http://aviationweek.com/defense/ ... erations-over-syria
Aviation Week & Space Technology
How F-22 Is Deconflicting U.S.-Russia Operations Over Syria
Jun 14, 2017 Lara Seligman | Aviation Week & Space Technology
“Shell” was just days into his first deployment to U.S. Central Command (Centcom) when U.S. Navy destroyers launched a surprise strike against the Syrian regime, pummeling Shayrat Airfield with dozens of Tomahawk cruise missiles.
In the tense wake of the attack, Shell, a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and Raptor squadron commander who spoke on the condition that Aviation Week identify him only by his call sign, and his squadron of stealth F-22 Lockheed Martin Raptors had a critical job to do: deconflict coalition operations over Syria with an irate Russia.
The U.S.-led campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has leaned heavily on the air-superiority fighter since its debut there in 2014. The F-22, originally designed as an air-to-air platform, has become crucial to the fight, regularly striking ground targets, providing close air support (CAS) for soldiers in battle, and protecting legacy strike fighters from surface and air threats.
Spotlight on the F-22 in Operation Inherent Resolve
* After the April 6 Tomahawk strikes on Shayrat, the Raptor provided a crucial communications node between U.S. and Russian air forces;
* Shell and his squadron of F-22s talked to noncoalition players over an an internationally recognized frequency often used for aircraft emergencies
* The stealth aircraft had a unique advantage in getting noncoalition forces to cooperate
* The F-22 also regularly provides CAS, defensive counter-air, and ground strikes in the area of responsibility
But one of the most critical missions the F-22 conducts in the skies over Syria, particularly in the weeks following the April 6 Tomahawk strike, is deconfliction between coalition and noncoalition aircraft, says Shell.
Of course, the F-22 is not the only asset deconflicting the crowded skies over Centcom. The Air Force’s airborne command-and-control aircraft and high-altitude intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms, as well as ground-based command-and-control forces, are also helping clear the area. But the stealth F-22’s ability to evade detection gives it a unique advantage in getting noncoalition players to cooperate, says Shell.
“It is easier to bring air dominance to bear if you know where the other aircraft are that you are trying to influence, and they don’t know where you are,” says Shell. “When other airplanes don’t know where you are, their sense of comfort goes down, so they have a tendency to comply more.”
Lockheed Martin’s stealth F-22 Raptor made its combat debut over Syria in September 2014. Credit: U.S. Air Force
The F-22 provided a crucial communications node when tensions between the U.S. and Russia were running high. Following the Tomahawk strikes, Moscow condemned the attack and suspended the so-called “deconfliction line” the two countries used to coordinate air operations over Syria. U.S. President Donald Trump said relations with Russia were at an “all-time low.”
But U.S. and noncoalition aircraft were still communicating directly, over an internationally recognized, unsecure frequency often used for emergencies known as “Guard,” says Shell. His F-22s acted as a kind of quarterback, using high-fidelity sensors to determine the positions of all the actors on the battlefield, directing noncoalition aircraft where to fly and asking them over the Guard frequency to move out of the way.
The Raptors were able to fly in contested areas, in range of surface-to-air missile systems and fighters, without the noncoalition players knowing their exact positions, Shell says. This allowed them to establish air superiority—giving noncoalition forces freedom of movement in the air and on the ground—and a credible deterrent.
“If we need to let them know that we are there for any reason, then we will let them know that we are there—usually to deter something that they are trying to do that we don’t want them to do,” he explains.
During those weeks after April 6, Shell and his squadron temporarily moved all of their operations into Syria. In addition to helping deconflict and deter noncoalition actors, the F-22s also provided defensive counter-air for allied forces on the ground and in the air, and occasionally conducted ground strikes and CAS, Shell says.
He stresses that the interactions with noncoalition aircraft were always “professional,” adding that his squadron experienced “nothing that raises any eyebrows.”
