Tag Archives: F-22 Raptor

Air, Air Force, Fighters, Unmanned Systems

gatewayONE

On December 9, the joint force took another step toward achieving a military Internet of Things (IoT) when fifth-generation aircraft overcame long standing connectivity limitations to share actionable operational data in their native secure digital «languages» with and through multiple sources for the first time.

gatewayONE
A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor and F-35A Lightning II fly in formation with the XQ-58A Valkyrie low-cost unmanned aerial vehicle over the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground testing range, Arizona, during a series of tests December 9, 2020. This integrated test follows a series of gatewayONE ground tests that began during the inaugural Department of the Air Force on-ramp last year in December (U.S. Air Force photo by Technical Sergeant James Cason)

This test was the latest demonstration of the transformative warfighting impact of the open architecture underpinning the Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS).

The joint effort included a Marine Corps F-35B variant and the Air Force F-22 Raptor and F-35A Lightning II variant flying with an attritableONE XQ-58A Valkyrie for the first time. The primary tests took place at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona with preparatory tests at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

Lieutenant Colonel Kate Stowe, gatewayONE program manager at the Air Force Lifecycle Management Center, set out with 18 test objectives and successfully achieved nine.

«Testing is all about pushing the limits of what’s possible, finding out where the toughest challenges are, and adapting creative solutions to overcoming difficult problem sets», Stowe said. «The real win of the day was seeing the gatewayONE establish a secure two-way translational data path across multiple platforms and multiple domains. That’s the stuff ABMS is all about».

Fifth-generation fighters are typically limited to communicating with each other and to command and control centers via legacy tactical data connections, not in their native, but incompatible digital «languages» – Multifunctional Advanced Data Link for F-35 Lightning II and Intra-Flight Data Link for the F-22 Raptor. Not only can gatewayONE translate between those formats, in this test it moved data that is normally relegated to an operations center or tactical ground node, directly pushing it into the cockpit at the edge of the multi-domain battlespace for the first time.

Additionally, the test pushed the position data of each platform outside of the aircraft’s close-proximity formation through gatewayONE, which enables battle managers on the ground or in the air to better orchestrate operations. The gatewayONE payload also passed tracks or cues from ground operators to both fighters and passed a cue from the F-35A Lightning II to the F-22 Raptor for the first time. These bi-directional communications pathways occurred in the platforms’ native digital «languages» and the data was displayed through the aircrafts’ organic systems.

«The gatewayONE payload really showed what’s possible and helped us take a big step towards achieving (Joint All-Domain Command and Control)», said Lieutenant Colonel Eric Wright, a 59th Test and Evaluation Squadron F-35 pilot. «This critical capability provides additional connections between our advanced fighters and other forces and battle managers across all domains. The future is promising, and gatewayONE will allow the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II to connect to and feed data sources they’ve never before accessed. Those future connections will bring additional battlefield awareness into the cockpit and enable integrated fires across U.S. forces».

Additional successful tests during the week included establishing a communications pathway between the KC-46 Pegasus tanker and a ground node using commercial internet routing standards over the Tactical Targeting Network Technology waveform and the F-35B Lightning II sending full-motion video to a ground controller.

«If fifth-generation platforms are going to be quarterbacks of a joint-penetrating team, we have to be able to communicate with those quarterbacks in an operationally relevant manner and enable data sharing between them, to them, and from them. For years people said it couldn’t be done. Today the team turned another page toward making the impossible possible», said Preston Dunlap, Air and Space Force’s chief architect. «In just 12 months, the team has opened the door to a world where we can put the power of an operations center into the cockpit at the tactical edge».

The December 9 flight test included the attritableONE platform, also known as the XQ-58 Valkyrie, a lower-cost, unmanned, aerial vehicle. The rocket-launched Valkyrie successfully conducted a semi-autonomous flight alongside the F-22 Raptor and F-35s for the first time. The gatewayONE payload was integrated into the Valkyrie for its maiden voyage with the fifth-generation fighters to conduct an initial test of gateway capabilities from an attritable platform; however, shortly after takeoff, the communications payloads lost connectivity and those test objectives were unable to be accomplished.

The acquisition team – comprised of Air Force Research Laboratory and Air Force Life Cycle Management Center personnel working in conjunction with Eglin Air Force Base, Florida’s 46th Test Squadron – came together to make this test a success and empower the platforms involved with capability desired by the warfighter and operator.

This integrated test follows a series of gatewayONE ground tests that began during the inaugural Department of the Air Force architecture on-ramp last year in December.

ABMS is the Air Force and Space Force’s priority program to develop the military’s first Internet of Things and is the services’ primary contribution to Joint All-Domain Command and Control, a Defense Department-led effort to securely connect all elements of the U.S. military–every sensor and shooter–across land, air, sea, space and cyberspace.

