F-22 Raptor Archives

Aerospace & Defense

‘It Flew Less than An Hour’: Russia’s MiG-1.44 Stealth Fighter Tried to Be the Mach 2 Fighter the F-22 Raptor Was Destined to Be and Never Had a Chance

Mikoyan began work in 1983, as the Pentagon's Advanced Tactical Fighter program headed toward the YF-22 and YF-23. The Soviet Air Force wanted supercruise,...

Brandon WeichertSeptember 26, 2026

U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, performs for the Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana Air Show, Virginia Beach, Va., Sept. 20, 2026. For more than 70 years, the NAS Oceana Air Show has been a cornerstone of the Virginia Beach community, strengthening the bond between our warfighters and the community we proudly serve. This year’s theme, “Celebrating 250 Years of America,” honors our nation’s founding, its enduring legacy and the generations of men and women who have answered the call to serve and defend it.(U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Cierra Middleton)

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force Built 195 F-22s Instead of 750 and Destroyed the Tooling to Make More — Now China Has Exactly the Air Force the Raptor Was Designed to Defeat

At roughly $140 million a jet, the Raptor was expensive to build and costly to keep ready. Cutting the buy far below the 750...

Caleb LarsonSeptember 25, 2026

U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, flies over Virginia Beach, Virginia, Sept. 19, 2026. The flyover occurred as part of the Naval Air Station Oceana Air Show “Beach Blast”. The event included a free concert with the U.S. Fleet Forces Band, a parachute jump from Skydive Suffolk and flyovers from VFA-106 Rhino Demonstration Team and the F-22 Demo team. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Bowers)

Aerospace & Defense

Stealth Fighter Down: $334,000,000 F-22 Raptor Was ‘Shot Down’ By Navy EA-18G Growler Electronic Warfare Plane

On paper it was a mismatch. The F-22 brings stealth, supercruise, thrust vectoring, AESA radar, and sensor fusion built for first-look, first-shot, first-kill fights....

Harrison KassSeptember 25, 2026

F-22 Raptors from the 1st Fighter Wing and 192nd Fighter Wing, participate in a total force exercise at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, Feb. 28, 2019. Both wings partnered with the 633rd Air Base Wing during the Phase I exercise to showcase their readiness and deployability of the F-22s. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Tech Sgt. Carlin Leslie)

Aerospace & Defense

German Pilots ‘Shot Down’ US Air Force F-22 Raptors in 2012 — They Also Admitted They Couldn’t Get Within 20 Miles of One in Real Combat

Even the Germans who claimed "Raptor salad for lunch" conceded the F-22 dominates at long range. In their after-action report, Maj. Marco Gumbrecht said...

Steve BalestrieriSeptember 25, 2026

U.S. Air Force Maj. Josh Gunderson, F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team commander and pilot, flies a practice demo at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 6, 2019. Representing Air Combat Command, the F-22 Demo Team travels to air shows all across the world showcase the performance and capabilities of the world's premier 5th-generation fighter. (U.S. Air Force photo by 2nd Lt. Sam Eckholm)

Aerospace & Defense

The F-22 was designed for short fights over Europe and the United States built 183 of them; the J-20 was designed for the Pacific, already numbers about 500, and China is adding roughly 120 a year — more than 800 F-35s are in service, and they still cannot reopen a Raptor line

The Germans had advanced aircraft too. They still lost. Mass production is the part of this comparison that actually matters.

Brandon WeichertSeptember 17, 2026

YF-118G Bird of Prey by Boeing Creative Commons Photo

Aerospace & Defense

Boeing Built One YF-118FG ‘Bird of Prey’ for $67,000,000 and Flew It 38 Times at 300 Miles per Hour. It Never Carried a Weapon or a Radar.

The YF-118G design choices are what made it matter. The engine sat in a shielded position so that radar looking head-on never saw the...

Brandon WeichertSeptember 15, 2026

A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor assigned to the 525th Fighter Squadron, 3rd Wing, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, takes off at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Aug. 9, 2021. Approximately 800 Airmen and 35 aircraft participated in Pacific Air Forces’ Dynamic Force Employment operation in Guam and Tinian. The operation focused on projecting forces into the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command’s area of responsibility in support of the 2018 National Defense Strategy, calling on the military to be a more lethal, adaptive and resilient force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Richard P. Ebensberger)

Aerospace & Defense

A Boeing KC-46 Pegasus Boom Jammed in the Receptacle of an F-22 Raptor 100 Miles Off Virginia on July 8, 2025, Struck the Tanker After the Aircraft Separated, and Broke Off Into the Atlantic. The Air Force Put the Damage at $9,980,000.

