upgrades

Lockheed Martin is pushing for the U.S. Air Force to extend the scope of the upgrade for the F-22 Raptor fighter so that it will include the earlier Block 20 aircraft that the service currently uses for training. These Block 20 jets, 35 in all, had previously been on the chopping block, but amid questions about the ultimate replacement plan for the F-22, the manufacturer is pushing for the upgrade effort to be expanded to these earlier and currently far less-capable aircraft.

Speaking today at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, OJ Sanchez, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin’s secretive Skunk Works research and development arm, said that there are “conversations around whether there is an opportunity to take the Block 20 fleet and continue to expand [its capabilities].” Sanchez noted that this is not an entirely new conversation, but he was hopeful that the service would opt for it.

In the meantime, Sanchez referred to the upgrade program for the more modern Block 30/35 jets, part of a Skunk Works effort to ensure that the F-22 can evolve to “see, and shoot, and go farther.”

“The F-22 continues to be central to the U.S. Air Force’s force structure, and the ability to keep it at the forefront of the fight is paramount. The F-22 program work at Skunk Works is doing that,” Sanchez continued. He described the Block 30/35 Raptors as being “in a hefty modernization mode right now,” with a key component of this being software-defined open mission systems architecture. As you can read about here, this ensures that it’s faster and easier to integrate new and improved functionality.

Sanchez also noted that the upgrade for the Block 30/35 aircraft includes work on crewed/uncrewed teaming with the Air Force. “The F-22 is kind of at the forefront of how to do that,” Sanchez added. This is another facet of the Raptor’s modernization push that we have discussed in the past.

Then there is the role that the F-22 has been playing in the development of the Air Force’s next crewed fighter, the Boeing F-47, in the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program.

“The F-22 we talked about as being the bridge to NGAD, and we’ve continued to see the evolution, working with the U.S. Air Force, on bringing next-gen technologies to path-find on the F-22, so that’s the philosophy,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez reflected on the fact that, when discussing the F-22’s upgrade path, it starts to get “tricky around the specifics… because it starts to get classified.”

However, as we have detailed in the past, the F-22 is now in the process of receiving a raft of new “viability” upgrades. These will help protect the Air Force’s ‘silver bullet’ force of Raptors from emerging threats and otherwise ensure their continued relevance in future conflicts.

We know that the upgrade package includes the previously announced Infrared Defensive System (IRDS), as well as improvements to the F-22’s low-observable (stealth) features, radar capabilities, electronic warfare suite, and others. This is separate from other upgrades in the works for the F-22, including podded infrared search and track (IRST) sensors and stealthy range-extending drop tanks.

It’s the continued relevance of the F-22 to the U.S. military, especially in a high-end fight, as well as its relatively limited numbers, that makes the argument to roll out similar upgrades across the Block 20 jets all the more compelling.

The Air Force currently has 185 F-22s, but only 143 are combat-coded, with the rest being dedicated to training and test and evaluation activities. The Block 20 jets are all assigned to second-line duties. Meanwhile, a significant portion of the overall fleet is typically down for maintenance at any given time.

As for the 32 Block 20 aircraft, the Air Force was, at one point, looking at ditching these altogether, as it found itself staring down looming budget cuts as well as growing questions about how far back it was trimming its existing fleets, especially fighters, as it pushed ahead with its modernization plans.

Last year, a Congressional watchdog warned that the Air Force would face potentially serious operational, training, and testing challenges, and the risk of having to pay associated costs if it got rid of the Block 20 jets. The service’s assessment that it would be prohibitively expensive to bring these jets up to a newer standard was also called into question.

Even before that, the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, which oversee funding and oversight of the Pentagon on behalf of the U.S. Congress, tried to mandate the Air Force to retain — and upgrade — the Block 20 F-22s.

Since the small Raptor force is already highly capable and heavily in demand, the possibility of having a larger pool of combat-coded jets to draw from would be a huge benefit, if it can be financed.

Meanwhile, F-22 proponents in the Air Force have made the case for keeping the Block 20 jets even without upgrades.

