Documentation of the development and integration components as part of the Engineering, Manufacturing, and Development (EMD) program will be captured under the LDTP major thrust.” LDTP risk reduction activities are captured under the Advanced Technology Development (ATD) major thrust. ![]() ![]() The pylons are equipped with smart rack pneumatic technology to accurately control ejection performance and smooth wind swept surface for minimum drag without store. The low drag tanks are intended to reduce drag, facilitate supersonic flight with external tanks and extend the range of the F-22. The F-22 LDTPs are advanced technological designs providing increased persistence and range while maintaining lethality and survivability. Due to the advancement of adversary technologies in detection and emergence of fighter, cargo, and refueling platforms increasing engagement ranges, it is critical to future mission execution and success to provide the Raptor with an increased range capability while maintaining own-ship survivability. “The F-22 Low Drag Tank and Pylon (LDTP) capability is critical to maintaining Air Superiority in the joint fight and combating emerging threats. This is description given in the FY23 budget request documentation: Years later, the Air Force looked at another HMD system for integration, the Scorpion, but, due to unknown issues, it did not succeed again.Īnother upgrade featured in the artworks is the couple of new external fuel tanks, which is officially known as Low Drag Tank and Pylon (LDTP) and designed to be stealthier and more aerodynamically efficient than the current 600-gallon fuel tanks. The first system that was looked at for integration was, obviously, the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System, the Air Force’s standard HMD, but various problems related to the aircraft characteristic prevented the works to go forward. The HMD is another capability that was cancelled during the development of the Raptor, but the Air Force later began investigating about integrating it on the aircraft once in service. ![]() It is worth noting that the same SBIR documentation that we just mentioned also calls for other F-22-related requirements, such as cyber intrusion detection and prevention, predictive maintenance, synthetic data generation, sensor fusion, improved sensing (radar), manned-unmanned teaming, pilot-assisted autonomy, alternative navigation to GPS, Scorpion Helmet-Mounted Display (HMD), Red Air threat replication application, optimized intercept, real-time debriefing (basic fighter maneuvers), and combat identification. Air Force’s 5th gen aircraft, the F-22 and the F-35. The addition of an internal IRST sensor on the Raptor was also considered not possible by Lockheed Martin some years ago. The addition on the F-22 of an IRST system like the F-35’s Electro Optical Targeting System (EOTS) would require heavy and expensive modifications to the airframe, so a podded solution seems the most reasonable possibility. If a contractor is able to develop a product that meets the requirement, the Air Force will evaluate it, with the intention of integrating it on the fighter.” The Air Force, however, is now looking again to get this capability for the Raptor, as shown in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) documentation that has been recently released: “The F-22 Program Office is seeking novel hardware and software solutions that provide long-range infrared sensing and object detection capabilities. This type of sensor was initially among the various systems being developed for the Advanced Tactical Fighter program, but it was later cancelled. One of the two pods seems to have a faceted aperture for a sensor of some kind, perhaps for an Infrared Search And Track System (IRST), as hypothesized also by The War Zone. Also, the pod would make a simpler and less expensive way to rapidly integrate new capabilities on the aircraft as they become available. The F-22 is already equipped with highly sophisticated EW systems but, considering the ever-evolving EW world, it might be worth to trade a small fraction of the Raptor’s low observability for new advanced capabilities. One of the possibilities is this being a new Electronic Warfare (EW) pod, specifically developed for the Raptor in order not to dangerously degrade its Radar Cross Section (RCS). It is not known yet what kind of systems are housed inside the two pods. The two pods installed under the outer underwing hardpoints have already been spotted during flight testing on an F-22 at the Air Force’s Plant 42 facility in Palmdale, California, in February.
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