USA How Lockheed is positioning the F-22 to fly into the 2040s

[Bürküt]

How Lockheed is positioning the F-22 to fly into the 2040s​

​

The Pentagon is spending billions to keep the Raptor ready for battle.​

DAYTON, Ohio—Lockheed Martin officials say they can support the F-22 as long as the Air Force wants to fly it, even if that’s a decade longer than currently planned.


“There's no limitation on the airplane itself that drives it. That will be a decision in terms of force management and how soon any replacements or other technologies might come along, so we're posturing beyond seven years,” OJ Sanchez, vice president of Lockheed’s F-16 and F-22 programs, told Defense One on Tuesday. “We're continuing to think, ‘How do we keep the airplane relevant?’”


Military aircraft tend to stick around longer than expected, Sanchez said, mentioning the F-16—a program that opened a new production line in 2021 for foreign military sales three years after the original line closed. While various allies have expressed interest in buying F-22s, U.S. law prohibits the export of the jet.


“It’s less about how long is it going to be in service and more about the unique capability that it brings to ensure air superiority, wherever it's needed…so the Air Force has asked us to move forward with that modernization program, and then we'll see how long the aircraft endures,” Sanchez said.


The Air Force has signaled its desire to begin retiring its entire fleet of F-22s as soon as 2030. The service has already asked to shed 32 older F-22s in its 2024 budget—a divestment that was blocked by Congress last year.

How Lockheed is positioning the F-22 to fly into the 2040s

The Pentagon is spending billions to keep the Raptor ready for battle.

www.defenseone.com