Two months after the strikes, Shell’s squadron is back to splitting its time between Iraq and Syria. The aircraft is performing “immaculately,” even in mission sets it was not built for, such as CAS, Shell says. As of May 28, the Raptor had conducted 1,150 sorties, including 497 CAS sorties, and employed 1,572 weapons since the beginning of Operation Inherent Resolve in 2014, according to the Air Force.
In the CAS role, the F-22 augments the platforms already conducting that mission in the region, such as the F-15E, the B-52 bomber and the A-10, Shell says. While the A-10 is renowned for the roar of its 30-mm Gatling gun and its long loiter time, the F-22 brings precision-guided munitions (PGM) such as the GBU-32 and Small-Diameter Bomb. PGMs significantly reduce civilian casualties and potential damage to buildings and other structures in the area, Shell points out.
Although the F-22 can perform CAS well, it is not built for that role as is the A-10— it is just another tool combatant commanders can use to complete the mission, Shell stresses.
Overall, the most important thing the Raptor brings to the OIR fight is air superiority, Shell says.
“Our ground troops have not been attacked from the air since April 15, 1953, and that is because of the U.S. Air Force providing air dominance,” he adds. “The F-22 is the primary provider of air superiority in Operation Inherent Resolve.”
-----以下为老外喷子互掐-------------------------------
Discuss this Article 103
bernard@f-max.nl
on Jun 14, 2017
I still struggle to believe that the F22 is as stealthy as claimed. Any jet emits lots of hot air - facilitating IR detection at large distances - at least if it's flying high and if there's LOS to the detector. I know that the exhaust gasses are cooled down to reduce detectability, but come-on, it's not a candle that we're trying to spot on the surface of the moon,,, Furthermore, RF stealth can't operate effectively across a broad RF spectrum. Thirdly, using a nonsecure radio link would - at least in theory - allow for accurate triangulation, albeit only during brief communication intervals. This would however greatly aid subsequent IR and radar detection and blow the cover.
“F22有个鬼隐身性啊，发动机尾气那么热，红外信号远远就看见了啊”
skyefire@skyefi...
on Jun 14, 2017
IR radiation doesn't propagate through atmosphere nearly as well as RF, making its utility fall off rapidly with distance.
In the RF spectrum, it's true that LO tech can't cover the entire range. But it's also true that different frequencies are more militarily useful than others -- stealth against ELF, for (deliberately ridiculous) example, would be utterly useless. It only makes sense to concentrate your defenses against the enemies' strengths.
The potential downside is that LO technology (as implemented currently in the F-22 and F-35, at least) is such a core part of the airframe design that expanding or shifting the RF range it's most effective against will be difficult, at best. And anyone looking to produce sensors effective against 5th-gen aircraft is sure to be pushing hard to find ways to find new utility in frequencies that those aircraft are weak(er) against.
On the emissions side, while any emission can *in theory* be tracked, emitting in brief bursts using spread-spectrum techniques can make any such detection and tracking substantially more difficult. On the other hand, there's a never-ending drive in R&D to find better ways to more reliably pick such fragmentary signatures out of the background noise.
In the end, invisibility isn't the point -- making the adversary's job *harder* is. Whether the F-22 (and F-35, soon) accomplish that sufficiently to justify their cost and development time... remains to be seen. The F-22's recent performance is certainly a positive sign, but it's hardly an "acid test" against anything resembling a (near?) peer opponent.
Perhaps the best thing to come out of the F-22's use over Syria, so far, is actual working experience with the aircraft's capabilities and limitations in a real, if rather low-tier, threat environment.
“红外信号在大气层里传不了那么远啊，布啦啦啦，反正F22和F35就是好啊就是好”
vkess1
on Jun 14, 2017
"anyone looking to produce sensors effective against 5th-gen aircraft is sure to be pushing hard to find ways to find new utility in frequencies that those aircraft are weak(er) against." Isn't that in itself enough utility? Insightful post.
