I remember being invited to Edwards Air Force base to see the first public display of the F-22 Raptor fighter jet.It was an impressive display as the then-secretive Lockheed Martin aircraft put on quite the show, and I got to speak to the pilot after — with a USAF press watchdog standing right next to him, to make sure nothing bad was said.No matter what I asked, I got the same answer. It was a fantastic, fun jet to fly, and it will give the service air superiority.In other words, the next biggest thing since sliced bread. OK, whatever.About 195 Raptors rolled off the Lockheed Martin assembly line in the late 1990s and early 2000s.And while it remains the one of the most powerful and sophisticated fighters in the world, it also apparently has weaknesses. Keenly aware of the F-22's limitations — especially with regard to its astronomical cost — the air force moved to hasten the twin-engine, single-seat jet to an early demise.Only to do an extraordinary about face.Less than a year ago, the air force was asking to cut 32 early model F-22s from its meagre 183-Raptor inventory. Then in early March this year, the fighter was dubbed its “highest priority,” reports Forbes.How did that happen? One word, "China." The great power competition that is looming large.Referencing the hectic military competition with China, Air Force acquisition chief, Andrew Hunter, said at that time, “(The) F-22 is a critical capability. So what’s my highest priority in the near term for that great power competition? I’d probably put F-22 at the top.”Hunter’s remarks opened to keeping and upgrading an unknown number of the older F-22s, Forbes reported.The jet that never got the respect it deserved was getting a life extension..The comments were a complete reversal of the Air Force’s years-long position on the 5th generation air superiority fighter, the F-35, which took years to develop and cost an estimated $1 trillion US dollars.In saying that, the 6th generation air superiority follow-on to the F-22 has made its first flight, signalling that a successor to the F-22 was at the stage of experimental hardware, not just a concept.On June 17, Lockheed Martin announced that the USAF's F-22 Raptors had reached the remarkable landmark of 500,000 flight hours."As we celebrate 500,000 flight hours, we look ahead to the continued evolution of not only the F-22 but air combat in its entirety," Lockheed Martin said in a June 17 release."The ongoing modernization efforts and strategic upgrades being made to the F-22 today will further enhance its capabilities, while also enabling the next generation of air dominance."One of the most most expensive fighter aircraft ever produced (US$150 million apiece), many aspects of its avionics remain classified to this day.Adding to its mystique and lethality, the F-22 has more than proven its superiority in various exercises and simulations. According to EurAsian Times, at Exercise Northern Edge 2006, the F-22 demonstrated its prowess against as many as 40 “enemy aircraft” during simulated battles.Raptor pilots achieved an astounding 108-to-zero “kill” ratio against the best F-15, F-16, and F/A-18 jets, showcasing their dominance in the sky.While the stealthy F-22 has ZERO kills in actual air-to-air combat, it has shown its ability to evade and destroy enemy surface-to-air missiles, boasting an impressive 97 percent mission capability rate. It also took part in ground attack sorties during Operation Inherent Resolve, the American-led intervention in Syria, National Interest reported.Raptors first dropped 1,000-pound GPS-guided bombs on Islamic State targets near the Tishrin Dam in September 2014. It continued to operate in a ground attack role through July 2015, conducting a total of 204 sorties over Syria, dropping 270 bombs at some 60 locations..While no fighter is absolutely perfect — there have been 16 crashes — when it comes to combat aircraft, the F-22 may be as close as it gets.As for strengths and weaknesses, the Raptor’s stealth is complemented by its speed.Supercruise — the ability to cruise supersonically without afterburners — allows the F-22 to close massive distances at its leisure, Simple Flying reported. Moving at Mach 1.6 and nearly invisible, the Raptor can create multiple firing solutions and coordinate them long before an opponent even knows it exists.With 18,000 lb (8,165 kg) of internal fuel and an additional 8,000 lb (3,629 kg) in two 600-gallon external tanks, the jet has a ferry range of over 1,600 nm (1,840 m; 2,960 km).Finally, the F-22 was designed to fight Soviet aircraft over Eastern Europe, within easy range of allied facilities, Simple Flying reported. The next fight could take place hundreds or thousands of miles from land bases in highly contested air and cyberspace.Air-to-air refuelling is hazardous in a contested environment, and external fuel pods present too great a radar signature. The F-22’s fuel capacity, while far superior to that of many similar fighters, is still unable to match that new requirement.No new F-22s will ever be built. The production lines that shut down in the 2000s cannot be reinstated without massive investment and spare parts cannot be sourced.Senior air force leaders have described the F-22 program now through 2030 as a “bridge” to the Next-Generation Air Dominance Fighter and its family of "loyal wingman" systems, and several have said that the technologies being developed for the F-22 in its waning service years will be directly applicable to NGAD.The air force's planned budget assumes the F-22 fleet will be reduced by 32 aircraft, to about 153 airplanes, but only 142 will receive the full lineup of improvements, Air & Space Forces Magazine reported.Documents show the air force is giving the F-22 stealthy, range-extending drop tanks, infrared sensors, friend-or-foe improvements, better Link 16 connectivity, software upgrades, and electronic warfare and navigation enhancements, as well as new weapons and hardware changes.Pentagon officials agreed that, despite the urgency of the threat, it would be foolish to upgrade the F-22s at such expense and retire them a few months later.One said that the timing of the F-22’s retirement “hasn’t been decided … and it depends on progress with NGAD,” and other factors.
