How the Air Force Designated Its Next Fighter Jet 'F-47'

[douglas9]

I’ve long been fascinated with the military’s naming conventions. More than a decade ago, US Central Command unveiled “Operation Inherent Resolve,” its campaign to defeat the Islamic State. Right after, I filed a Freedom of Information Act request with CENTCOM to find out how the military settled on that name. Two years later, I ended up with an incredible set of documents that detailed the discussions that took place between the Joint Chiefs of Staff, experts and top military brass as they debated three different names for the operation.

They settled on “Inherent Resolve” because it would cover a broader campaign against the Islamic State, according to the documents. It was also chosen because it translated well into Arabic and was “safe enough for Arab and Western Coalition members,” a CENTCOM official wrote in an email.

Fast forward. On March 21, Trump announced from the Oval Office that he directed the Air Force to move forward “with the world’s first sixth-generation fighter jet.” With Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth standing by his side, he touted the new fighter jet’s “speed,” “maneuverability” and “payload,” saying it promises to be something “the likes of which nobody has seen before.”

“Nothing in the world comes even close to it,” Trump said. “It’ll be known as the F-47. The generals picked the title. It’s a beautiful number.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-06-20/air-force-fighter-jet-f-47-how-the-military-aircraft-got-its-name

[Ilsa]

1. What a bunch of suck-ups.

Shameful. I hope the next prez and secdef rename this and other military hardware.

[AltairIV]

2. okay

Designated the Albatross by those in the know.

[Brother Buzz]

3. Not the first time a president named an airplane, but it was not for vanity

How the SR-71 Blackbird Got It's Name

During the 1964 campaign, Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater repeatedly criticized President Lyndon B. Johnson and his administration for falling behind the Soviet Union in developing new weapons.

President Johnson decided to reveal the existence of the Lockheed YF-12A Air Force interceptor, which also served as cover for the still-secret A-12, and the Air Force reconnaissance model since July 1964.

The media transcript given to the press at the time still had the earlier RS-71 designation in places, creating the story that the president had misread the aircraft's designation

Originally designated RS-71, the Skunk Works was forced to change about 29,000 blueprints to SR-71 when Lyndon Johnson turned the letters around during his 1964 announcement acknowledging the existence of the airplane.

But the official transcript shows it wasn't a flub by President Johnson. Supposedly Air Force Chief of Staff General Curtis LeMay preferred the SR (Strategic Reconnaissance) designation and wanted the RS-71 to be named SR-71. Before the July speech, LeMay lobbied to modify Johnson's speech to read SR-71 instead of RS-71.

-more-

https://www.thesr71blackbird.com/Aircraft/Stories/how-the-sr-71-blackbird-got-its-name