(March 4, 2024 at 1:48 pm)Anomalocaris Wrote: that row of screw holes is probably not as big a problem for stealth as it might seem because it is aligned with the leading edge of the wing, so it is planform aligned will reflect radar back along the same prescribed direction as the main airframe.
You're assuming that the radar is incoming from the front and level. Those holes will show up on radar from above -- or the side if the plane is banked into the emissions. That's a serious flaw in a 5th gen stealth fighter.
I have to assume that this is simply a matter of wanting to get the prototype into the air ASAP, and this flaw will be corrected in production models.