I remember being invited to Edwards Air Force base to see the first public display of the F-22 Raptor fighter jet.It was an impressive display as the then-secretive Lockheed Martin aircraft put on quite the show, and I got to speak to the pilot after — with a USAF press watchdog standing right next to him, to make sure nothing bad was said.No matter what I asked, I got the same answer. It was a fantastic, fun jet to fly, and it will give the service air superiority.In other words, the next biggest thing since sliced bread. OK, whatever.About 195 Raptors rolled off the Lockheed Martin assembly line in the late 1990s and early 2000s.And while it remains the one of the most powerful and sophisticated fighters in the world, it also apparently has weaknesses. Keenly aware of the F-22's limitations — especially with regard to its astronomical cost — the air force moved to hasten the twin-engine, single-seat jet to an early demise.Only to do an extraordinary about face.Less than a year ago, the air force was asking to cut 32 early model F-22s from its meagre 183-Raptor inventory. Then in early March this year, the fighter was dubbed its “highest priority,” reports Forbes.How did that happen? One word, "China." The great power competition that is looming large.Referencing the hectic military competition with China, Air Force acquisition chief, Andrew Hunter, said at that time, “(The) F-22 is a critical capability. So what’s my highest priority in the near term for that great power competition? I’d probably put F-22 at the top.”Hunter’s remarks opened to keeping and upgrading an unknown number of the older F-22s, Forbes reported.The jet that never got the respect it deserved was getting a life extension..The comments were a complete reversal of the Air Force’s years-long position on the 5th generation air superiority fighter, the F-35, which took years to develop and cost an estimated $1 trillion US dollars.In saying that, the 6th generation air superiority follow-on to the F-22 has made its first flight, signalling that a successor to the F-22 was at the stage of experimental hardware, not just a concept.On June 17, Lockheed Martin announced that the USAF's F-22 Raptors had reached the remarkable landmark of 500,000 flight hours."As we celebrate 500,000 flight hours, we look ahead to the continued evolution of not only the F-22 but air combat in its entirety," Lockheed Martin said in a June 17 release."The ongoing modernization efforts and strategic upgrades being made to the F-22 today will further enhance its capabilities, while also enabling the next generation of air dominance."One of the most most expensive fighter aircraft ever produced (US$150 million apiece), many aspects of its avionics remain classified to this day.Adding to its mystique and lethality, the F-22 has more than proven its superiority in various exercises and simulations. According to EurAsian Times, at Exercise Northern Edge 2006, the F-22 demonstrated its prowess against as many as 40 “enemy aircraft” during simulated battles.Raptor pilots achieved an astounding 108-to-zero “kill” ratio against the best F-15, F-16, and F/A-18 jets, showcasing their dominance in the sky.While the stealthy F-22 has ZERO kills in actual air-to-air combat, it has shown its ability to evade and destroy enemy surface-to-air missiles, boasting an impressive 97 percent mission capability rate. It also took part in ground attack sorties during Operation Inherent Resolve, the American-led intervention in Syria, National Interest reported.Raptors first dropped 1,000-pound GPS-guided bombs on Islamic State targets near the Tishrin Dam in September 2014. It continued to operate in a ground attack role through July 2015, conducting a total of 204 sorties over Syria, dropping 270 bombs at some 60 locations..While no fighter is absolutely perfect — there have been 16 crashes — when it comes to combat aircraft, the F-22 may be as close as it gets.As for strengths and weaknesses, the Raptor’s stealth is complemented by its speed.Supercruise — the ability to cruise supersonically without afterburners — allows the F-22 to close massive distances at its leisure, Simple Flying reported. Moving at Mach 1.6 and nearly invisible, the Raptor can create multiple firing solutions and coordinate them long before an opponent even knows it exists.With 18,000 lb (8,165 kg) of internal fuel and an additional 8,000 lb (3,629 kg) in two 600-gallon external tanks, the jet has a ferry range of over 1,600 nm (1,840 m; 2,960 km).Finally, the F-22 was designed to fight Soviet aircraft over Eastern Europe, within easy range of allied facilities, Simple Flying reported. The next fight could take place hundreds or thousands of miles from land bases in highly contested air and cyberspace.Air-to-air refuelling is hazardous in a contested environment, and external fuel pods present too great a radar signature. The F-22’s fuel capacity, while far superior to that of many similar fighters, is still unable to match that new requirement.No new F-22s will ever be built. The production lines that shut down in the 2000s cannot be reinstated without massive investment and spare parts cannot be sourced.Senior air force leaders have described the F-22 program now through 2030 as a “bridge” to the Next-Generation Air Dominance Fighter and its family of "loyal wingman" systems, and several have said that the technologies being developed for the F-22 in its waning service years will be directly applicable to NGAD.The air force's planned budget assumes the F-22 fleet will be reduced by 32 aircraft, to about 153 airplanes, but only 142 will receive the full lineup of improvements, Air & Space Forces Magazine reported.Documents show the air force is giving the F-22 stealthy, range-extending drop tanks, infrared sensors, friend-or-foe improvements, better Link 16 connectivity, software upgrades, and electronic warfare and navigation enhancements, as well as new weapons and hardware changes.Pentagon officials agreed that, despite the urgency of the threat, it would be foolish to upgrade the F-22s at such expense and retire them a few months later.One said that the timing of the F-22’s retirement “hasn’t been decided … and it depends on progress with NGAD,” and other factors.
