JAS-65 Striga

MDA JAS-65 Striga
An RAAF JAS-65A over Shalum
Role	Multirole Fighter
National origin	Acrea
Manufacturer	MDA SE
Design group	MDA SE
First flight	18 May 2007
Introduction	20 June 2016
Status	In active service
Primary user	Royal Acrean Air Force Royal Acrean Navy Royal Ossorian Navy
Produced	2017—Present

The MDA JAS-65 Striga is a series of single-seat, single-engined 5th generation multirole fighters designed by MDA SE for the Acrean Air Force and Acrean Navy. The first Acrean 5th generation aircraft to be offered for export to key allies, Ossoria became the first foreign operator of the JAS-65 in 2019 when it introduced the M and B variants as the T-38M Striga and T-38B Striga.

The Striga is intended to become the primary multi-role fighter type in RAAF service by 2025. The RAAF made the decision in 2021 in accordance with the Stridsram 2030 modernisation program. The RAAF justified the decision in a parliamentary assessment of military expenditure in 2022 by citing the JAS-65's superior capabilities, sustainment costs, and ready rates compared to its earlier generation counterparts, with the JAS-65 fleet possessing greater mean time between failures, fewer maintenance hours per flight hour, a nearly 50% lower break rate, and a 20% higher single-shift fix rate than all 4th generation fighters in Acrean service, including the EF-165.

Development

The JX program began unofficially in 1971. Confronted with increasing adversary capabilities including both aircraft and anti-air defences, the RAAF sought to find a solution that would allow it to penetrate and operate in heavily defended enemy airspace early in a conflict, in particular in areas heavily defended by enemy surface-to-air missiles. Johannes von Braun, a chief designer and engineer at Aestrup who is widely considered the father of Acrean aeronautical stealth, presented a theoretical solution to both the RAAF and other aerospace firms at a conference in 1972. Braun judged that in order to enable an aircraft to remain survivable in a heavily defended aerial environment, that the aircraft would have to successfully interfere with or deny one of two links necessary for SAMs or radar stations to operate. One such link was that between the radar and the missile, or the radar and an intercepting aircraft. The second, which Braun concluded was the more optimal of the two to attack, was the link between the radar and the aircraft its guiding the missile or intercepting aircraft to. The solution was stealth, which presented a substantial challenge as there was seemingly no way to combine features which provided stealth and the necessary requirements of a tactical fighter aircraft. Based on this premise, the RAAF began the predecessor of the JX program to enable companies to test and experiment with the viability of a low-observable tactical fighter.

This experimentation and research became the basis for the first iteration of the JX program which begun officially in 1983. Recognising that the desired aircraft would require much longer to design and build than was feasible to serve as Acrea's next series of fighter aircraft, the JX program was designated as the "next-next-generation" fighter program, due to enter service sometime in the 2005-2010 timeframe as opposed to the 1990-1995 timeframe. Instead, the 1990-1995 timeframe goals became part of the Flygsystem 90 and Flygsystem 95 programs which created the EF-167 Viper and EF-135 Draken, as well as the modernised EF-161C Raven which remained the backbone of the RAAF's multirole fighter fleet. The JX program was structured to meet two future requirements: the first requirement was for a dedicated air superiority fighter to replace the EF-135, while the second was a multirole fighter to replace the EF-161 and EF/A-121. The two aircraft would have common systems and technology in order to facilitate commonality and ease of maintenance across the fleet, and to maximise situational awareness and communication among operational aircraft.

