I don’t know about that.
Again I am just a civilian without military experience.
But the F-22 seems to this American, like the best jet out there for the entire next generation.
The real question is whom is our foe and his capabilities. If the foe is Russia a conventional war will soon escalate to nuclear war and the stealth of any aircraft is of no importance least it be delivering a nuclear bomb.
If it is a non nuclear foe, send them a polite message that says if you do not cease your actions you will die in a nuclear hell.
Stealth is great against a non nuclear foe. It is irrelevant against Russia and China with the exception of nuclear delivery systems.
Our Boomer submarines have the ability to destroy any nation. Just one boomer can destroy any nation on earth as a functional society as do our stealth bombers the B2 but it will take more than one. Our B52s can do the same with stand off cruise missiles.
Stealth is great in fighters that are fighting a non nuclear foe. If the foe is nuclear, it does not make much difference as the battle will be decided with nuclear weapons on the cities and military installations of each
If I’m not mistaken, the F-22 frame can’t handle carrier requirements.
F-22 is generations ahead of anything else out there.
It is stealth, the ability to go undetected (RCS for a single F-22 is about the size of a small bird).
You have to “see” the target to kill it. F-22 stealth makes it effectively invisible, therefore the enemy can’t see the jet, can’t get a lock, can’t get a heater shot due to dispersion of the IR plume. And the enemy will die before they even know they are being shot at. Can you “see” the jet visually? Yes, but you must survive to the merge, and that is unlikely.
Red Flag discussion regarding the F-22 and F-15/F-16 and Russian jets:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2siH9W5P4E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfXBoeV86Yo