（大概意思是“楼上SB”）
bernard@f-max.nl
on Jun 14, 2017
Good points and a valuable post skyefire. I'm certainly not an expert on IR detection techniques. Nevertheless, I do know that telescopes can detect a candle on the surface of the moon - from the surface of the earth right through Earth's atmosphere. That's not many photons to work with. Surely, clouds or fog or a dust storm will all prevent IR detection, so any detector has to be mounted above the clouds to detect high-flying targets (and on the ground for low-flying targets). Detectors in the sky cannot have the size / aperture and hence sensitivity and resolution of a ground-based telescope / array of telescopes. Still it's had to believe that a good sensor (array) cannot detect a "stealth" plane at a distance of tens of miles under clear sky conditions...
（“我不是业内专家，但比你强多了”的意思）
Usurper1
on Jun 14, 2017
A good sensor probably CAN detect the presence a stealth aircraft from tens of miles.
What NOW?
OneLandingforev...
on Jun 16, 2017
In exercises -- where aircraft have modern IR sensors -- the F-22 and F-35 are simply not seen or are seen too late.
The first warning that enemy aircraft will have that the F-22 or F-35 are in the neighborhood will be when their wingman blows up. That is a bit late.
演习的时候，别的飞机都无法(及时)发现F22、F35的
RedStatePatriot
on Jun 16, 2017
Not sure I get your point or question.... what now. Well, since a non-stealth opponent can be detected and tracked WAY further I suppose what now is the stealthy aircraft will destroy that target before he is in range.
Usurper1
on Jun 16, 2017
Yep... That's the point i was getting at.
Sounds like you got it after all.
wmarsh73
on Jun 16, 2017
Well, if it's a 'hot' environment, if your detection equipment cannot locate the plane until it is within tens of miles of it, I'd say your detection equipment (and the people manning it) would first detect the incoming missile from the F-22 or F-35 before they 'see' the plane that launched it. They would live a brief but exciting existence in the moments before missile impact. At least that's the 'theory' anyways.
dukeofurl
on Jun 16, 2017
And how does the F-22 or F-35 track the target before launching the missile ? They dont as far as im aware use IRST so they must have a radar to 'see anything', or the other plane is all lit up in RF ?
Meanwhile European and Russian fighters do have IRST which will see the F-22 at long range- its cold up at high altitude and leading edges will heat up even at reasonable speeds.
"“In theory, state of the art IRST could find and track F-22 at quite long range,”- RUSI
Triggertreats
on Jun 16, 2017
"I do know that telescopes can detect a candle on the surface of the moon"
– That's not true, as everyone knows that candles cannot work on the moon, on account of there being no oxygen to burn.
– If your point is that telescopes can detect a light source that's equal to the luminosity of a candle from that distance, that's still a false equivalence. Your telescopes still need to know exactly where to look in the first place in order to spot that light source. They can't look at the moon as a whole and discern that light source. They either have to know ahead of time where to focus into, or they have to spend a great amount of valuable time scanning the entire surface of the moon. Earth's atmospheric disturbances can make that task more difficult (that's why Hubble is in orbit, and even in the case of Hubble, it has to keep it's "shutter" open for a while, letting light build up in its CCD over time in order to build images)
DanR
on Jun 16, 2017
The earths atmosphere from ground level to space has an equivalent thickness to 8km of air at sea level. Slant ranges for IR detection from the ground are highly compromised due to this detail. This is also why mounting telescopes on mountains happens.
Secondly IR spectrum are not absorbed at the same intensity, it is possible to use coatings to shift your emissions to frequencies which are heavily absorbed.
That said I expect that I won't be too long before we see stealth being applied to electric/solar powered aircraft along the lines of the Quintiq/Facebook aircraft, they would be exceedingly difficult to detect by any means IR or radar.