“I’m in favor of keeping the Block 20s,” said Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach, the head of Air Combat Command, last year. “Right now, frankly, there isn’t an F-22 replacement,” he added. “They give us a lot of training value, and even if we had to in an emergency, use the Block 20s in a combat situation. They’re very capable.”

Of course, providing them with even some of the upgrades that are currently being provided for the Block 30/35 jets would make them even more capable.

Already, the Raptor upgrades and the long-term plans for the fleet in general are being influenced by the NGAD program.

At one time, the Air Force had said it ultimately wanted its F-22s to be replaced by a new sixth-generation stealth combat jet being developed as part of the NGAD initiative, an aircraft that is now known as the F-47. The planned first flight for this aircraft is currently slated for 2028.

However, the plan for the NGAD combat jet was put on hold last year, and, for a time, it looked like the NGAD combat jet effort might have been at risk of being cancelled. By the summer of 2024, it was clear that there was no longer a definitive F-22 replacement plan.

Although the NGAD combat jet — now the F-47 — emerged unscathed, there are still questions about the expected size of the F-47 fleet. Meanwhile, it’s not entirely clear when — or even if — these aircraft might start to enter service.

In May, an Air Force graphic, seen below, suggested that the service plans to acquire more than 185 F-47s, which would allow for a one-for-one replacement of the F-22s.

The final number doesn’t appear to be determined so far, with Lockheed Martin meanwhile stating that, with the help of upgrades, the Raptor could stay in service into the 2040s.

It seems that much of the F-22’s ultimate fate will depend on the pace of the F-47’s path to service, and the Air Force’s ultimate procurement plans for that type. In the meantime, it’s clear that Lockheed Martin is confident that the F-22 has many years of service left and that, should the Air Force want to ensure the Raptor fleet is as capable as it can be for years to come, then rolling out upgrades across the earlier jets could help secure its long-term future.

Contact the author: [email protected]

Aug. 26 (UPI) — Apple announced Tuesday that it will unveil the iPhone 17 at an event in September that could include notable upgrades to one of the company’s signature gadgets.

The tech giant has been tight-lipped about what to expect about the September 9 event at its Cupertino, Calif., campus. Apple CEO Tim Cook wrote in a post on X to prepare for an “awe dropping” event that included a glowing image of the company’s logo.

The latest iPhone will include a “super thin” version at 5.5 millimeters thick, making it the thinnest iteration of the device to date, according to MacRumours. Other highlights of the event will include Pro versions of the iPhone, which will have an improved camera and will come in new colors, as well as better noise cancellation for AirPods.

Apple is also expected to update its Apple Watch Series 11, Ultra 3, and SE 3, reported TechCrunch.

The company previously showcased its iPhone 16 model at its annual hardware event on the same date last year. The model included artificial intelligence and the company also announced its upgraded Apple Watch would include a sleep apnea feature and its AirPod would have clinical-grade hearing aid functions.

CINCINNATI — What’s the opposite of a splash?

Because that’s how the Dodgers started their trade deadline activity late Wednesday night.

On the eve of MLB’s annual trade deadline (which is Thursday at 3 p.m. PDT), the Dodgers were the tertiary party in a three-team trade with the Cincinnati Reds and Tampa Bay Rays.

While the biggest piece in the deal — starting pitcher Zack Littell — went from Tampa Bay to Cincinnati, the Dodgers were included in a swap of some lesser-name players.

Minor league catcher Hunter Feduccia, a longtime Dodgers farmhand having a nice season with triple-A Oklahoma City, was sent to Tampa Bay.

In return, the Dodgers received pitching prospect Adam Serwinowski from the Reds, as well as reliever Paul Gervase and catcher Ben Rortvedt from the Rays, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly.

Serwinowski is the most intriguing name the Dodgers acquired. A 21-year-old left-hander who was ranked as the No. 10 prospect in the Reds’ farm system by MLB Pipeline, the former 15th-round draft pick has been a favorite of Dodgers’ evaluators for a while, according to another person with knowledge of the team’s thinking.

