| 1. |
First fly-by-wire aircraft, electronic signals fed from the stick and pedals. i.e.,
. |
| 2. |
First aircraft designed with digital computers being used for both aerodynamic analysis and designing the structural matrix (and a whole lot more). |
| 3. |
First aircraft design to have major components machined by CNC (computer numeric control); i.e., from electronic data which controlled the machine. |
| 4. |
First aircraft to be developed using an early form of "computational fluid dynamics" with an integrated "lifting body" type of theory rather than the typical (and obsolete) "blade element" theory. |
| 5. |
First aircraft to have marginal stability designed into the pitch axis for better maneuverability, speed and altitude performance. |
| 6. |
First aircraft to have negative stability designed into the yaw axis to save weight and cut drag, also boosting performance. |
| 7. |
First aircraft to fly with fly by wire AND artificial feedback (feel). Not even the first F-16's had this. |
| 8. |
First aircraft designed to be data-link flyable from the ground. |
| 9. |
First aircraft designed with integrated navigation, weapons release, automatic search and track radar, datalink inputs, home-on-jamming, infrared detection, electronic countermeasures and counter-countermeasures operating through a DIGITAL brain. |
| 10. |
First high wing jet fighter that made the entire upper surface a lifting body. The F-15, F-22, Su-27 etc., MiG-29, MiG 25 and others certainly used that idea. |
| 11. |
First sophisticated bleed-bypass system for both intake AND engine/exhaust. Everybody uses that now. |
| 12. |
First by-pass engine design. (all current fighters have by-pass engines). |
| 13. |
First combination of the last two points with an "ejector" nozzle that used the bypass air to create thrust at the exhaust nozzle while also improving intake flow. The F-106 didn't even have a nozzle, just a pipe. |
| 14. |
First use of Titanium for significant portions of the aircraft structure and engine. |
| 15. |
Use of composites (not the first, but they made thoughtful use of them and were researching and engineering new ones). |
| 16. |
Use of a drooped leading edge and aerodynamic "twist" on the wing. |
| 17. |
Use of engines at the rear to allow both a lighter structure and significant payload at the centre of gravity. Everybody copied that. |
| 18. |
First use of a LONG internal weapons bay to allow carriage of specialized, long-range standoff and cruise missiles. (not copied yet really) |
| 19. |
Integration of ground-mapping radar and the radar altimeter plus flight control system to allow a seriousstrike/reconnaissance role. The first to propose an aircraft be equally adept at those roles while being THE air-superiority fighter at the same time. (Few have even tried to copy that, although the F-15E is an interesting exception.) |
| 20. |
First missile armed aircraft to have a combat weight thrust to weight ratio approaching 1 to 1. Few have been able to copy that. |
| 21. |
First flying 4,000 psi hydraulic system to allow lighter and smaller components. |
| 22. |
First oxygen-injection re-light system. |
| 23. |
First engine to have only two main bearing assemblies on a two-shaft design. |
| 24. |
First to use a variable stator on a two-shaft engine. |
| 25. |
First use of a trans-sonic first compressor stage on a turbojet engine. |
| 26. |
First "hot-streak" type of afterburner ignition. |
| 27. |
First engine to use only 10 compressor sections in a two-shaft design. (The competition were using 17!!) |
| 28. |
Canada's first supersonic aircraft. |
| 29. |
World's first delta winged fighter?? |