Fifth-generation fighter

A fifth-generation fighter is a special kind of jet fighter aircraft classification that has the most advanced technologies from the early 2000s. These airplanes are the most modern fighters in use today in 2026. Not all fifth-generation fighters have every feature, but they usually include special designs like stealth to stay hidden, very smart radar that is hard to detect, flexible airframes that can fly in supercruise mode, supercruise, and advanced avionics systems. They also have computer systems that can connect with other airplanes and soldiers on the battlefield for better situational awareness and communication.

As of late 2025, several fifth-generation fighters were ready for fighting. These include the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, which joined the United States Air Force in 2005, the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, which started with the United States Marine Corps in 2015, the Chengdu J-20, which entered service with the People's Liberation Army Air Force in 2017, the Shenyang J-35, which joined the People's Liberation Army Air Force and People's Liberation Army Navy Air Force in 2025, and the Sukhoi Su-57, which became part of the Russian Air Force in 2020. Many other countries are also working on building their own fifth-generation fighters.

Characteristics

The fifth generation of advanced fighter aircraft began in the early 2000s. These planes have special features that make them very advanced, but not all of them have every feature.

Unlike older fighters that focused on turning and close fights, fifth-generation fighters often include:

• Stealth, hiding their weapons inside.
• High maneuverability, which helps them take off and land on short runways.
• Supercruise, flying faster than sound for a long time without extra fuel.
• Advanced electronics, including low-probability-of-intercept radar (LPIR).
• Sharing information between planes, giving pilots a better view of what is happening in a battle.
• Multirole capabilities, such as controlling other planes and communications.

To stay hidden, these planes often use special shapes instead of regular designs. They all have two tail sections to stay low and hidden. Most can turn very well thanks to special engine controls.

All of these planes carry weapons inside to stay hidden, but they can also carry weapons outside for missions where hiding is not needed.

These planes use special materials to stay light and hidden.

Software-defined aircraft

All known fifth-generation fighters use common computer parts to control all their tools, giving the pilot a single view of the battle instead of separate views from each tool. The F-22A did not have certain tools when it was built but will get them through updates. However, problems with these complex computer systems can sometimes stop other parts of the plane from working and can cause delays and extra costs. By 2013, the biggest worry about the F-35 was its software, especially for sharing information between sensors.

Sukhoi calls their system for sharing sensor information the artificial intelligence of the Su-57. Tests of their new electronics system started in 2017. This system has had problems. In December 2020, a computer problem caused the first Su-57 to crash.

A computer response to too much heat seems to have caused an F-22 to crash. Problems with electronics also helped cause an F-35A crash in 2020.

The F-35 uses special radio systems controlled by common parts. A leader has said the F-35 is a "software intensive airplane and software is easy to upgrade, as opposed to hardware".

To make adding new features easier, the F-35 separates its main computer from its applications.

One leader has said the F-35 might be able to control unmanned planes in the future. The US Navy plans to have its unmanned surveillance and attack system controlled by a manned plane, acting like a flying magazine of missiles.

Situational awareness

Main article: Situation awareness

The design of these planes—hiding their shape, tools, and communications—lets them attack other planes before those planes notice them. A leader has said that sharing information between tools will help identify enemy planes from far away.

Sharing information between tools and tracking targets automatically should give the pilot a better view of the battle than older warning planes, which might be kept back because of threats. Because of this, control of the battle could move to the pilots in the fighters. A former leader has suggested stopping use of certain warning planes because other countries are working hard to target them.

However, the strong tools, like radar that can work in many ways at once, might give the pilot too much information to handle. One design offered two pilots instead of one, like older planes, but this was not chosen because of cost.

Researchers are working on letting the plane’s computer connect information before it is fully seen, using math to decide which information to trust.

These tools create too much information for the plane’s computers to handle, so they compare what they see to lists of known enemy tools for a region. Things that do not match known enemies are not shown.

Combat cloud

Main articles: network-centric warfare and Cooperative Engagement Capability

One leader has suggested that fifth-generation fighters will work together in a group with future unmanned fighting planes, and another leader has suggested this might happen soon by loading a certain system with missiles to be launched by an F-35.

History

Before stealth technology, bombs were mostly used by bomber planes, while fighter planes carried bombs and rockets on their wings. Some special fighter planes, like the F-101, F-102, and F-106, had spaces inside to hold missiles.

The United States built several test planes in the 1990s, such as the Lockheed YF-22 and Northrop YF-23, to explore new ideas for fighter planes. These planes helped shape what we now call fifth-generation fighters.

Fifth-generation fighters are very advanced planes. They include special designs that make them harder to detect with radar, powerful engines, and smart computer systems that help the pilot see and control more of the battlefield.

United States

Older stealth planes like the B-2 bomber and F-117 fighter were not made to fight other planes in the sky. In the 1970s, American engineers started thinking about what a new fighter plane should look like. This thinking led to the creation of the F-22 fighter jet.

The U.S. Marine Corps is learning from the U.S. Air Force’s experience with the F-22 to develop its own ways to use the F-35.

In 2004, Lockheed Martin said the F-22 Raptor was the only fifth-generation fighter in use. They described these planes as having “advanced stealth,” “extreme performance,” and “advanced sustainment.” Lockheed Martin tried to trademark the term “5th generation fighters,” but it was criticized by others who thought it was not fair to only include certain planes.

The U.S. Navy and Boeing put the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet in a “next generation” category because it has advanced radar and other features, even though it is not as stealthy as the F-22 or F-35.

China

China has two stealth fighter planes, the Chengdu J-20 and Shenyang J-35, which are considered fifth-generation fighters.

In the late 1990s, China started working on these planes. The J-20 flew for the first time in 2011 and started being used by the Chinese Air Force in 2017. The J-35 made its first flight in 2012, and in 2025, China showed new versions of both planes.

Russia

Russia worked on new fighter planes in the late 1980s but could not finish them because of money problems after the Soviet Union broke up.

In 2002, Russia chose the Sukhoi Su-57 as its new fighter plane. The first Su-57 flew in 2010 and was given to the Russian Air Force in 2020. Russia also plans to make other new fighter planes, like the Mikoyan PAK DP and the Sukhoi Su-75 Checkmate.

Turkey

Turkey is making its own stealth fighter plane called the TAI TF-X Kaan, or Milli Muharip Uçak (MMU). This plane will replace older F-16 fighters. The first prototype of the Kaan flew in February 2024.

South Korea

In June 2024, South Korea announced plans to update its KF-21 Boramae fighter plane to make it a fifth-generation plane by adding spaces inside to carry weapons.

India

India is building its own twin-engine stealth fighter plane called the HAL Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). As of 2025, the AMCA prototype is being built and is expected to fly for the first time in 2028.

Sweden

Saab is working on a program called Flygsystem 2020 to develop a fifth-generation fighter plane.

Japan

Japan tried to buy F-22 fighter planes from the United States but was not allowed. So, Japan built its own test plane called the Mitsubishi X-2 Shinshin, which first flew in 2016. Japan has also started working with other countries to develop a new sixth-generation fighter plane called the Mitsubishi F-X.

Comparison of 5th-generation fighters in service