F 22 Raptor Fired ‘Record Breaking’ 28 Air To Air Missiles #f22 #f22raptor

The F-22 Raptor Fired ‘Record Breaking’ 28 Air-To-Air Missiles. Teams from the 94th Fighter Squadron and 94th Fighter Generation Squadrons were able to load and fire a record-breaking 28 missiles across an F-22 unit during a weapons test in September, according to a report in Task & Purpose. One of the conditions of the drills was to perform with a reduced ground crew, indicating that the USAF is seriously preparing for operating under constrained logistical and manpower environments, usually a very realistic scenario in war. This assumes particular significance when the F-22 is no longer manufactured with the production lines shut, and the USAF might have to use the fighter judiciously.

Raptor Is The ‘Tip Of The Spear’.
The F-22 would be the United States’ most crucial fighter in challenging Russian air superiority in the event of a war with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While the F-35 is expected to lead the campaign with other F-35s used by NATO partner nations building situational awareness of the complex battlefield, the F-22s are likely to undertake the critical niche air-to-air engagements to degrade the Russian Air Force’s (RuAF) fleet, using its superior stealth. With NATO’s annual nuclear drill Steadfast Noon underway, a group of four F-22s has also arrived at Netherland’s Leeuwarden Air Base, along with F-35 and F-15s. While the F-22s and F-15s will stay at Leeuwarden for about a week, the F-35s will “leave a week later to practice elsewhere abroad,” according to a statement by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Defense. “Dutch and American fighters will be flying several joint exercise missions in the near future. The aim is to integrate weapon systems. It is also about promoting cooperation and deployability between NATO partners,” said a statement from the Dutch MoD (or Ministerie van Defensie).

Largest Missile Barrage.
“At Weapons System Evaluation Program 22.12, the 94th FS and 94th FGS loaded and employed 28 air-to-air missiles, which represents the most missiles loaded and employed by an F-22 unit, during the two-week long exercise,” Tech Sgt. Ceaira Tinsley, a 1st Fighter Wing spokesperson, told Task & Purpose. The report added that all missiles were fired at aerial targets “being flown by drones,” with the total value of all 28 missiles approximately $14 million. The feat was achieved in more than 96 sorties that the units affected through their ‘turnaround’ and maintenance tasks. The current record breaks the previous mark of 22 missiles fired by an F-22 unit in the last Weapons Systems Evaluation Program held in 2014. The unit was from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. The aim of the exercise was logistical, ground crew, and technical readiness, reflected in Staff Sgt. Edgar Baez-Lopez’s assertion about having proved their “unit being prepared” to the USAF leadership. “It basically tells big Air Force that our unit is prepared to deploy and if they did deploy us, how well we would perform compared to other squadrons,” Baez-Lopez said. Baez-Lopez is an aircraft armament systems craftsman with the 94th FGS. The 94th FS and 94th FGS, part of the 1st Fighter Wing located at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia, demonstrated how squadrons prepare and field fighter jets for air-to-air combat. It featured live fire, not just with missiles but with the F-22 Raptor’s Gatling guns. “They also demonstrated a high level of proficiency while shooting the F-22’s six-barrel, 20mm Gatling gun, and the M61A2 Vulcan at the Advanced Gunnery Target System,” said a statement from the Air Combat Command. According to the Air Force, each F-22 Raptor aircraft can carry eight missiles when sent for air-to-air missions – six AIM-120 AMRAAMs and two AIM-9 Sidewinders.

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