Message posted by Vahe Demirjian (Member since 04/28/2022) on June 01, 2022 at 19:20:28 PST:
In September 2020, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Will Roper asserted that a full-scale prototype of one of the fighter designs for the NGAD program had flown. Since the cited link quotes Kendall as saying that the full-scale NGAP prototype was part of an X-plane program, it is probable that the NGAD prototype was most likely a technology demonstrator for a tailless jet fighter envisaged under NGAD design studies, because Boeing and Lockheed Martin both built tech demonstrators for their JSF contenders (designated X-32 and X-35 respectively). In the same vein, the USAF might formally designate the NGAD tech demonstrator mentioned by USAF officials in September 2020 as the X-52 (since the Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie is a stealth UCAV, it would be hard to imagine the Air Force allocating X-58 to the NGAD demonstrator given that a new-generation manned stealth fighter might be somewhat confused with the XQ-58).
Attached link: https://www.defensenews.com/breaking-news/2020/09/15/the-us-air-force-has-built-and-flown-a-mysterious-full-scale-prototype-of-its-future-fighter-jet/In Reply to: Re: NGAD moving forwards posted by LDP on June 01, 2022 at 15:18:11 PST:
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