Major challenges related to the development of fighters with such radically increased capability as the concepts envisioned was the potential cost and high chance for overrun with the program. Thus, the Acrean Ministry of Defence developed a set of guidelines for the JX project as a means of managing cost and preventing a ballooning program. Required innovations were established from the outset in 1987, with many aspects of the aircraft deliberately restrained to already in-development or already fairly mature capabilities. Such aspects included the use of advanced flight control systems, thrust vectoring engines, and the planned use of an in-development solid-state AESA radar. The program was intended to focus primarily on the "required innovations"- these included the stealth technology to be used on the aircraft, as well as their onboard computers. These major systems were designed with ease of future upgrade in mind, with rapid advances in Acrea's technological center providing an expectation of a need to rapidly and efficiently update the planes' onboard tech in the future to keep pace. In light of the considerable work that would need to be done still to meet the desired requirements for the aircraft, it was recognised that the original time frame for development would not work. The importance and size of the JX program precipitated major restructuring in both the RAAF's procurement and design liaison office and within the companies that made up MDA, with the firm adopting a restrained management, network-collaboration based working model that was considered a novel development of Acrean corporate procedure at the time and was necessary to reduce costs alongside further development of the technologies necessary on the aircraft.

Design

The JAS-65 is a 5th generation, single-engine stealth fighter. The most recent variants of the Striga are fitted with an EJ-920-7 turbofan providing just over 47,000 lbf of thrust in reheat, the most powerful engine currently in use on any fighter in Tyran. The engine was found to produce high temperatures within the engine intakes. As a result, extensive work was undertaken develop the ability to hide their thermal signature. The Striga is known for its distinctive "howl" caused by the engine temperatures. Radar stealth is primarily achieved through the use of radar-absorbent materials baked into the airframe's skin and airframe shaping. Both the Vampyr and the Striga utilise composite airframe skins and construction to aid in stealth and durability. An electronic warning and countermeasure system is integral to both airframes enables them to target and jam hostile radars and radar-guided missiles.

Radar and sensor systems are largely shared with the Vampyr, and its sensors and computer systems constitute the most complex and expensive parts of the aircraft's development. The Striga carries an AESA radar, complimented by an IRST equipped with a magnified long-range optical sight to aid in long range identification, an electronic countermeasure system, and an SAIRST consisting of high-resolution infrared sensors distributed around the airframe to provide full spherical coverage. The SAIRST and the aircraft's RWR provide detection of both infrared and radar-guided missile launches, and the SAIRST also directs infrared imaging countermeasure against incoming infrared missiles. The JAS-65 utilises data link to share information gathered through its variety of sensors with both friendly Air Force and Navy aircraft.

The Striga has a capacity of up to 2,600 kg of ordnance within its internal weapon bays. It possesses four internal weapons bays- two underneath the fuselage and two on the side of the fuselage, each equipped with weapon station racks allowing the carry of two missiles per rack. Only the under-fuselage bays are capable of carrying larger missiles such as radar-guided or anti-radiation missiles, or air-to-ground ordnance. The under-fuselage racks is incapable of carrying certain larger munitions, and must be removed in the case of much larger air-to-ground ordnance. The side bays were designed specifically to fit the weapon rack for twin M-9 IRSS missiles. The typical air-to-air loadout for a Striga is four M-13 MSRA active radar homing missiles and two M-9 IRSS infrared missiles.

