US defence officials are exploring new fighter technology ideas based around a new combat aircraft to take over from the F-22 Raptor

The Raptor—a fifth-generation fighter—has only been in service for a few years, but already the United States Air Force (USAF) has expressed interest in designs for a sixth-generation aircraft with an initial service entry date of 2030. Contrary to earlier expectations, the requirement is for a manned aircraft, not a strike UAV or similar.

The USAF’s sixth-generation fighter needs were laid out in a document issued by the Air Force Material Command on November 3, 2010.

The USAF stressed that the Next Generation Tactical Aircraft (Next Gen TACAIR) Material and Technology Concept Search document is a ‘capability request for information’, to which all firms could respond.

The features specified in the USAF’s next generation fighter aircraft document included a high-tech air defence system able to counter airborne threats; a directed-energy weapons (DEW) capability (directed energy weapons attack by releasing energy on chosen targets) and an aircraft optimised to work as a missile defence, close air support and air interdiction roles. Among its other desired characteristics—expressed by key terms such as survivability, longer range and endurance—the new aircraft could also incorporate high-level, low-observable stealth technologies and be able to operate at a range of speeds up to and beyond Mach 2.