J-20 may have better ground attack capability than F-22

The J-20, China's prototype first fifth-generation stealth fighter, may have better ground attack capability than its US counterpart, a report from the Beijing Sina Military Network said after a photo of the newest version of the aircraft was released on the internet.

 
Judging from the photo of a J-20 with the serial number 2011, Sina Military Network said the electro-optical targeting system seen below the nose indicates that the fighter is designed mainly for ground attack. This is a similar design to American stealth fighters such as the F-22 and F-35. With stealth capability, the article said that J-20 can be a perfect bomber when used against a ground target.

 
Most missions carried out by American fighters such as the F-16 Falcon or F-15E Strike Eagle in Afghanistan and Iraq are against ground targets. The F-22 is also designed with the capability to attack ground targets with joint direct attack munitions and small diameter bombs. However, the F-22 may still be detected by enemy radar while tracking a moving ground target as its radar releases electromagnetic radiation.

 
After all 35 satellites of the second phase of China's Beidou Navigation System are sent into orbit, the J-20 will be able to launch precision attacks against ground targets like the F-22 as well, Sina Military Network said. Noting that the J-20 can carry four air-to-air missiles, the article also indicated that China is developing its own joint direct attack munitions and small diameter bombs for the stealth fighter.

 
The J-20 can carry a payload of up to 24 small diameter bombs compared to the F-22, which can carry about eight, Sina Military Network said. If the electro-optical targeting system can be used by fourth-generation fighters like the Su-30 and J-10, this would enhance the ground attack capability for these fighters from a longer distance, the report said.

 Concept art for the Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter.

Romney wants to buy more F-22s

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Saturday he would buy more F-22 Raptors as part of his plan to reverse many of the defense cuts planned by the Obama administration.

Romney told a Virginia Beach, Va., television station he would not include the military in the spending cuts he is proposing to cut down the U.S. deficit.

“Rather than completing nine ships per year, I’d move that up to 15. I’d also add F-22s to our Air Force fleet. And I’d add about 100,000 active duty personnel to our military team,” Romney said in the interview. “I think the idea of shrinking our military to try and get closer to balancing our budget is the wrong place to look.”

He’s repeated his plan to increase ship building from nine to 15 ships per year and add 100,000 active duty troops to the military’s end strength. However, this is the first time he’s mentioned any plans to buy more F-22s.

F-22 production was famously ended by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates after the Air Force had fought for the U.S. to buy more fifth generation fighter jets. Air Force leaders wanted to buy 243 F-22s, Gates halted production at 187. Originally, the Air Force wanted to buy more than 750 Raptors.

The last U.S. F-22 rolled off the production line in 2011. The Raptor program has since come under scrutiny after a string of pilots have suffered hypoxia-like symptoms and struggled to breathe in flight. Air Force officials claim to have found the cause, but it has repeatedly grounded the F-22 fleet the past two years and continue to impose flight restrictions.

Air Force leaders pushed to build more F-22s to add to the fleet because they warned a fleet of 187 would be insufficient to defeat an enemy with a top line air force like China. Former Air Force Chief of Staffs Gen. Norton Schwartz and Gen. Michael “Buzz” Moseley argued the costs of re-opening the production line would be too costly to build up the fleet if Congress changed its mind and wanted more F-22s.

If Romney wins and follows through on his plan to buy more F-22s, it would cost at least $900 million to reopen the F-22 production line, according to Loren Thompson, a consultant for Lockheed Martin and other defense companies.

In 2010, Japan discussed buying 40 F-22s from Lockheed Martin, builder of the F-22. Lockheed officials then told Japanese leaders it would cost $900 million to re-open the production line. Thompson said the cost would surely increase when considering two years have passed and the production line was still “semi-warm.”

The cost to reopen the production line would come in addition to the per aircraft price tag to manufacture each jet. That per aircraft cost is harder to decipher. When factoring in development and manufacturing, the price tag per jet totaled the U.S. more than $370 million. However, the flyaway cost — the cost of manufacturing one jet — equaled $137 million per jet.

Re-opening the production line in Marietta, Ga., would take at least two years, Thompson said. Lockheed would be slowed by re-establishing supplier networks and re-training employees.

“In a rush, you could do it in about two years assuming all the other workers weren’t on other projects like F-35,” Thompson said.

He didn’t expect the problems with the F-22’s oxygen system to hold a Romney administration back from following through on buying more F-22 plans.

