|
The
Beginning...
Development
The F-22 Raptor is a stealth fighter built by Lockheed Martin
Aeronautics. In 1990, the prototype YF-22 Lighting II, named after the
Lockheed P-38 Lightning, won a fly-off competition against the
McDonnell-Douglas YF-23 for the Pentagon's Advanced Tactical Fighter
contract. When the first production-representative plane was revealed
on April 9, 1997, the F-22 became the "Raptor", and this name has stuck
with it even after it entered service in the United States Air Force
on December 15, 2005.
http://historylink101.com/ww2-planes/aa-p-38-lighting.htm
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning
General Information
The F-22 was designed to replace the aging F-15 fighter, and with
production costs set at $338 million per plane, the F-22 comes with
state of the art stealth technology, weapons systems, radar capability,
thrust vectoring capabilities, and tactical mission capabilities. This
means that the plane is worth the price tag. On paper it is not the
fastest fighter in the sky due to it's fixed geometry air inlets which
are designed to increase stealth capabilities. However, it is does have
a
top speed faster than any other fighter flying without afterburners,
cruising at speeds up to Mach 1.72 (1,140 mph). This makes the F-22 the
most fuel efficient jet, which increases it's radius of attack without
having to refuel.
|
