During a press conference at the White House today, President Donald J. Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the Air Force would proceed with the production of the Next Generation Air Dominance fighter jet platform.
Intended to eventually replace the Air Force’s fleet of F-22 Raptors, the NGAD platform is a network-connected family of systems — including a stealth fighter jet component, drone technology and others — that simultaneously interact to ensure air superiority.
“I’m thrilled to announce that, at my direction, the United States Air Force is moving forward with the world’s first sixth-generation fighter jet … Nothing in the world comes even close to it,” Trump said, adding that the aircraft portion of the platform will be designated the F-47.
The president added that the F-47 will be the most advanced, capable and lethal combat aircraft platform ever built and that the NGAD contract represents a historic investment in the country’s defense industrial base, keeping the U.S. on the cutting edge of aerospace technology.
Hegseth said this was a big day for the warfighters. Because of this sixth-generation fighter, America will have generations of air dominance.
“[The F-47] sends a very direct, clear message to our allies that we’re not going anywhere and to our enemies that we can, and we will, be able to project power around the globe, unimpeded, for generations to come,” he added.
Hegseth also said he sees the NGAD program as a historic investment in both the U.S. military and the U.S. defense industrial base, which will help to revive the warrior ethos in the armed services.
The ability of NGAD’s fighter jet component to interact with drone technology will allow more lethality and modernized capability than in previous weapons systems, Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. David W. Allvin said at the press conference.
“[NGAD] is allowing us to look into the future and unlock the magic that is human-machine teaming,” Allvin said. “We’re going to write the next generation of modern aerial warfare with this.”
He added that the way the Air Force has assembled the NGAD program will give the government more control, allowing the platform to be updated and adapted “at the speed of relevance [and] at the speed of technology.”
Additionally, the F-47 will cost less than the F-22, be more adaptable to future threats and “have significantly longer range, more advanced stealth, be more sustainable, supportable, and have higher availability than our fifth-generation fighters,” Allvin said via a press release following the announcement at the White House.
Though no costs or timelines for NGAD production were released during the press conference, the president said a fleet of F-47s would be “built and in the air” during his current administration.