Avionics

The Striga uses an integrated avionics suite in which information gathered through its multitude of sensors and systems are filtered, synthesised, and displayed on the pilot's display to enhance situational awareness and reduce the workload of the pilot. Key sensors on the aircraft are its Kobalt-Zeiss AR/ASM-06 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, MDA EK/RMG-11 electronic warfare and countermeasure system, and a Kobalt-Zeiss OS/IRN-D suite which includes the aircraft's infrared search and track sensor slaved to a magnified optical sight, a separate electro-optical targeting system, and its infrared distributed aperture system, and its CNI suite. The avionics of the Striga are designed to communicate with one another to complement roles; the AESA radar provides a component of the electronic warfare system, for instance. They filter, and synthesise the information gathered and present it as a cohesive display to the pilot rather than being displayed on separate instruments or panels in the cockpit. The AR/ASM-06 radar is reported to provide a tracking range in excess of 150km, and is complemented by the OS/IRN-D. The OS/IRN-D's IRST allows the aircraft to detect airborne targets at a reported range of up to 100km, and surface or sea targets at 10km. Full target tracking and identification is reportedly slightly closer than the maximum detection range of the IRST, while tracking range with necessary quality and precision for weapons guidance is further limited. A primary function of the IRST is use against opposing 5th generation aircraft to allow it to detect, vector onto, and engage said aircraft. It can also use this capability to vector onto and track enemy aircraft without eliciting radar emissions that would reveal its presence. The OS/IRN-D's distributed aperture system consists of several infrared optical sensors arranged around the aircraft that works in conjunction with the RWR of the EK/RMG-11 to provide all-aspect missile launch warnings for both radar-guided and infrared-guided munitions, as well as increased situational awareness. Although the sensors can detect and provide a basic track to the pilot, they are unable to provide adequate tracking for weapons. The pilot's head-mounted display tracking was considered sufficient to provide tracking for the aircraft's high-off boresight M-9 IRSS missiles. Combined with its low-observable features and ability to operate close in contested airspace, the Striga is able to act as a "mini-AWACS", and can rapidly provide information and targeting data to friendly aircraft via datalink, although it does not possess a radar as powerful as dedicated platforms. The deliberate upgradeability designed into the airframe both via software and ease of hardware replacement allows these systems to be easily and efficiently swapped and updated.

Stealth and Infrared Signature

Radar cross section (RCS) has been minimised through a combination of deliberate airframe shaping, use of composite materials in the airframe, and radar-absorbent materials on the skin of the aircraft. An important development shift from earlier prototypes of the JX fighters is the use of composite fibermat skin on production JAS-62 Vampyr and JAS-65 fighters, which provides increased low-observability through its radar-absorbent qualities and is more durable, reducing maintenance. The durability of the aircraft is particularly notable, and both the airframe and its baked radar-absorbent coatings are durable in open weather. It uses diverterless supersonic intakes which hide the fan blades of the engine, a common source of radar returns. All of its stealth characteristics are aimed primarily at high-frequency X-Band radars such as those found on fighter aircraft or ground-based SAM sites ; although they are detectable on low-frequency radars such as those used for early warning or weather, these radars are unable to provide precise or accurate tracking and are unable to guide weapons. These types of radars are also very conspicuous and vulnerable. Likewise, it is reported that it can also be detected by military very high frequency (VHF) radars, although only at short range and with low accuracy. The Vampyr also utilises a combination of shaped exhaust nozzles, composite materials, and infrared-absorbent materials to reduce its infrared signature.

Cockpit

The Striga utilises a full glass cockpit and all-digital flight instruments. The instrument panel is dominated by a single panoramic touchscreen which displays all information relevant to the pilot. It forms a key component of the Striga's situational awareness capabilities, collecting and organising data from the aircraft's various sensors and displaying them to the pilot in a coherent, comprehensive single picture. In 2016, the JAS-62 and JAS-65 were upgraded with a speech recognition system, allowing the pilot to cue commands verbally. The utility of the speech recognition system in both aircraft has been debated, and pilots report that they very rarely use it in the air. The system was intended to be implemented starting from the production of the aircraft, however reliability and clarity represented clear concerns for the Air Force and MDA and the feature was shelved until it could be developed to a highly reliable and consistent stage. The JAS-62 and JAS-65 also receiving technological upgrades in 2015 with the implementation of a helmet-mounted display system (HMDS), allowing pilots to display all flight and combat information, usually displayed on the HUD, in their visors. As a result of this, the JAS-62's traditional HUD was replaced with a less obtrusive, thinner framed display and the JAS-65's was made retractable, with the traditional HUDs retained once again by demand of pilots. Although both aircraft had been equipped with helmet mounted displays (HMDs) since their introduction- HMDs had been in use since the introduction of the EF-135 Draken in 1995- they did not possess the display or information capabilities, or fidelity of the newer HMDS.

