F-22 IRST

So back in late 1990s it was reported that IRST on F-22 was canceled. According to some articles the space and cooling for the IRST is still there. Is that still the case today? Or did that space get used for something else?

I would think if it was a desperately needed capability, it'd be there right now (or at least funding for it). The greater priority seems to be getting the AIM-120D and 9x/block II/III on the jet.

It's been said legacy birds have around half a dozen ways to look for/track/get a firing solution on enemy aircraft. Has also been said the F-22 has around 300 and the F-35 600 plus.

I can only name a few: Radar. IRST. Electro optical.

How the hell are they coming up with "hundreds"? I mean, OK I'm not an engineer dealing with these things but... hundreds? If so, more power to them. In any case, the F-22 as is has "ways" of finding, targeting and destroying enemy aircraft before they even know they're under attack. Ditto for the F-35.

I'm sure glad I'm not flying Flankers for Russia/China...

So back in late 1990s it was reported that IRST on F-22 was canceled. According to some articles the space and cooling for the IRST is still there. Is that still the case today? Or did that space get used for something else?

note item L

The leading edge flaps were extended farther inboard. The area now occupied by the flaps near the fuselage was previously reserved for dual infrared search and track sensors

However in an article about both F-22 and F-35 a little hint was dropped
http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArch ... ricks.aspx

One thing the jets could not share is the F-35’s electro-optical targeting system (EOTS), the diamond-shaped wedge under the F-35’s “chin” that provides many of the visual and infrared sensors other jets must carry in pods. Though the Air Force is considering an infrared search and track (IRST) system for the F-22 to help it better see stealthy adversaries, Merchant said, “we really don’t have the real estate” in the same location on the F-22. “We’re looking at other options.” He was unable to elaborate due to classification.

I doubt they will give the F-22 external pod as seen on current fighter aircraft, even if it is designed to be LO. I am taking a shot in the dark thinking they will upgrade the AN/AAR-56 on the F-22

It's been said that the F-22 MLU includes new passive sensors, and the context provided can only mean some sort of IR sensor. It's also likely that a DAS-lite capability will be included.

https://www.aviationtoday.com/2018/10/1 ... rnization/

In 2024, funding kicks in for sensor enhancements, a project that is expected to run for several years.

"What we’re looking for is a sensor to complement the radar that’s on the jet,” Merchant said.

There isn’t much detail available yet about upgrades that are still six years away, but he stressed that it goes back to the Raptor’s mantra of “first look, first shot, first kill.”

“I want to maintain that first-look capability and be able to get a shot off,” Merchant said. “So I need a target-quality track at extended ranges outside what my radar can do today.”

What else can that sensor be though? It already has ALR-94, so what else can do what he described?

There's not space now but there is already talk of newer and lighter electronics that can free up space and maybe rearrange some internal parts to make space for others? I know in AWACS upgrades they've done that.

IR is the only thing it could be. They're doing mods to the airframe, to fit new stealthy sensors, and upgrading the AAR-56, as well.

https://www.scribd.com/document/2548856 ... -Janes1997

According to Janes in 1997.

An IR search and track (IRST) system was part of the original ATF requirement. It was deleted during dem/val, but the Avionics Directorate of the USAF Wright Laboratories has continued its development with Lockheed Martin as the contractor, and space, weight, power and cooling provisions for IRST are still on the aircraft. A low-observable IRST window for the F-22 was tested for stealth and durability last year. IRST is valuable for raid assessment, because of its high angular resolution. It is also useful against tactical ballistic missiles, and it can double as a thermal imaging system for ground attack.

Maybe that space originally for IRST was used up for something else?