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Best Fighter Jet Ever? The F-22 Raptor remains unparalleled in air supremacy, thanks to its stealth, speed, maneuverability, and advanced weaponry.

-Restricted to U.S. use, it’s designed to dominate adversaries like Russia’s Su-35 and China’s J-20.

-While the Su-35 boasts impressive speed and thrust, it lacks stealth and the agility of the F-22.

-China’s J-20, though stealthy, falls short in maneuverability and thrust-to-weight ratio.

-Upgrades such as the AIM-260 missile and software enhancements solidify the F-22’s superiority.

-Leveraging the famed OODA loop concept, the F-22 ensures air combat dominance, emphasizing the Pentagon’s decision to safeguard U.S. air supremacy.

Why the F-22 Raptor Is America’s Air Supremacy Secret Weapon

Years ago, the Pentagon made the engaging and impactful decision to sustain the F-22 as a “US-only” platform not available for Foreign Military Sales. This defining move may have ensured US Air Force superiority for decades. 

Why? Many independent experts, observers, and many from the US Air Force continue to maintain that the F-22 is the best air supremacy fighter ever to exist. Looking at simple numbers and available specs, the F-22 does appear to possibly incorporate a combination of attributes arguably unrivaled anywhere in the world.  

F-22 vs. Su-35

The closest competitor is arguably Russia’s 4th-gen “plus” upgraded Su-35 fighter, which reportedly can travel at F-22-competing speeds of Mach 2.25 and rival its thrust-to-weight ratio. The Su-35, as an upgraded variant of the well-known Su-27, does appear to present formidable threats to an F-22. Yet, the aircraft is not stealthy and may not rival the air-to-air maneuverability and “supercruise” thrust built into an F-22.  

A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor from 94th Fighter Squadron Langley Air Force Base, Va., takes off to perform an aerial demonstration for an estimated 180,000 spectators at the Australian International Airshow, March 2, 2013 at Avalon Airport in Geelong, Australia. The F-22 demo team are currently deployed to the 18th Fighter Wing, Kadena Air Base, Japan to support pacific theater operations. This is the first official demonstration of the F-22 Raptors capabilities at an airshow outside the United States. The Australian International Airshow 2013 (AIA13), is held biennially, and is one of the largest international trade shows in the Pacific. The Airshow is expected to draw 350,000 visitors and has featured 500 defense exhibitors from 35 countries and is designed to bolster business opportunities in the international aviation sector. U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) participation in AIA13 directly supports theater engagement goals and objectives and further enhances relationships with other Pacific nations. (Department of Defense photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Michael R. Holzworth/Released)

Air-to-air quickness and maneuverability, the ability to reach max speed without afterburner to sustain engagement, upgraded air-to-air weapons, stealth properties, and avionics are some of the key areas likely responsible for the US decision to preserve the aircraft for the US. In a purely speculative way, it would also make sense to imagine that the F-22 might have secret or “non-disclosed” technological advantages woven within. 

Nevertheless, based on available information, the F-22 in total appears unrivaled, and the Pentagon likely does not want to relinquish potential global air supremacy.  Speed and maneuverability, combined with stealth and weapons upgraded by new software, enable the F-22 to complete the famous Col. John Boyd OODA Loop faster than an opponent.  

Famous OODA Loop

The OODA Loop, made famous by former Air Force fighter pilot Col. John Boyd, says the fighter jet able to complete the Observation, Orientation, Decision, Action “loop” faster or in advance of a potential adversary will prevail in any dogfight or air-to-air engagement. The F-22 appears to have been engineered in considerable measure for this purpose and essentially ensures the stealthy Raptor could out-perform and out-maneuver any fighter in the world. 

F-22 Upgrades

Also, the Raptor may have emerged several decades ago, yet the aircraft has received substantial upgrades in recent years, including a weapons-oriented software enhancement called 3.2b. This modernization effort, put into effect by the Air Force and Lockheed Martin, significantly improved the range, accuracy, guidance, and lethality of critical air-to-air weapons such as the AiM-9X Sidewinder and AIM-120D. 

F-22 Raptor. Image: Creative Commons.

F-22 Raptor. Image: Creative Commons.

A more recent, extremely significant upgrade relates to new Raptor sensors and additional new weaponry, according to an interesting essay by the Air & Space Force Magazine. The magazine cites a new “beyond-visual-range” air-to-air weapon being built into the F-22 called the AM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile. 

Chinese J-20 vs F-22 

Some might also question whether China’s 5th-gen J-20 is in any way intended to rival an F-22. While this is often suggested or said in media reports, looking at available specs suggests otherwise. Not only is the J-20 larger, heavier, and slower than a Raptor, but the J-20 thrust-to-weight ratio is cited by World-Defense.com as rising from .95 up to 1.0 with the addition of its domestically built WS-15 engine. This may be slightly competitive with an F-22’s cited thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.3, yet it does seem to suggest a Chinese J-20 would have little hope of out-maneuvering an F-22 in the air, even if it did fly with somewhat comparable stealth properties. 

About the Author: Kris Osborn 

Kris Osborn is the Military Technology  Editor of 19FortyFive and President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters  Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.