Engine

The Striga was originally equipped with a single EJ-920 afterburning turbofan, and with the EJ-920-7 from Block 17 onwards. Developed from the EJ-910 which outfitted flying prototypes of the Vampyr as well as was fitted to the EF-135 and some EF-161 variants, the EJ-920 is the most powerful series of engines ever used on fighte aircraft in Tyran. The top speed of the Striga at sea level is comparable to previous 4th generation Acrean fighters, as well as contemporary 4th generation and 5th generation foreign fighters. The EJ-900 series engines are notably responsive, and provide exceptional acceleration to support the energy- and rate-oriented characteristics of Acrean fighters.

The engines aid in the Striga's stealth through the use of low-observable afterburners which uses fuel injectors incorporated into curved vanes in the engine covered by radar-absorbent ceramics and mask the engine turbine. The EJ-918 possessed notably high intake temperatures, which were addressed through additional work to provide infrared shielding to the engine intakes. The engines produce a distinctive "howl" and are known to be incredibly loud, even in comparison to other jets. Subsequent testing done for residential areas near airbases in Acrea showed that the Striga's engine is fairly equal in decibel level to other jets, but produce much stronger low-frequency noise.

The EJ-920 incorporates thrust vectoring in all axes, like all EJ-900 series engines. Contrary to the common belief that the aircraft's thrust vectoring is used for low-speed combat and high angle-of-attack maneuvering, this is only a secondary use of thrust vectoring in the engines. Their primary function is to minimise the aircraft's drag while maneuvering, with the flight control systems using a combination of flight control surfaces and thrust vectoring from engines to respond to pilot inputs in the most efficient way. As a result, the flight control systems are able to minimise drag and maximise energy retention. The thrust vectoring is still able to be used to facilitate excellent low-speed responsiveness and control, as well as incredibly high angle-of-attack maneuvers, but these are considered only additional capabilities with only limited combat application by Acrean pilots.

Variants

• JAS-65A: Initial variant which entered production in 2015.
  • JAS-65A Block II: Fitted with the improved EJ-920-17 engines providing 11% more thrust. All existing Block Is are to be upgraded to Block 20 standard.
• JAS-65M: Naval variant configured for CATOBAR operations. Other changes include larger wings and control surfaces, improving slow-speed handling with a 40% greater wing area and increasing internal fuel capacity by 10%.
  • JAS-65M Block II: Updated to to the EJ-920-17 engine in 2020.
• JAS-65B: STOVL variant designed for the RON. Funding for program provided by Ossoria. Reduced internal weapons bay capacity, using two separate bays with 4 hardpoints each.
  • JAS-65B Block II: Updated to to the EJ-920-17 engine in 2020.
• JAS-65I Block I: A variant of the JAS-65A Block 20 utilising the wings of the JAS-65M and fitted with specialised electronic warfare systems, sensors, and countermeasures installed.

Operators

Current Operators

• Royal Acrean Air Force
• Royal Acrean Navy
• Royal Ossorian Navy

Specifications (JAS-65A Block II)

General Characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 15.7 m (51.4 ft)
• Wingspan: 11 m (35 ft)
• Height: 4.4 m (14.4 ft)
• Wing Area: 43 m² (460 sq ft)
• Empty Weight: 10,433 kg (23,000 lbs)
• Powerplant: 1 x EJ-920-17 afterburning turbofan, 133 kN (29,960 lbf) dry thrust, 211 kN (47,435 lbf) reheat
• Fuel Capacity: 8,278 kg (18,250 lbs) internal

Performance

• Maximum Speed: Mach 2 at altitude
• Mach 1.2 supercruise at altitude
• Service Ceiling: 20,000 m (65,000 ft)

Armament

• Guns: 1 × 27 mm revolver cannon with 200 rounds
• Payload: 7 internal hardpoints, ability to attach additional 8 external hardpoints

See Also

Aircraft of Comparable Role, Configuration, and Era

• JAS-62 Vampyr
• GF-23 Vetala
• T-37 Gailtean
• Zephyr
• Aeolus
• AFASF-13 Wyvern
• NSF-12 Albatro