7. Conclusion

7.1 Threat evolution

We have seen above that the history of stealth is fairly recent, but accelerated in the 1980s, giving rise to several generations of stealth aircraft. These aircraft, and in particular the Lockheed F22 and certainly the Sukhoi Su47, achieve very high levels of performance in terms of both flight and stealth. They appear invincible and provide a decisive advantage in combat.

Today, the F22's manoeuvrability and flight performance give it a clear advantage in air combat. Its stealth enables it to get close enough to its enemy to launch its attack undetected, and thus to strike first, which is vital in the context of modern high-precision weaponry. Indeed, as we have seen, its only drawback is that it cannot carry long-range missiles, as its...