could operate with impunity.
![f22 raptor f22 raptor](https://i1.wp.com/www.defensemedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/F-22-Raptor1.jpg)
To be fair, stealth is the reason why the military was able to easily overwhelm Iraq’s air defense systems in 1991, and again in 2003, helping establish air supremacy early on in both conflicts. Don’t get me wrong, American stealth aircraft technology is great, but it is not the “end all be all” of combat aviation.