The Lockheed Martin-led F/A-22 Raptor air dominance fighter team
has delivered its first aircraft -- Raptor 4012 -- to the U.S. Air
Force's Air Warfare Center (AWFC) with the recent signing of formal
acceptance documents by government officials. The aircraft will
soon be flown to AWFC's 422nd Test & Evaluation Squadron at
Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas (NV).
"Lockheed Martin is proud to deliver the first of several F/A-22
Raptors for use by the Air Warfare Center," said Ralph Heath,
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company executive vice president and
F/A-22 program general manager. This delivery also marks the first
F/A-22 delivery to Air Combat Command, the lead command for
continental U.S.-based fighter, bomber and UAV aircraft operated by
the Air Force.
At Nellis, Raptor 12 -- the twelfth F/A-22 built -- will be used
initially to teach Operational Test pilots and maintenance
personnel how to safely and effectively fly and repair the
aircraft. Eventually, AWFC pilots will use Raptor 12 (Air Force
serial number 00-012) and the other seven F/A-22s assigned to the
unit to develop the tactics, techniques and procedures for the
entire Combat Air Forces (CAF). In addition, these aircraft will be
used to train the initial cadre of Air Education and Training
Command instructor pilots stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base
(FL).
The F/A-22 Raptor is built by Lockheed Martin in
partnership with Boeing, powered by Pratt & Whitney engines,
and made from parts and subsystems provided by approximately 1,200
subcontractors and suppliers in 46 states. Principal aircraft
production activities take place at Lockheed Martin facilities in
Marietta (GA), Fort Worth (TX), and Palmdale (CA), as well as at
Boeing's plant in Seattle (WA). The engines are built by Pratt
& Whitney in East Hartford (CT).
Final assembly and initial flight testing of the Raptor occurs
at the Marietta factory, production headquarters for the F/A-22
program's contractor team. The Raptor's low-observable control
surface edges, antennas and radomes are built in Palmdale, while
its mid-fuselage is built in Fort Worth. Boeing builds the
aircraft's aft-fuselage and wings, while Lockheed Martin is the
program's principal systems integrator.
The Raptor, scheduled to become operational in 2005, has
unprecedented fighter and attack capabilities with its balanced
design of stealth, supercruise speed and extreme agility, along
with advanced integrated avionics and the pilot-friendly cockpit.
These attributes make the Raptor truly transformational and will
support the goal of quick, decisive victory in future conflicts,
saving American and allied lives.
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