Air Force, Fighters

CRIIS on F-22

The 411th Flight Test Squadron in conjunction with the 412th Range Squadron achieved the first successful flight of the Common Range Integrated Instrumentation System (CRIIS) at Edwards Air Force Base, California, August 5. This event marked the first flight of the CRIIS at the Edwards Flight Test Range, and it was also the first flight on a fifth-generation fighter platform.

An F-22 Raptor assigned to the 411th Flight Test Squadron flies over Edwards Air Force Base, California, in 2018. The 411th FLTS successfully integrated the Common Range Integrated Instrumentation System (CRIIS) during a test flight August 5 (Photo courtesy of Christopher Higgins, Lockheed Martin)

«This successful CRIIS flight test ensures that the 412th Range Squadron will achieve Initial Operating Capability (IOC) for CRIIS and continue the legacy of providing leading edge Time-Space-Position Information (TSPI) capability for Edwards Flight Test Range customers that was started almost 30 years ago with the IOC of the nation’s first Advance Range Data System (ARDS) Global Position System», said Randall Heiling, 412th Range Squadron’s master architect.

CRIIS is a tri-service Test and Evaluation range system designed to replace the aging ARDS. The CRIIS system can downlink and relay aircraft TSPI, as well as other aircraft data to a test range ground station.

«CRIIS will enable F-22 Raptor flight testing for the foreseeable future», said Zachary Rumble, 775th Test Squadron, and F-22 Raptor Navigation Subject Matter Expert. «In initial testing, CRIIS appears to be more accurate than the legacy ARDS plate, with more room for growth».

Recent CRIIS flight testing has proven the ability of the system to record highly accurate TSPI on board the F-22 Raptor. A live stream test of CRIIS data from an F-22 Raptor to a mission control room is on track for later this summer.

«The CRIIS is truly a needed upgrade for the test enterprise», said Lieutenant Colonel David Schmitt, 411th FLTS and F-22 Raptor Combined Test Flight Director of Operations. «The ability to record and utilize TSPI in real-time is a foundational piece of what we do. It is a critical enabler, which unlocks many of the tools the experts use to verify the performance of everything from fire control radars, to datalinks, to new or upgraded munitions. This was the first flight at Edwards of what will hopefully be a long legacy of CRIIS performance across the test enterprise».

CRIIS is currently in the final stages of achieving IOC at Edwards, Eglin AFB, Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) Aircraft Division Patuxent River, Nellis Test and Training Range, NAWC Weapons Division (WD) China Lake, NAWCWD Point Mugu, and White Sands Test Center. CRIIS is being deployed on aircraft platforms such as the F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, and F/A-18 Super Hornet. The CRIIS is expected to set a new tri-service standard for test range TSPI instrumentation.

Air, Fighters

Oldest F-22 Raptor

In Greek mythology, a phoenix is an extraordinary bird that is born again, rising from the ashes of its predecessor.

Raptor #4006 takes off for the first time in nearly six years with Steve Rainey, Lockheed Martin F-22 chief test pilot, behind the controls, July 17. The test jet recently completed an extensive refurbishment to get it back in the air. It will now be used as a flight sciences aircraft for the 411th Flight Test Squadron and F-22 Combined Test Force (Courtesy photo by Chad Bellay/Lockheed Martin)
Raptor #4006 takes off for the first time in nearly six years with Steve Rainey, Lockheed Martin F-22 chief test pilot, behind the controls, July 17. The test jet recently completed an extensive refurbishment to get it back in the air. It will now be used as a flight sciences aircraft for the 411th Flight Test Squadron and F-22 Combined Test Force (Courtesy photo by Chad Bellay/Lockheed Martin)

A video aptly titled, «The Phoenix Rises», played at a ceremony held August 27 in Hangar 1635 to celebrate the rebirth of one of the original F-22 Raptors ever built.

Base leadership joined the 411th Flight Test Squadron and F-22 Combined Test Force, along with Lockheed Martin and Boeing representatives, to welcome back to life Raptor #91-4006, which has been on the ground for almost six years.

The fifth-generation fighter was one of the first F-22 Raptors to have avionics installed for testing and has been at the 411th FLTS since it arrived in May 2001.

However, in November 2012, Raptor 4006 needed costly upgrades and the decision was made to put it into storage, possibly never to fly again due to the budget sequestration at the time, according to Lieutenant Colonel Lee Bryant, 411th FLTS commander and F-22 CTF director.

«This was a gainfully employed airplane when she was working», said Steve Rainey, Lockheed Martin F-22 chief test pilot and member of the F-22 CTF. Rainey also emceed the ceremony.

