Northrop Grumman is teasing us once more with one other glimpse of its candidate for the US Navy’s F/A-XX fighter program. The corporate posted a short video on X (previously Twitter) that provides probably the most full look but of the Sixth-Gen plane.
Northrop Grumman’s timing of the discharge of the video is hardly random.
On April 20, 2026, US Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral Daryl Caudle stated on the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Area 2026 exposition {that a} choice will probably be made on whether or not Northrop Grumman or Boeing will get the nod to proceed with the F/A-XX program. In response, Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden said that her firm has the economic capability to provide the brand new fighter.
In different phrases, Northrop Grumman is partaking in a little bit of self promotion to drum up assist forward of a call that might be value billions of {dollars}.
That being stated, the brand new computer-generated video provides us new clues as to what the Northrop Grumman F/A-XX will seem like in its remaining kind and what its probably mission might be. Basically, the configuration proven is in keeping with the Navy’s requirement for a multi-role fighter versus the devoted air superiority fighter that the US Air Pressure desires. The strains additionally present that it shares plenty of DNA from Northrop Grumman’s YF-23 Black Widow II that misplaced out to the F-22 again within the Nineteen Nineties.
The video reveals the idea airplane retains the chines seen in earlier glimpses, however now we are able to see that the plane is tailless. The vertical stabilizer has been eliminated to extend the stealth of the airframe by lowering the radar signature throughout each high- and low-frequency bands.
One other stealth characteristic is the dorsal air inlets on the higher floor of the fuselage. These make the plane much less seen to floor radar and warmth sensors, although there was criticism it will trigger issues at excessive angles of assault in dogfights. The counterpoint to that is that it is probably that, as a sixth-generation fighter, the F/A-XX might be preventing different plane at a distance slightly than in shut fight.
The idea additionally reveals that the plane has diamond-shaped wings that counsel high-speed cruise effectivity and long-range endurance, although this can be on the worth of low-speed maneuverability. The outer wing sections additionally seem to fold upward, which might be a necessity if it had been to be deployed on an American plane provider the place house is restricted.
A further indicator that the idea is geared toward provider operations is the undercarriage. The nostril reveals strengthened twin wheels and a catapult launch bar, indicating it will likely be a Catapult Assisted Take-Off Barrier Arrested Restoration (CATOBAR) plane that may be launched by catapult from a provider and recovered by an arresting wire upon touchdown on the flight deck.
Lastly, the massive cover has stirred hypothesis that the brand new plane can have a two-seat variant for high-workload missions, with the pilot performing as a mission commander for autonomous loyal wingman drones.
What number of of those options will make their manner into an precise prototype (if any) stays to be seen, so keep tuned.
Supply: Northrop Grumman
