Key Points and Summary – New concept art from Northrop Grumman (NG) for the Navy’s 6th-generation F/A-XX fighter shows a “family resemblance” to its 1980s YF-23 Black Widow II prototype, featuring a tailless design and topside air intakes.
-NG is considered the “odds-on favorite” to beat Boeing for the contract, due to its unique experience (B-2, B-21) with “flying wing” designs.
YF-23 Image Taken at U.S. Air Force Museum. Image Credit: National Security Journal.
F/A-XX Handout Photo from Northrop Grumman.
-However, the current government shutdown is delaying the contract award, sparking concerns in the Navy that it will be left without a modern fighter for its new carriers.
-Speculation is also rising that stealth-expert Lockheed Martin could be brought in as a subcontractor, especially if Boeing (which has “never built a stealth aircraft”) wins either program.
-As a bonus, considering we have spent many hours this year with the last remaining YF-23 fighters, we have included a photo essay of the fighter at the end of this article to get a sense of what the F/A-XX might look like.
Northrop Grumman Looks Like F/A-XX
WARSAW, POLAND – A recent release of new artwork from the US combat aircraft firm Northrop Grumman (NG) has once again stoked speculation about which of the two contractors still in the running for the US Navy’s 6th-generation F/A-XX program will be awarded the contract.
The competition for the US Navy’s next-generation carrier fighter is now down to just two prime contractors—NG and Boeing’s Phantom Works combat aircraft division in St. Louis, Missouri.
In March, Boeing had already been awarded the contract for the US Air Force’s (USAF) Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) 6th-generation fighter program, which is now designated the F-47.
While Boeing has the greater experience in designing carrier-capable aircraft, NG is considered the odds-on favorite for the F/A-XX.
Senior advisors to the three different US prime contractors – Boeing, NG, and Lockheed Martin (LM) – have explained to National Security Journal that what may be as crucial to how the F/A-XX program ends up being staffed and the contract awarded is which firms might be brought on board to assist in specialized stealth technologies.
LM is conspicuous by its absence from consideration on the F/A-XX and was not selected as the prime contractor for the F-47.
But the Bethesda, Maryland-based defense giant is widely considered to have cornered the market on the design of tactical aircraft with a low radar cross section (RCS) – having designed and built both the F-22A and the three versions of the F-35.
This has prompted significant speculation about whether LM might be made a subcontractor on the F-47, the F/A-XX, or both to provide expertise in stealth fighter design techniques.
“For all of Boeing’s capability it has shown with its programs – like keeping the F-15 up-to-date and relevant, the fact remains they have never built a stealth aircraft,” said one senior, retired US military official. “I suspect conversations on some form of collaboration [with LM] are taking place as we speak.”
How Might The Shutdown Affect F/A-XX
The current US Government shutdown will delay the program’s progress for as long as it continues.
According to various regulations and standard practices, during the shutdown, work will be performed on existing contracts and projects that are already funded.
But no new awards are likely to be made while this impasse exists in the Congress.
This almost completely rules out the decision to announce the F/A-XX until the situation is resolved.
Not having any projected date for a selection concerns those in the naval aviation community, for the simple reason that any lengthy delays in the F/A-XX program would impact the larger discussion about the role and strategy for the US Navy.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) now has three carriers and a fourth one on the way. The latter carrier is supposed to be at least 10 per cent larger than the new USS Gerald R. Ford-class flattops.
The Navy is also worried that, in the future, it could be in a situation where it has a brand-new class of carriers but is left without a modern fighter capable of operating from them after the 2030s, due to these program delays.
There are also concerns about both potential contractors.
Pentagon officials debated whether Boeing would have enough engineering manpower for the parallel project of designing the F/A-XX and delivering a design for the F-47 under the award.
In the case of Northrop, there is the concern that it is currently struggling with mounting costs of the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program.
The NG Concept
Looking at the concept art that NG has released for its F/A-XX proposal, the most common reaction is that there is a “family resemblance” between this design and the company’s 1980s YF-23 Black Widow II prototypes.
This aircraft competed against the YF-22A in the late 1980s/early 1990s for the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) flyoff.
Lockheed and its team partners won with the YF-22 over the Northrop design.
The Northrop YF-23A was developed with stealth characteristics as a primary design driver.
This resulted in two configuration decisions that have been repeated in the F/A-XX artwork.
One is to design the aircraft with the air intakes above the wings, rather than below, which is the more common placement in fighter designs.
There will also be a focus on the thrust vectoring design to ensure it does not negatively affect the aircraft’s RCS.
Like all other 6th-generation designs, F/A-XX will be a vehicle with no vertical control surfaces. To date, only NG has designed such cars and then put them into production – the B-2 and B-21 – experience that could give them the edge in the competition.
YF-23 Black Widow Photo Essay (Images of Both Remaining Fighter Planes)
YF-23 Back. Image Credit: National Security Journal.
YF-23 Black Widow II Up Close National Security Journal Photo.
YF-23 Black Widow II from National Security Journal Photo Shoot.
X-32 and YF-23 Together at U.S. Air Force Museum. Image: National Security Journal.
YF-23 Fighter at USAF Museum. Image by Harry J. Kazianis/National Security Journal.
YF-23 at Western Museum of Flight. Image Credit: Harry J. Kazianis/National Security Journal.
YF-23 Black Widow Fighter in California. Image Credit: National Security Journal/Harry J. Kazianis.
YF-23 Side Profile. Image Credit: National Security Journal.
YF-23 Black Widow II Fighter In California. Image Credit: Harry J. Kazianis/National Security Journal.
About the Author: Reuben F. Johnson
Reuben F. Johnson has thirty-six years of experience analyzing and reporting on foreign weapons systems, defense technologies, and international arms export policy. Johnson is the Director of the Asia Research Centre at the Casimir Pulaski Foundation. He is also a survivor of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He worked for years in the American defense industry as a foreign technology analyst and later as a consultant for the U.S. Department of Defense, the Departments of the Navy and Air Force, and the governments of the United Kingdom and Australia. In 2022-2023, he won two awards in a row for his defense reporting. He holds a bachelor’s degree from DePauw University and a master’s degree from Miami University in Ohio, specializing in Soviet and Russian studies. He lives in Warsaw.
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