The Russian Sukhoi Su-57 Felon and the American Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor are both fifth-generation combat aircraft boasting advanced avionics, stealth technology, and supercruise capabilities.
Stealth wasn’t the only metric where the YF-23 outperformed the YF-22, of what is now known as the F-22 Raptor. The YF-22 also proved to have a better range than the YF-22.
Most impressively, the F-22 was the first fighter jet to incorporate stealth technology. In the increasingly contested airspace over modern battlefields, stealth has become completely essential. And for an air superiority fighter, like the F-22, to perform its mandated function, it must be able to survive in contested air space long enough to make that air space uncontested.
Regardless of the F-22 Raptor’s prowess, this fifth-generation platform is incapable of landing on a carrier. In a nutshell, Air Force pilots are simply not trained to fly on aircraft carriers. In addition to this lack of training, Raptors are quite hefty, weighing roughly 45,000 pounds.
As the Air Force prepares to introduce its Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) sixth-generation platform, the F-22 appears to be inching toward retirement. In fact, the service plans to retire the Raptor sometime in the 2030s.