Modern carrier-based fighter aircraft must reconcile conflicting design requirements such as high supersonic performance, low-speed carrier operations, and efficient cruise. This paper presents a comprehensive conceptual design study of a carrier-borne fighter aircraft intended for naval operations. The design framework integrates mission-segment weight analysis, propulsion matching, aerodynamic sizing, and geometric layout. The aircraft was dimensioned to meet specified performance targets, including Mach 2.0 maximum speed, 2,000 km combat range, 4-hour endurance, and 6,000 kg maximum payload. Design constraints included catapult acceleration (250 m take-off distance) and arrested recovery systems (200 m landing distance). Wing design analysis compared multiple constraints (stall-limited, catapult-limited, landing-distance-limited, and cruise-optimised), resulting in catapult-limited loading selection. Tail sizing employed standard volume coefficients to ensure adequate control authority and stability margins. Sizing analysis yielded maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 34,858 kg, thrust-to-weight ratio (T/W) of 0.987, and wing loading of 394.3 kg/m². The aircraft features a swept-wing design (50° leading-edge sweep, aspect ratio 3.52) with twin vertical stabilisers for directional stability, powered by two Pratt & Whitney F135 engines. Fuel analysis indicates approximately 25.44% of MTOW allocated for all mission segments. A complete three-dimensional SolidWorks CAD model was developed, integrating all calculated geometric parameters. This work demonstrates a comprehensive application of preliminary aircraft design methodology to naval fighter design. The sizing analysis validates the design approach and establishes a complete preliminary design baseline ready for detailed engineering phases.
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Conceptual Design and Preliminary Analysis of Carrier-Borne Fighter Aircraft
Published:
13 April 2026
by MDPI
in The 1st International Online Conference on Aerospace
session Next-Gen Aircraft Design & Optimization
Abstract:
Keywords: aircraft design; carrier-borne fighter; conceptual design; naval aviation; aerospace engineering