While Serwinowski has a 4.84 ERA in high-A this season, the Dodgers are excited by his potential and add him to a farm system that is lacking the depth of impact pitching prospects it usually touts.

Gervase is a 25-year-old reliever who debuted in the majors this year with the Rays, posting a 4.26 ERA in five outings this year.

Rortvedt is a 27-year-old journeyman catcher who will help provide organizational depth in Feduccia’s absence, alongside current triple-A backstops Chris Okey and Chuckie Robinson.

For a team that has been linked to some of the bigger names on this year’s trade market, it was far from the blockbuster many fans have been waiting on.

Granted, the Dodgers are still expected to be active on Thursday.

Their need for a reliever remains, even though they remained idle on Wednesday as other top options, from Jhoan Durán to Ryan Helsley to Tyler Rogers, were dealt elsewhere.

The club is still hoping to add another hitter to their lineup too, with an upgrade in the outfield (especially defensively) seen as a priority, according to a person with knowledge of the club’s thinking.

Whether the Dodgers can land the impact additions they seek, in what has been a seller’s market defined by high acquisition costs to this point, remains to be seen.

But at least they won’t go into deadline day without having made any deals, with Wednesday night’s late-night transaction expected to be the first of several moves they make ahead of Thursday’s trade cutoff.

L..A. County plans to pay more to upgrade the Gas Company Tower than it did to buy the downtown skyscraper in the first place.

County officials agreed last November to pay $200 million for the 52-story tower, which they planned to make the new headquarters for county employees.

The estimated price tag to earthquake-proof the tower: more than $230 million. Lennie LaGuire, a spokesperson for the county Chief Executive Office, said the tower is already safe, and the upgrades are “proactive.”

County officials had said some improvements to the tower might be necessary, but the cost and extent had been murky until now.

This week, the county received final proposals from firms looking to secure a contract for “voluntary seismic upgrades” to the Gas Company Tower, located at 555 W. 5th Street.

The Chief Executive Office, which negotiated the purchase, stressed in a statement that the seismic work was expected and far cheaper than the estimated $1 billion it would take to retrofit the county’s current downtown headquarters, the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, which was built in 1960 and is vulnerable to collapse during the next major earthquake.

The Gas Company Tower “does not require any seismic work to provide a safe, up-to-code and modern workplace for County employees. The County is choosing to perform this work proactively with an eye to the future, to ensure that the building performs optimally in the decades ahead,” LaGuire said. “The cost of this work, even when combined with the cost of the building, is a fraction of the cost of making urgently needed and long-overdue seismic and life safety improvements to the Hall of Administration.”

The $200-million sale was considered a bargain compared with the building’s appraised value of more than $600 million a few years earlier — a symptom of plummeting downtown office values.

Supervisor Janice Hahn, the only board member who opposed the purchase, said Friday that county officials never should have entered into the real estate transaction before they “had all the facts” on the cost.

“This is turning out to be a bigger boondoggle than was originally sold to the public,” said Hahn, who said she had not been told about the upgrade costs. “I am only more convinced that we are better off retrofitting the historic Hall of Administration and keeping the heart of county government in our Civic Center.”

At the time of the sale, Hahn argued that the purchase would be a fatal blow to downtown’s civic heart and make the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration obsolete. The building is named after her father, who served a record 10 terms as a supervisor.

The Hall of Administration is one of several county-owned properties considered vulnerable in an earthquake. The Gas Company Tower, built in 1991, was considered much safer, but at the time of the county purchase, it was unclear whether it was fully earthquake-proof.

The tower is one of many L.A. skyscrapers that incorporates a “steel moment frame” as part of its structure. In the 1994 Northridge earthquake, buildings with the frame did not collapse, but some were badly damaged.

Most of the seismic strengthening for the Gas Company Tower would involve “reinforcing of the welded steel moment frame connections,” according to the request for proposal for the $234.5-million project.

The contract will be awarded in October, according to the bidding documents, and the tower could be occupied during construction. County officials said they have already begun moving employees into the tower.

Times staff writers Roger Vincent and Rong-Gong Lin II contributed to this report.