Rob
on Jun 17, 2017
I struggle to accept that any telescope can detect a candle on the moon when even the Hubble telescope in orbit has a minimum arc resolution of 4 meters at that range.
richard_krebs@t...
on Jun 16, 2017
Hence the need for HARM
Felix A9
on Jun 16, 2017
The new model with the bigger motor and designed for internal carriage. Of course it will never be built as that would make too much sense.
mikeBFM
on Jun 16, 2017
@skyefire
This is the most useful and "best" post I have read on "Aviation Week" since I started to read the comment section. (And I am reading it for quite a while)
mark.garcia.986...
on Jun 15, 2017
It's called technology. We really do have the best.
projob66
on Jun 16, 2017
I agree with your "hot air" comment. Seems to be going around a lot lately.
JimmyD
on Jun 16, 2017
"stealth" isn't magic or a cure-all. It's a capability, like speed, altitude or maneuverability. Each has it's value relative to your opposition.
Usurper1
on Jun 16, 2017
Very well said. And still not well grasped by the vast majority of people out there... Who assume that because a stealth fighter is tracked, it means the stealth tech is a failure... Which of course is as silly as saying that if you cant outrun a mach 6 missile, then your aircraft's engine tech is a failure.
Jack LaBonte
on Jun 16, 2017
Come on. Transmissions on standard Guard freqs are going through some sort of TDRS space system or local spoofing repeater, not a 5 inch antenna on the aircraft. Maybe it's a grunt on the ground with a frequency hopping super cell phone but it sure as heck is not coming from the F-22 itself.
musha
on Jun 16, 2017
Question is, are Russians aware that they were guarded by hidden F22 in the sky or whole this story is hoax to boost US morale in Syria?
Eugeniojoe@aol.com
on Jun 14, 2017
This story smells of overt propaganda, nothing stealthy about it.
RedStatePatriot
on Jun 16, 2017
I suspect the "propaganda" is what the Voices in your head are telling you.
aztecf15@gmail.com
on Jun 14, 2017
E+10: it is abundantly evident to me that you are not a fighter pilot with even minor credibility. So, you just keep on thinking those ill-lucid thoughts.
peterjpeirano@m...
on Jun 14, 2017
If it emits anything, from RF to IR, it can be detected. May be unknown, but it is detected.
cliff@ransomres...
on Jun 14, 2017
"Deconflicting?" Is that the new politcally-correct word for "Scaring the blazes out of your adversaries?"
wmarsh73
on Jun 16, 2017
It's the polite term for raising their 'pucker factor'
EoG787
on Jun 16, 2017
No, it's the word that pilots use for preventing mid-air collisions. Deconflicting can occur by flight level, vector, and time. This a normal part of air operations.
JDDrouin
on Jun 16, 2017
Yes. Not nearly as colorful as "Flvck with the bull and you get the horn", but these are the times we live in.
Bronco Dunebuster
on Jun 14, 2017
IR detection is very short range capability from ground positions. In the air it tends to be forward dection, and not 360 perimeter capable. Haven't seen much in print about any major defense contractor selling ground equipment for exhaust detection.
m_5teve
on Jun 14, 2017
If BAE+ are working on jamming kits that can detect then generate opposing waves in real time to counter enemy radars across a wide spectrum, why would we need stealth going forward? Wouldn't this jamming capability be more effective, operationally and economically?
Usurper1
on Jun 14, 2017
Seeing as the more wattage you pump into the air to jam, the larger target you become, why not reduce the amount of energy even needed to jam... That's the beauty of stealth.
Stealth and jamming go together.
RedStatePatriot
on Jun 16, 2017
It's not "either or" really, one complements the other. You want to be as hard to see as a baseline configuration and then add the confusion of jamming, decoying, and spoofing on top of that. being as hard a target as you can make yourself is always good.
mjcarew@att.net
on Jun 15, 2017
The F-22 can be "detected" but t is gone B 4 any action can be taken against it. Any emissions from an aircraft can be detected if jamming isn't present. Stealth & jamming by F-22 and F-35 ltr will dominate any skies. Jamming is always present when air combat is used in conflicted air space or ground defense areas.
jam44-44@comcast.net
on Jun 15, 2017
Boeing's suggested (new gen) F-18 E/F/Growler are not stealthy however the Jammer/Emitters Can be tracked. That is why the stealth a/c & Growlers do not go in together.
