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Japan Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Mitsubishi F-2
Japanese multirole fighter co-developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Lockheed Martin, derived from and enlarged upon the F-16 airframe with a composite wing and indigenous AESA radar. Operated exclusively by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force.
In service since 2000 · 1 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
2,124
km/h
4,000
km range
18,000
m ceiling
8,085
kg payload
0.91
T/W
💲 ≈ $127,000,000 — High historical unit cost reflecting small production run
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
National export licensing
Subject to Japan export-control approval; verify eligibility with the manufacturer.
Channel: Direct commercial / G2G
Fielded & proven
Limited · 1 operator
In service since 2000. Status: active · ~98 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$318M – $445M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost — operating & support dominate over ~30 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
Interoperability
No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.
Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed
Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.
- 2,124 km/h Stronger than 51% of fighters
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 2 Mach Stronger than 57% of fighters
- Range
Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.
- 4,000 km Top 10% of fighters
- Combat radius
Distance an aircraft can fly, complete its mission and return without refueling. Roughly a third of ferry range.
- 830 km Stronger than 42% of fighters
- Service ceiling
Maximum operating altitude. Higher gives energy advantage and sensor horizon.
- 18,000 m Stronger than 72% of fighters
- Thrust-to-weight
Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up.
- 0.91 Stronger than 18% of fighters
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Main armament
Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.
- 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan rotary cannon
- Hardpoints
External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts.
- 13 Top 6% of fighters
- Weapons payload
Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.
- 8,085 kg Stronger than 72% of fighters
Protection
Armor, countermeasures and survivability.
- Countermeasures
Self-protection: chaff, flares, DIRCM, towed decoys, smoke dischargers, jammers.
- J/ALQ-8 EW suite, chaff, flares
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
- Length
Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.
- 15.52 m
- Wingspan
Wingtip-to-wingtip span.
- 11.13 m
- Height
Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles.
- 4.96 m
- Empty weight
Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.
- 9,527 kg
- Combat weight
Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.
- 15,900 kg
- Crew
Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.
- 1
Propulsion
Engine, power and fuel.
- Engine
Powerplant model and type.
- General Electric F110-GE-129 afterburning turbofan
- Engines
Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost.
- 1
- Thrust
Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable).
- 131 kN Stronger than 75% of fighters
- Fuel capacity
Internal fuel volume.
- 4,300 L
- Propulsion type
Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…
- Turbofan
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Radar
Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.
- J/APG-1 or J/APG-2 AESA
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $127,000,000 Bottom 5% of fighters
- Units built
Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.
- 98 Stronger than 26% of fighters
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 1 Stronger than 23% of fighters
Specifications compiled from public Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.
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What is the top speed of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 has a maximum speed of 2,124 km/h.
What is the range of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 has a maximum range of 4,000 km.
What is the weapons payload of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 can carry up to 8,085 kg of weapons payload.
How much does the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 weigh? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 has a combat weight of 15,900 kg.
How many crew does the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 require? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 requires a crew of 1.
What is the main armament of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2's primary weapon is the 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan rotary cannon.
What engine does the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 use? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 is powered by the General Electric F110-GE-129 afterburning turbofan.
What is the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 used for? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 is a fighter aircraft typically used for multirole combat, close air support, air superiority.
How many countries operate the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 is operated by 1 countries.
How much does the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 cost? +
The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi F-2 has an approximate unit cost of 127,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration — treat this as directional.
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