After eventually getting approval and funding from the Air Force to overhaul the Raptor, a «purple» team of Air Force, Lockheed and Boeing personnel worked for 27 months here at Edwards to restore the jet back to flying status. This included 25,000 man-hours and almost 11,000 individual fixes/parts. The completed refurbishment extends the Raptor’s life from 2,000 flight hours to 4,000 FH and gives it newer avionics systems for testing.

Rainey was the first military F-22 Raptor pilot while in the Air Force and has worked on the Raptor program almost since its beginning. It was only fitting that the rise of the new phoenix was completed July 17 when Rainey took the newly refurbished Raptor to the sky for its «second first flight».

Raptor 4006 is currently the oldest flying F-22. It will now be used as a flight sciences aircraft, which will be an integral part of F-22 fleet modernization.

«It increases our test fleet from three to four giving us another flight sciences jet», said Bryant. «This will help us tackle the expanding F-22 modernization program».

Brigadier General E. John Teichert, 412th Test Wing commander, said he has flown 4006 numerous times when was assigned to the 411th FLTS as a project pilot and later as a squadron commander.

«Our warfighter needs her back flying again», said Teichert.

Today, the Air Force has 183 Raptors in its inventory and boasts that the F-22 cannot be matched by any known or projected fighter aircraft.

The F-22 Raptor’s combination of stealth, supercruise capability, maneuverability and integrated avionics, coupled with improved supportability, represents an exponential leap in warfighting capabilities from previous generations of fighters. The Raptor performs both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions allowing full realization of operational concepts vital to the 21st century Air Force.

https://www.edwards.af.mil/News/Video/videoid/622051/
The Phoenix Rises

Air Force

Inlet Coating Repair

Lockheed Martin Corp. completed the first F-22 Raptor at the company’s Inlet Coating Repair (ICR) Speedline facility and delivered the aircraft back to the U.S. Air Force ahead of schedule.

Technicians inspect an F-22 Raptor at the F-22 Speedline in Marietta, Georgia (Lockheed Martin photo by Andrew McMurtrie)
Technicians inspect an F-22 Raptor at the F-22 Speedline in Marietta, Georgia (Lockheed Martin photo by Andrew McMurtrie)

The U.S. Air Force contracted Lockheed Martin to establish the Speedline in Marietta, Georgia, in August 2016 and the first F-22 Raptor arrived there in early November 2016. A second aircraft arrived in early December 2016 and a third in late January 2017. Lockheed Martin is on contract to perform this work on a total of 12 aircraft and a follow-on contract is anticipated. Additionally, Lockheed Martin is providing modification support services, analytical condition inspections, radar cross section turntable support and antenna calibration.

Periodic maintenance is required to maintain the special exterior coatings that contribute to the 5th Generation Raptor’s Very Low Observable (VLO) radar cross-section. The increase in F-22 Raptor deployments, including ongoing operational combat missions, has increased the demand for ICR.

«The inlet coatings work, coupled with future improved Low Observable materials and repair improvements, is a critical part of increasing the 325th Fighter Wing’s repair capacity and combat readiness», said Lieutenant Colonel Argie Moore, deputy commander of the 325th Maintenance Group.

Lockheed Martin provides sustainment services to the F-22 Raptor fleet through a U.S. Air Force-awarded Performance Based Logistics contract and a comprehensive weapons management program called Follow-on Agile Sustainment for the Raptor (FASTeR). As the original equipment manufacturer and support integrator for the F-22 Raptor, Lockheed Martin works closely with the U.S. Air Force to integrate a total life-cycle systems management process to ensure the Raptor fleet is ready to perform its mission.

Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor depot work is part of a public-private partnership agreement between the Air Force and Lockheed Martin that has been in place for nearly a decade.

 

About the F-22 Raptor

The F-22 Raptor defines air dominance. The 5th Generation F-22’s unique combination of stealth, speed, agility, and situational awareness, combined with lethal long-range air-to-air and air-to-ground weaponry, makes it the best air dominance fighter in the world.