RedStatePatriot
on Jun 16, 2017
They DO work together... F18G's don't have to be all that close to the enemy air defenses to jam, they can stay at stand off distances and aid the more stealthy aircraft going in too attack.
metuna@earthlink.net
on Jun 15, 2017
Shell and his squadron of F-22s talked to noncoalition players over an an internationally recognized frequency often used for aircraft emergencies
So it talks to other noncoalition players on a radio..WOW
Crabble
on Jun 16, 2017
The description is entirely accurate. Not sure what you are upset about.
RedStatePatriot
on Jun 16, 2017
I guess your lower IQ level does not let you understand the focus of the article... if you thought it was that the F22 can use a common frequency (and apparently that's what you got form the story) then you should stick to reading comic books, and leave these conversations to the adults.
musha
on Jun 16, 2017
R u getting paid for leaving offensive comments after each post? Or the clearly hoax story makes you excited?
TheSandbagger
on Jun 16, 2017
And the F-35, which we are told is "operational", sits idle, with Air Force pilots not even able to take it to an air show.
D.Monty
on Jun 16, 2017
The USAF only has one operational squadron for now. They just did a mini-deployment to Europe. You can only do so much when the aircraft is still coming off the assembly line...
TheSandbagger
on Jun 16, 2017
The 34th has been "operational" for nearly a year, so the excuse is pretty lame. There are far more F-35s than the entire production run of F-22s, although they are useless prototypes, umm, "development" aircraft. Yes, you can do only so much with aircraft that are out-classed by 30-year old aircraft that they are supposed to replace. A lot of talk about how great the Wundercraft is supposed to be, but no one would trust flying it anywhere near a potential combat zone. ALL of the aircraft coming off that assembly line will need to be modified.
MNIce
on Jun 16, 2017
The "modification" is on the same order as the one Microsoft tries to do to every Windows 8 system (change it to Windows 10). Even if a major hardware change is needed, that is nothing new; airlines do it all the time whenever there is an AD out on their aircraft. That doesn't imply it's a bad aircraft.
By the way, your information about being "outclassed by 30-year old aircraft that they are supposed to replace" is out of date. The initial trials that sparked that legend were done with developmental aircraft that had deliberately limiting software installed because the full flight envelope had not yet been cleared. The F-35 is a very complex aircraft, with a number of unusual features. Because there is so much to be tested, and it would have been unsafe to have interference with some of the untested features while others were being tested, those not being tested yet were intentionally kept off line. F-35s with initial operating capability software, not yet up to full specifications, were still able to clean the clocks of entire squadrons of F-16s last year, with a better than 15:1 win ratio.
Triggertreats
on Jun 16, 2017
IOC (Initial Operating Capability) was reached last year.
IOC is the point in time during the Production & Deployment (PD) Phase where a system can meet the minimum operational (Threshold and Objective) capabilities for a user’s stated need. The operational capability consists of support, training, logistics, and system interoperability within the DoD operational environment. IOC is a good gauging point to see if there are any refinements needs before proceeding to Full Operational Capability (FOC).
Full Operational Capability (FOC) is when a system is delivered to a user and they have the ability to fully employ and maintain it to meet an operational need. The mission capabilities of a FOC system are defined in a system’s Capability Development Document (CDD) and Capability Production Document (CPD).
IOC isn't the "finish line," it's just another milestone.
DanW
on Jun 16, 2017
Uh....better read up on that. The Marines are forward deploying to Japan. The Air Force has their squadron quite busy learning about how to employ the aircraft, and guess what? It is going to the Paris Air Show.
Maybe they don't want our potential adversaries getting too close a look at it just yet in a combat zone. Why do that when the F-22 can do the job with stealth that is a few steps behind the F-35? |
发表于 2017-6-17 17:42
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