Dave Majumdar, National Interest: 20 Years of the Mighty F-22 Raptor Stealth Fighter
The United States Air Force held a ceremony earlier this month to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor’s first flight.
The ceremony was held at Edwards Air Force Base in California on October 19. However, the actual 20th anniversary of the Raptor’s was on September 7. The Raptor first flew on September 7, 1997, when Lockheed Martin chief test pilot Paul Metz took to the air in tail AF 91-4001—the first of nine Engineering Manufacturing Development F-22 that were built—at Dobbins Air Force Base in Marietta, Georgia.
During that first flight, Metz flew the brand new fighter—known simply as ‘Raptor 01” for just under an hour reached 20,000ft. That first flight in 1997 launched the start of long and sometimes difficult flight test program that was—for the time—groundbreaking. Eventually, after an arduous flight test program, Gen. Ronald E. Keys, then commander of Air Combat Command, declared the Raptor as initial operational capable on December 15, 2005.
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More News On The F-22
The F-22 Combined Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., held a ceremony Oct. 19 to commemorate the first flight -- Aerotech News
USAF deploys F-22 Raptors for air training mission in Europe -- Airforce Technology
The U.S. Air Force Is Giving the F-22 a New Job: Sniper -- National Interest
USAF estimates F-22 updates could cost $1.7 billion -- Flight Global
The F-22 Is the World's Most Lethal Stealth Fighter (And Its About to Get Better) -- National Interest
Here's everything you need to know about the F-22 Raptor -- Business Insider
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