- On September 29, 1990, the YF-22 demonstration aircraft took off for the first time.
- The YF-22 would become the F-22, a dominant air-superiority stealth fighter for nearly 30 years.
- Now the F-22’s future is in doubt, with Congress and the US Air Force at odds about its retirement.
The aircraft was the YF-22, the test demonstrator for what would become the F-22 Raptor stealth fighter. It was the second model of the US Air Force’s Advanced Tactical Fighter program to take to the skies, with the test itself the culmination of a nearly 50-month demonstration and validation phase.
Thirty-two years later, the F-22 has proven itself as an air-superiority fighter and inspired and informed the development of other fifth-generation fighter aircraft.
Despite its accomplishments and reputation, Congress and the US Air Force are at odds over the future of one of the deadliest aircraft ever to take to the skies.
‘First look, first shot, first kill’
The Advanced Tactical Fighter program grew out of concerns over Soviet development of new fighter jets, specifically the MiG-29 and Su-27, and advanced surface-to-air missiles in the 1980s.
Air Force officials worried that the new F-15 fighter could become outdated sooner than anticipated and wanted to develop a new fighter that could dominate the skies into the 2000s.
Studies of air-to-air combat in Vietnam, along with data from Korea and World War II, showed that air superiority was most achievable when pilots attacked enemy planes while unseen.
Consequently, it was decided that stealth should be the prime attribute of the Air Force’s next fighter, and that the new jet would be built around the concept of “first look, first shot, first kill.”
ARTICLE CREDIT: https://www.businessinsider.com/congress-and-air-force-are-at-odds-over-f22-future-2022-9
