Hypothetical aircraft industry: advantages and problems of the F-36 Kingsnake concept
In March last year, "alternative aviation magazine" Hush-Kit presented the concept of a promising fighter F-36 Kingsnake. This hypothetical design proposed the optimal design and methodology for developing a new aircraft for the US Air Force, capable of replacing the aging F-16. Obviously, such a concept will not receive any development and it is unlikely that the Air Force will pay attention to it. However, some of the ideas of this "project" are of interest and require careful study.
Initiative from outside
At the beginning of last year, representatives of the US Air Force said that in the near future, the development of a new fighter to replace the existing F-16 will begin. These statements attracted attention - and, among other things, became the reason for the publication in Hush-Kit. The magazine proposed its own version of a promising aircraft called the F-36 Kingsnake (“Royal Snake”).
The F-36 concept was worked out by the editorial staff of the magazine with the involvement of experienced British aircraft manufacturers. One of its authors was Stephen McParlin, an aerodynamicist who worked for 22 years at RAE / DRA / DERA / QinetiQ. James Smith, a participant in the development of a number of combat aircraft, also contributed. Graphic materials for the "project" were made by artist Andy Godfrey from Teasel Studio.
The main idea of the concept is to accelerate the development and construction of aircraft through a reasonable reduction in requirements and the rejection of overly bold ideas. New organizational solutions were proposed to help avoid the typical difficulties of recent projects. In addition, the general technical appearance of such an aircraft was worked out.
The main features and benefits of the F-36 concept were described using cars as an example. The existing F-35 fighter was compared to a Ferrari supercar, and the F-22 was compared to the more complex and expensive Bugatti Chiron. However, the US Air Force needs something like the Nissan 300ZX, and that's what the Kingsnake should be, less expensive but efficient.
New approaches
A characteristic problem of recent American projects was the delay in work and the increase in cost. In this regard, Hush-Kit offers several fundamental organizational innovations. Curiously, some of these measures directly reject established principles.
First of all, the customer must draw up reasonable tactical and technical requirements with a minimum level of risks, as well as “freeze” them and not review them for a year. The main executor of the project must be selected without a competitive stage; he gets the right to independently search for subcontractors. The same goes for engine development. It is expected that this will save time and will not increase the cost of the work.
The project should develop as quickly as possible so that political speculation does not start around it and the notorious “state pie” with dubious financial processes does not form. The development of the project should be monitored by a specially appointed "King of the Luddites" - a technically competent and strong-willed person, not prone to careerism and unpleasant in communication. It should stop attempts to revise the technical requirements in the direction of complication and increased risks. However, further modernization through the introduction of new units and software is not ruled out.
The aircraft should be created for the smallest production site that does not have sophisticated technologies. Accordingly, only available materials and components that do not require long-term development and development should be used in the design.
Simplified design
The F-36 concept proposes the construction of a tailless multipurpose fighter aircraft. Its characteristic feature is the rejection of stealth as one of the main goals of the project. As a consequence, the generation of such a fighter would have to be downgraded to "5-". However, the expected benefits fully cover the possible losses of this kind.
An aircraft with a pronounced fuselage and a deltoid wing is proposed. The nose is taken from the production F-16, and the wing resembles the planes of the experimental F-16XL. A deltoid wing with a broken leading edge should improve aerodynamics and maneuverability. At the trailing edge of the wing, two keels are provided with a slight outward camber.
A modified and simplified F119 engine from the F-22 fighter was placed in the rear fuselage. Engines from the F-15EX and F-35 were also considered, but were deemed impractical. Modification of the F119 will allow you to get the desired characteristics and speed up the work. In particular, the aircraft will be able to reach speeds of up to Mach 1,4 without the use of afterburner. Connecting the afterburner will allow you to accelerate to 1,8-2 M.
In the nose of the aircraft, there should be an AN / APG-83 radar with AFAR and an optical radar station. The workplace of the only pilot is organized according to the principle of "glass cockpit". In this case, a windshield indicator and a unified helmet-mounted display system are used. Such a composition of equipment will be simpler and cheaper than on the current F-35.
