World’s most advanced fighter jet to enter production, first sixth-gen stealth aircraft

While there are only a handful of fifth-gen fighter jets in the world, 2 from the US, 1 each from China and Russia, the United States has already started working on the world's first sixth-gen plane.

Image: Reuters

When at war, fighter jets are considered as the deadliest asset any country can possess. Having a superior fighter jet can change the course of a war in no time, as we have seen historically multiple times. That’s the reason countries are striving hard to make the most advanced fighter jets that not only are lethal, but also acts as stealth machines as per need. Currently, the fifth gen fighter jet program is considered to be the best in the world. There are only a handful of fifth gen fighter jets in the world, 2 from the US, 1 each from China and Russia.

If a report from The National Interest is to be believed, the US has already moved a step ahead to manufacture the world’s first sixth gen fighter jet. United States Air Force (USAF) commissioned Next Generation Air Dominance program (NGAD) initiative to develop the world’s first sixth-generation stealth fighter.

The report states that NGAD is starting its engineering, manufacturing, and development (EMD) stage of the world’s most advanced fighter jet, as the program has ushered past the prototype stage. “We have now started on the EMD program to do the development aircraft that we will take into production,” Air Force secretary Frank Kendall said during a speech given to the Heritage Foundation.

Kendall explained that the U.S. Air Force “basically had an X-plane program, which was designed to reduce the risk in some of the key technologies that we would need for a production program.” Previously the Air Force has done "a quick demo, and then we have to start an EMD or development program and wait several more years because we didn’t start the development function."

The NGAD aircraft is expected to be extremely stealthy and will be capable of flying without a pilot, with an option of manned flying as well. Air Force “broke records in doing it. We are ready to go and build the next-generation aircraft in a way that has never happened before,” said Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Will Roper.

He said the Air Force had “already built and flown a full-scale flight demonstrator in the real world.” The plane is still years away from full production, but has created ripples in the defence industry across the globe.