The Air Force requested $8 million to develop its sixth-generation fighter, while asking for hundreds of millions more to advance the technologies it anticipates the aircraft will need.
The $8 million is in the Air Force’s “Next Generation Air Dominance” request in its 2016 research, development, testing and evaluation budget request. But the lion’s share of the plane’s technology development funding “is scattered throughout” other accounts, said Air Force Maj. Gen. James Martin, Air Force deputy assistant secretary for budget.
The fighter is envisioned to take 15 years to develop and field, and is “a concept, not a platform in our budget,” Martin said.
In an earlier session of the Pentagon’s day-long budget briefings with reporters, Lt. Gen. Mark Ramsay, director of force structure at the Joint Staff, described it as “beyond a fighter aircraft.”
“It really is the future of air dominance,” Ramsay said.
The service also is seeking funding for the many technological advances required for the fighter. The Air Force could not specify exactly how much of the funding listed below would be specific to the sixth-generation fighter but said the future aircraft “could benefit” from the following initiatives:
• $182 million for advanced aerospace propulsion systems.
• $147 million for aerospace sensors.
• $123 million for aerospace vehicle technologies.
• $164 million dominant information sciences and methodologies.
• $100 million for advanced technology development.
• $46 million for battle space knowledge development and demonstration.
• $30 million for advanced materials for weapon systems.
