Forum: Modern Military Aircraft

Will the secrets learned from the RQ-170 help Russia with its Pak fa and china's J-20?

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Not likely. The RQ170 was designed with it's eventual capture in mind. Considering that it's RAM (if it has any) is not too advanced, does not use sawtooth edging, etc, its stealth characteristics are not that advanced.

It's doubtful that the RQ-170 has RAM and the RQ-170 uses an outdated engine inlet stealth feature (the grill) so in reality the RQ-170 probably isn't the best thing we have in terms of stealth technology.

Some people are debating the possibility that the Stealth Drone they showed on TV could be a mock-up.

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/12 ... lth-drone/

From what I heard from a DOD spokesman, was that satellite imagery showed that the crash had resulted in significant damage to the drone, and that the one shown by the Iranians was a mock up.

Much more damaging would be the possible espionage against the F-22/35 software as 5th gen fighters are software defined.

The loss of these drones over enemy territory was innevitable. Its highly likely they are little more than predators (with jets) with VLO shaping (flying wings are not that groundbreaking). Even if it had RAM, there was an article a while back explaining that the RAM itself is not the important secret, its the method to create the chambers in the ram to such fine tolerances that is the key. The machinery and software that creates the RAM is the important secret.

Also the codes to test different shapes are very closely guarded. So you could copy the exact shape to good effect, and yet be unable to change the shape of the aircraft any, and with the lack of tail you are sharply limited by the weight balance within that shape.

hcobb wrote:

Much more damaging would be the possible espionage against the F-22/35 software as 5th gen fighters are software defined.

China already nabbed 1TB of data on the program. I'm not positive they won't try it again.

At least the F-22 is secure in that regard. I doubt the Chinese could crack such an ancient programming language used to write the software for it.

In a critical article former Navy Secretary John Lehman wrote "[a]t least [the F-22s] are safe from cyberattack. No one in China knows how to program the '83 vintage IBM software that runs them."

Forum: Modern Military Aircraft

Could pak fa and J-20 get better?