On May 12 the Air Force and Boeing announced a readiness plan with an unusual first item: five early-production KC-46s that were not due...

Jack BuckbySeptember 13, 2026

A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor, assigned to the F-22 Demonstration Team, executes precision aerial maneuvers during a practice airshow at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, Dec. 5, 2024. The practice session helps ensure the team maintains peak performance and readiness during the off-season. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Nicholas Rupiper)

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force F-22 Raptor Stealth Fighter Holds Speeds Above Mach 1.5 Without Ever Lighting an Afterburner. Its 2 Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100 Engines Make About 35,000 Pounds of Thrust Each, and the Fleet Just Passed 1,000,000 Flight Hours on an Engine Last Built in 2013.

Supercruise is not just engine power. The F-22 carries its weapons internally rather than hung under the wings, so nothing is sitting in the...

Jack BuckbySeptember 12, 2026

U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, performs an aerial demonstration during the 52nd Annual SUN 'n FUN Aerospace Expo in Lakeland, Florida, April 14, 2026. Capt. Le Tourneau showcased the unmatched capabilities of the F-22 to the SUN ‘n FUN crowds by performing multiple series of combat maneuvers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Bowers)

Aerospace & Defense

The 9/11 Attacks Are Why the F-22 Raptor Was Cancelled and the Littoral Combat Ship War Born. The US Military Learned a Painful Lesson

The consequences of 9/11 ran straight into the procurement system. The Navy, unable to explain its role in a war on terror, committed to...

Robert FarleySeptember 11, 2026

U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, performs for the 2026 Cleveland National Air Show in Cleveland, Ohio, Sept. 6, 2026. Le Tourneau showcased the aircraft’s performance capabilities through a series of planned maneuvers designed to highlight its speed, agility and operational employment. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Lauren Diaz)

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force F-22 Raptor Has a Combat Range of About 590 Nautical Miles. China’s J-20 Is Estimated at Around 1,100. New Stealth Fuel Tanks Take the Raptor to 850.

New photographs show the Raptor carrying shaped external fuel tanks and two sensor pods — one apparently housing infrared search and track, the capability...

Isaac SeitzSeptember 11, 2026

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All posts tagged "F-22 Raptor"

Aerospace & Defense

‘It Flew Less than An Hour’: Russia’s MiG-1.44 Stealth Fighter Tried to Be the Mach 2 Fighter the F-22 Raptor Was Destined to Be and Never Had a Chance

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force Built 195 F-22s Instead of 750 and Destroyed the Tooling to Make More — Now China Has Exactly the Air Force the Raptor Was Designed to Defeat

Aerospace & Defense

Stealth Fighter Down: $334,000,000 F-22 Raptor Was ‘Shot Down’ By Navy EA-18G Growler Electronic Warfare Plane

Aerospace & Defense

German Pilots ‘Shot Down’ US Air Force F-22 Raptors in 2012 — They Also Admitted They Couldn’t Get Within 20 Miles of One in Real Combat

Aerospace & Defense

The F-22 was designed for short fights over Europe and the United States built 183 of them; the J-20 was designed for the Pacific, already numbers about 500, and China is adding roughly 120 a year — more than 800 F-35s are in service, and they still cannot reopen a Raptor line

Aerospace & Defense

Boeing Built One YF-118FG ‘Bird of Prey’ for $67,000,000 and Flew It 38 Times at 300 Miles per Hour. It Never Carried a Weapon or a Radar.

Aerospace & Defense

A Boeing KC-46 Pegasus Boom Jammed in the Receptacle of an F-22 Raptor 100 Miles Off Virginia on July 8, 2025, Struck the Tanker After the Aircraft Separated, and Broke Off Into the Atlantic. The Air Force Put the Damage at $9,980,000.

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force F-22 Raptor Stealth Fighter Holds Speeds Above Mach 1.5 Without Ever Lighting an Afterburner. Its 2 Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100 Engines Make About 35,000 Pounds of Thrust Each, and the Fleet Just Passed 1,000,000 Flight Hours on an Engine Last Built in 2013.

Aerospace & Defense

The 9/11 Attacks Are Why the F-22 Raptor Was Cancelled and the Littoral Combat Ship War Born. The US Military Learned a Painful Lesson

Aerospace & Defense

The US Air Force F-22 Raptor Has a Combat Range of About 590 Nautical Miles. China’s J-20 Is Estimated at Around 1,100. New Stealth Fuel Tanks Take the Raptor to 850.

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