The authors of the project considered that the F-36 needed a built-in gun. The M61 Vulcan product was placed in the right wing influx. Missile weapons will include modern and advanced models of various types, incl. long range products. Work on ground targets with the help of missiles and bombs is not excluded. For weapons internal compartments and pylons under the wing can be used.
Prospects and challenges
The authors of the F-36 Kingsnake concept were not limited by the actual tactical and technical requirements and the approved project development procedure. In this regard, they came up with quite interesting ideas in all major areas, and these proposals are worth considering in more detail.
The main idea of the hypothetical project is to simplify the organization, development and design as much as possible. This will save time and reduce costs, but will limit the level of performance that can be achieved. In fact, a 4-class machine is proposed to replace the 5+ generation fighter, but it will not have to wait long.
An original approach to the development and implementation of the project is proposed. It excludes the traditional competitive part, which can take several years. In addition, a "freeze" of technical requirements is envisaged - they should not be revised during design, because adjustment of the assignment is always followed by a revision of the project and going beyond the established financial and time limits. An interesting proposal is the "King of the Luddites", which will protect the project from overcomplication and associated risks.
The course towards simplification affected the design of the F-36 aircraft. It is based on developments in existing and experimental technology, as well as finished or slightly modified units. The time and financial benefits of such a design are obvious. At the same time, as preliminary calculations show, the correct choice of components and assemblies allows you to obtain a high level of performance without additional projects.
Despite all the simplification measures, there is a fundamental possibility of equipping the Kingsnake with the most modern avionics that determine its combat qualities. The same applies to weapons: the fighter will receive an old cannon, and with it missiles of various models, including those that do not yet exist.
However, the concept from Hush-Kit has a number of serious problems that actually exclude its further development. First of all, this is its origin. The USAF has not yet ordered the development of a replacement for the F-16, and the proposed F-36 is an "initiative development". Moreover, this “project” was not carried out by an aircraft manufacturing company, but by a group of specialized journalists and specialists. Obviously, such a concept is of no real interest to the Pentagon.
The proposed development methods are associated with certain benefits. But they require a complete restructuring of the existing system of defense orders and related processes. Such proposals will definitely not suit the military department. Thus, the guidelines provide for a competitive stage of development and establish other aspects of the creation of new technology. It is unlikely that these principles will be redesigned for the sake of possible savings in money and time, and also at the risk of new problems of an organizational or corruption nature.
The US Air Force intends to develop the 5th generation of fighters and is already working on the next 6th. The proposal to reduce the generation is unlikely to find understanding among them. At the same time, it should be taken into account that a real replacement for the F-16 will appear only by the beginning of the thirties, and by this time the F-36 fighter of the “5-” generation will simply become obsolete. This fact will predictably affect the opinion of the customer.
In addition, it is easy to see that the F-36 has no fundamental advantages over the F-16. It is only about the growth of individual characteristics and the emergence of some new features. A technological breakthrough like the difference between the F-16 and F-35 is not in sight. This obviously reduces the hypothetical value of Kingsnake to the customer.
Hypothetical aircraft industry
Obviously, the concept of the F-36 Kingsnake fighter from Hush-Kit magazine and British aircraft manufacturers will remain at the level of general ideas and theoretical proposals. For a number of reasons, it has no chance of practical implementation. Moreover, the US Air Force may not even notice it, like a lot of other magazine "projects".
However, in the specialized departments of the Pentagon, in related organizations and in aircraft manufacturing companies, similar ideas and concepts are already being worked out. Next year, the Air Force is going to start developing a promising replacement for the F-16, and it is necessary to work out the appearance of such a machine, as well as draw up tactical and technical requirements. For now, it cannot be ruled out that the Air Force will eventually require some kind of “paper” F-36, but this issue will become clear only in the future.
- Ryabov Kirill
- Hush-Kit, US Department of Defense
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