Article Posted on : - Sep 21, 2009

It has become common in the aviation community to classify fighter aircraft by "generations" based on their capabilities. There are no official definitions of these generations; rather, they represent the notion that these are stages in the development of fighter design approaches, performance capabilities, and technological evolution.

Before clearly understanding fifth generation fighters, it is necessary to have a brief knowledge of other four generations.

The first generation of fighters probably consists of those that appeared at the beginning of the Jet Age, starting late in World War II up through the Korean War. These planes were the first to be powered by turbojet engines, but were otherwise largely similar in capability to the older piston-engined fighters they replaced. The most representative fighters of that era are the F-86 Sabre, Dassault Ouragan, MiG-15, etc.

The factors that most epitomised fighters of the second generation were higher speed, radar, and use of the first guided air-to-air missiles. These aircraft were the first fighters capable of maintaining supersonic speeds in level flight. Their designs also took advantage of new electronics technologies making radar small enough to be carried aboard. Best representing this class of fighters are MiG-19, MiG-21, North American F-100 Super Sabre, Saab Draken, etc.

Fighters of the third generation were those which were the first to be designed specifically as multi-role fighters capable of performing both air-to-air and air-to-ground attack capabilities. The best representatives of this generation of fighters are the F-4 Phantom II, MiG-23, BAC Lightning, etc.

The Fourth generation fighters continued the trend towards multi-role fighters equipped with increasingly sophisticated avionics and weapon systems. These fighters also began emphasising maneuverability rather than speed to succeed in air-to-air combat. Good representatives of this class of fighters include the American F-16, Soviet MiG-29, French Dassault Mirage 2000, etc.

The 4.5 generation fighters were generally seen as retaining the same basic characteristics of fourth generation aircraft but with enhanced capabilities provided by more advanced technologies that might be seen in fifth generation fighters. Good examples are the Sukhoi Su-30MKI, Eurofighter Typhoon, and Dassault Rafale.

Fifth Generation Fighters

Fifth Generation Fighter aircraft represent a quantum leap in air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities that provide an order of magnitude increase in operational effectiveness over legacy fighters. These fighters are characterised by being designed from the start to operate in a network-centric combat environment. They have extremely low, multi-spectral signatures employing advanced materials and shaping techniques.

The technologies that best epitomise fifth generation fighters are combine high performance airframes, internally carried advanced air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons, all aspect stealth and Low Probability of Intercept Radar and networks for shared situation awareness.
The integration of advanced avionics fuses information to give pilots complete 360-degree situational awareness. This enables pilots to concentrate on tactics - they are relieved of the effort to interpret separate data inputs and manage multiple sensors. A key attribute of fifth-generation fighters is very-low-observability through radar (i.e; stealth).

Other technologies common to this latest generation of fighters include the integrated electronic warfare system (INEWS) technology, integrated communications, navigation, and identification (CNI) avionics technology, centralised "vehicle health monitoring" systems for ease of maintenance, and fiber optics data transmission.

The F-22 and F-35 are the only fifth generation fighters developed till date. India and Russia are jointly working on Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) which is being developed by Sukhoi design bureau in tie-up with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). This will give India responsibility for development of a two-seat model of the PAK-FA. India is also developing its own indigenous fifth generation aircraft named Medium Combat Aircraft. China is reportedly pursuing multiple fifth-generation projects under the western code name 'J-XX', while Japan is exploring their technical feasibility to produce fifth-generation fighters.

The Fifth generation fighter's quantum leap in survivability and lethality will ensure critical warfighting capability across the full range of air dominance missions. Fifth generation fighters will dominate any foreseeable threat environment and ensure joint and combined operational flexibility for decades - extremely important given the uncertainty and volatility of today's global environment.

- Courtesy:
        Aerospaceweb site.
        Lockheed Martin.
        The Hindu.