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Joint strike

fighters battle for aerospace

Boeing and Lockheed Martin are building demonstrator aircraft for the US Armed Forces' next-generation of tactical combat aircraft. Tim Ripley describes progress to date.

An artist's concept depicts the navy variant of Lockheed Martin's joint strike fighter in a high performance take-off from the NAS Fort Worth, Texas runway

With military aircraft costs apparently spiralling out of control during the 1970s and 1980s, Pentagon planners devoted attention during the 1990s to finding ways of fielding affordable weapons systems to break the so-called Augustine's Law. This is attributed to US aerospace executive Norman Augustine who predicted that unless cost trends reversed by the 21st century, the US defence budget would be able to afford only a single combat aircraft. The current joint strike fighter (JSF) programme is the most high-profile example of this procurement philosophy that aims to establish a joint service team to create the building blocks for affordable, successful development of next-generation strike weapon Systems - Charged with balancing capability costs versus operation and maintenance costs, the JSF programme office is working to field operational aircraft by 2008 to meet the needs of three of the US services and the British Royal Navy. The US Navy wants a first day or war-survivable strike fighter to compliment its Boeing F/A-18E/Fs on board its aircraft carriers, known as the CV version.

The Lockheed Martin Skunk Works is leading the development work on the company's JSF programme

To replace its Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons and Fairchild A-10A Warthogs in the air-to-ground role, the USAF wants a multi-role aircraft. These are to be a mix of conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) and advanced short take-off and vertical landing (ASTOVL) aircraft. The US Marine Corps needs to replace its Boeing AV-8B Harrier 11s with ASTOVL versions and the Royal Navy wants a supersonic replacement for its British Aerospace Sea Harriers.
Under the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review of May 1997, the USAF is to receive 1,763 aircraft, the US Navy 480 and the USMC 609. The 2,852 aircraft required by the US military alone means the SF is the largest military aircraft programme since the F-16 and export potential could run to the construction of an additional several thousand aircraft.

Programme objectives
Recognising that affordability must be built into the programme from the start, the JSF team has involved warfighters and technologists at an early stage in the design process.

Lockheed Martin will use virtual product development in all aspects of its JSF programme

Technology has to be applied to lower the cost of the system, not just improve performance for the sake of it and it must be applied prior to the engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) phase. Any solution must meet multi-service needs and the acquisition process has been streamlined.
To bring together advanced technology at an affordable price, key areas of research and development are being exploited. These include modelling and simulation; improved propulsion reliability and maintenance; integrated flight subsystems to reduce part count and therefore cost; structures and materials to reduce weight; paintless aircraft; mission systems; autonomic logistics; manufacturing and logistics. The core of the JSF programme will be common production lines and USAF, USMC and USN components will be installed by the same workforce.

The US Navy variant of the Boeing JSF

The JSF programme office is projecting fly-away costs (at 1994 prices) of US$28 million for the CTOL variant, up to US$35 million for the ASTOVL variant and between US$31 and US$38 million for the CV variant.

Concept demonstrators
In November 1996 the Pentagon advanced the SF beyond the concept development phase by selecting Boeing and Lockheed Martin to produce two flying concept demonstration aircraft. The selection process removed McDonnell Douglas and partners Northrop Grumman and British Aerospace from the process and perhaps was instrumental in their subsequent absorption in Boeing and Lockheed Martin's later acquisition of Northrop Grumman.

The US$71 8.8-million contract to Lockheed Martin and & £662-million contract to Boeing gave both companies 51 months to fly their proposed JSFs. In the summer and autumn of 1997 designs passed the Pentagon's initial review and began to cut metal. The companies have adopted radically different design philosophies, particularly regarding their ASTOVL versions. Lockheed Martin has adopted the lift-fan approach on its X-35 that concentrates the engine lift power in a fan or nozzle behind the cockpit. Boeing has sought to re-create on its X-32 the swivelling nozzles concept used by the Harrier.
The first flights are due by 2000 and emphasis then will switch to developing affordable production techniques. Production is due to start in 2006 with aircraft in service two years later. There is strong international interest in the programme and many air forces and navies view it as the natural replacement for the F-16s and Harriers. The most active foreign participant is Britain that has invested US$320 million to ensure the design requirement is written in such a way that the final aircraft can operate from current Royal Navy carriers. British Aerospace joined the Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman team in June 1997.

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