f-22 blurb from Airforce on stealth

[toad]

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htairfo/articles/20051125.aspx


"The U.S. Air Force, in it’s effort to get money to build more F-22s, has revealed just how “stealthy” the F-22 is. It’s RCS (Radar Cross Section) is the equivalent, for a radar, to a metal marble...."

[Chuckie]

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htairfo/articles/20051125.aspx


"The U.S. Air Force, in it’s effort to get money to build more F-22s, has revealed just how “stealthy” the F-22 is. It’s RCS (Radar Cross Section) is the equivalent, for a radar, to a metal marble...."

So basically the F22 has about 1/4 the radar signature of an F-117. (I'm assuming a golf ball is 2x the size of a marble)

Interesting.

[Chuckie]

I can hear Chavez now... "Reconfigure all radar to look for planes and metal marbles"

[AmericanImperialist]

So basically the F22 has about 1/4 the radar signature of an F-117. (I'm assuming a golf ball is 2x the size of a marble)

Interesting.


"The less stealthy (and much cheaper) F-35, is equal to a metal golf ball. The F-35 stealthiness is a bit better than the B-2 bomber, which, in turn, was twice as good as that on the even older F-117."

So the F-35 is one golf ball, the B-2 is two golf balls and the F117 is four golf balls.

Let's say a marble is 1/3 the size of a golf ball, that would give it 1/12 the radar signature of the F117, 1/6 of the B2, and 1/3 of the F-35.

Very impressive indeed.

[usa320]

http://www.mccrappy.com/media/TryAndStopUs.jpg

[Kitsune]

Wow. According to Martin van Creveld (see "The Transformation of War") something like this is downright proof that the leading guys of the US military do not believe for themselves that weapon systems like the F-22 would be really decisive in the future. Otherwise they would never devulge such information.
Hmmm...

:|

[AmericanImperialist]

Wow. According to Martin van Creveld (see "The Transformation of War") something like this is downright proof that the leading guys of the US military do not believe for themselves that weapon systems like the F-22 would be really decisive in the future. Otherwise they would never devulge such information.
Hmmm...

:|

Huh?

It's clearly an attempt at getting congress to ok further funding for the programme.

[Angelwings]

Revealing this kind of information is "nice to know" but not necessary for the organisations operating with radar systems or airspace surveillance.

The RCS can be calculated using a modelling tool and also, the plane can be measured during it's flight which every radar does, which in turn gives the radar operator data about the plane. It's not invisible and while stealth improves the new plane designs the radar scene isn't exactly eventless either...

There are people working on trying and stopping...

[AmericanImperialist]

The RCS can be calculated using a modelling tool

Not unless you know the exact properties of the materials used in the construction of the F/A-22.

[Angelwings]

All kinds of data is needed.

[AmericanImperialist]

All kinds of data is needed.
Yes my point is that no one outside of the aircraft's engineers or the military will be able to accurately calculate the RCS of the aircraft.

[Angelwings]

I agree that it's a challenge.

[josh10524]

Ok, we know what it is, now what? How do you develop a radar to address that particular cross section? Knowing how well it works doesn't matter - you have to know how it works. Besides, it was already an open secret anyway. Everybody had a pretty good idea of how low the RO scale was.

[signatory]

sigh @ another strategypage blahblahblah

Neither the manufacturer or Air force have ever revealed info about this capability.

[Angelwings]

Ok, we know what it is, now what? How do you develop a radar to address that particular cross section? Knowing how well it works doesn't matter - you have to know how it works. Besides, it was already an open secret anyway. Everybody had a pretty good idea of how low the RO scale was.


Stealth tech principles are known. Information about the rcs is used in te and op among other things without a single effort to actually build a new or modded system.

[JoaMei]

The RCS is not exactely a big secret, even non Stealth countries checked out the data of those Aircraft operating in Europe. Knowing the exact value doesnt help very much.