“It wouldn’t be a problem, Thompson said. “If there are still issues with the oxgen system they could just switch over to another supplier like Cobham.”

There are also questions about whether further F-22 buys would affect the acquisition schedule for the F-35. The Defense Department plans to buy 2,443 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

Under restrictions, F-22 fighters arrive in Japan

A group of U.S. F-22 stealth fighters arrived in Japan on Saturday in what the Air Force hopes will be a step toward proving that its prized aircraft are safe after a mysterious oxygen problem that was making pilots sick.

The F-22s arrived at Kadena Air Base from the United States and were expected to remain on the base, on Japan's southern island of Okinawa, for several months. Japanese media said eight of the aircraft had arrived by Saturday evening. Another four were expected to arrive later. Base officials were not immediately available for comment.

The F-22, manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corp., is the Air Force's most advanced stealth fighter. It was built to evade radar and is capable of flying at faster-than-sound speeds without using afterburners.

But the fleet has been under tight flight restrictions since mid-May because pilots were reporting dizziness and other symptoms of hypoxia.

The Air Force says the deployment to Japan is a first step toward returning to normal. Before they left, the Air Force said the aircraft would take a special route to ensure they had possible landing sites along the way and would fly at lower altitudes, where the cockpit oxygen issue is less problematic.

On Tuesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta approved a plan to send the fighters to Japan and begin lifting the restrictions because he said the Air Force has identified the cause of the problem and has taken measures to fix it.

The Air Force believes the troubles stemmed from a valve in the pilots' pressure vest that caused it to inflate and remain inflated, triggering breathing problems. The Air Force is replacing the valve and increasing the volume of air flowing to the pilots by removing a filter that was installed to check for contaminants in the system.

The flights to Japan were to be flown at low altitude so that the vests would not have to be used.

DOD identifies F-22 issues, moves to lift flight restrictions

The pilot of an F-22 Raptor from Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va. is seen in the cockpit during a refueling session in this May 2012 photo. Air Force leaders believe a faulty valve in a flight vest caused several previously unexplained incidents of hypoxia-like symptoms in F-22 Raptor pilots.

Air Force leaders believe a faulty valve in a flight vest caused several previously unexplained incidents of hypoxia-like symptoms in F-22 Raptor pilots, and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has approved a plan to gradually remove the restrictions he placed on the planes in May, Pentagon spokesman George Little said Tuesday.

“The Air Force is confident the root cause of the issue is the supply of oxygen delivered to pilots, not the quality of oxygen delivered to pilots,” Little said.

A valve in the vest the pilots wear at high altitude was causing the vest to inflate or deflate at inappropriate times, Little said. The vests, which are required above 44,000 feet to protect pilots in case of an accidental rapid decompression of the cockpit, have been suspended from F-22 flights since June. The valves will all be replaced and the Air Force will brief Panetta on the modifications before the planes return to normal duty, he said.

The Air Force will also increase the volume of air the pilots get by removing a charcoal filter that had been installed to determine whether the air supply was contaminated.

The Air Force grounded the F-22s last May after at least 14 incidents in which pilots experienced symptoms suggesting a lack of oxygen — including headaches, nausea, fatigue and difficulty concentrating. In March, an Air Force advisory panel could not discern the cause of the problem but felt strongly that the oxygen system was safe.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz said the unprecedented airborne capabilities of the F-22, including its extreme maneuverability at high altitude, caught the Air Force off guard.

“There were aspects of this that, physiologically for the aviator, weren’t well understood,” he said, later adding, “We missed some things, bottom line.”

On May 15, Panetta ordered the Air Force to keep all F-22 close to potential landing strips so they would be able to land quickly if problems arose.

The Air Force is still working on some safety improvements for the supersonic fighter, including a cockpit-mounted oxygen sensor and an improved pilot oxygen sensor, but other changes, such as a better-designed handle to activate the emergency oxygen system, have already been completed.

Schwartz said Tuesday that the precautionary steps, including altitude limits and requirements that F-22s stay remain closer to bases, have “minimized, perhaps not eliminated the risks, until the modifications are in place.”

The process to remove flight restrictions will begin immediately, Little said. A squadron of the supersonic fighters will deploy to Kadena Air Base in Japan “at any moment,” though the planes will be under altitude restrictions and will stay close to land during the trip, Little said.

While some questioned the timing of the deployment – in the midst of Japanese protests over the arrival of MV-22 Ospreys there – Schwartz said the move makes sense.

“There’s an operational requirement, and the birds are ready to go,” he said.