 

General Characteristics

Primary Function Air dominance, multi-role fighter
Contractor Lockheed-Martin, Boeing
Crew 1
Length 62 feet/18.90 m
Height 16.7 feet/5.09 m
Wingspan 44.5 feet/13.56 m
Wing area 840 feet2/78.04 m2
Horizontal tail span 29 feet/8.84 m
Weight empty 43,340 lbs/19,700 kg
Maximum take-off weight 83,500 lbs/38,000 kg
Internal fuel 18,000 lbs/8,200 kg
Fuel Capacity with 2 external wing tanks 26,000 lbs/11,900 kg
Speed Mach 2 class
Ceiling >50,000 feet/15,000 m
Range* >1,600 NM/2,963 km
Power plant Two F119-PW-100 turbofan engines with two-dimensional thrust vectoring nozzles
Armament One M61A2 20-mm cannon with 480 rounds, internal side weapon bays carriage of 2 AIM-9 infrared (heat seeking) air-to-air missiles and internal main weapon bays carriage of 6 AIM-120 radar-guided air-to-air missiles (air-to-air loadout) or two 1,000-pound GBU-32 JDAMs and two AIM-120 radar-guided air-to-air missiles (air-to-ground loadout)
Unit Cost $143 million
Initial operating capability December 2005
Inventory Total force, 183

* With 2 external wing tanks

 

Air Force

Through LEXIOS

Northrop Grumman Corporation and the U.S. Air Force have achieved the first integration of fifth- and fourth-generation fighter aircraft – a critical capability to prevail in combat – during a Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) training event. As part of Distant Frontier training at the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, Northrop Grumman integrated two virtual F-22 Raptor fifth-generation fighters to fly and train alongside four live fourth-generation F-16 Fighting Falcons.

An F-22A Raptor, assigned to the 27th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis
An F-22A Raptor, assigned to the 27th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis

The F-16 aircraft were from the Air Force’s 80th Fighter Squadron based at Kunsan Air Base, Korea, operating out of Eielson Air Force Base (AFB). The F-22s were operated by members of the 90th Fighter Squadron from simulators at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. They trained for air-to-air combat against four live F-16s from the 18th Aggressor Squadron based at Eielson Air Force Base.

«The 353rd Combat Training Squadron with great support from Northrop Grumman is spearheading efforts to integrate LVC elements into day-to-day training. As adversaries continually improve their capabilities, the ability to add LVC is critical to best train and prepare F-22 pilots for dealing with the full complement and degree of threats», said Colonel Brian E. Toth, the 354th Operations Group commander at Eielson Air Force Base. The group’s component units include the 353rd Combat Training Squadron and 18th Aggressor Squadron. «LVC is vital for fifth-generation aircraft. It provides realistic threats and is capable of evolving to meet future training requirements», said Toth.

A predecessor to the large-scale, joint Red Flag-Alaska advanced aerial combat training exercise hosted at Eielson Air Force Base, Distant Frontier provides unit-level training for local and deployed units to enhance tactical interoperability. «No aircraft goes to war alone. With our increasingly joint and networked approach, fighter integration training is extremely consequential to effective execution in combat», said Martin J. Amen, director, satellite and network operations, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems. «Although Distant Frontier is a small-scale training event, with this achievement Northrop Grumman has demonstrated that we can provide full-spectrum combat training and truly transform the way pilots train to fight».

The live F-16 and virtual F-22 participants were linked by the LEXIOS (LVC Experimentation, Integration and Operations Suite) system developed by Northrop Grumman. Through LEXIOS, virtual aircraft operated by actual aircrew members participate in the same airspace alongside their live counterparts via networked simulators at full security levels. Constructive – simulated forces in a simulated environment – components can also be used to augment the battlespace with a full complement of threats.

«The ability to provide combat air forces with LVC training at this level of realism as threat environments become increasingly complex and networking needs escalate is significant, particularly when we can also provide cost savings to the Air Force», said Amen.

Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the Air Force’s Distributed Mission Operations Network (DMON), a system that enables dissimilar aircraft platforms located across the globe to seamlessly interoperate and train together in a realistic virtual environment. Northrop Grumman has been working on the Combat Air Forces Distributed Mission Training Operations and Integration program since its inception in 1999. LEXIOS builds and integrates elements of the DMON and enables live interaction.

The aircraft was variously designated F-22 and F/A-22 prior to formally entering service in December 2005 as the F-22A
The aircraft was variously designated F-22 and F/A-22 prior to formally entering service in December 2005 as the F-22A

 

General Characteristics

Primary Function Air dominance, multi-role fighter
Contractor Lockheed-Martin, Boeing
Crew 1
Length 62 feet/18.90 m
Height 16.7 feet/5.09 m
Wingspan 44.5 feet/13.56 m
Wing area 840 feet2/78.04 m2
Horizontal tail span 29 feet/8.84 m
Weight empty 43,340 lbs/19,700 kg
Maximum take-off weight 83,500 lbs/38,000 kg
Internal fuel 18,000 lbs/8,200 kg
Fuel Capacity with 2 external wing tanks 26,000 lbs/11,900 kg
Speed Mach 2 class
Ceiling >50,000 feet/15,000 m
Range >1,600 NM/1,841 miles/2,963 km
Power plant Two F119-PW-100 turbofan engines with two-dimensional thrust vectoring nozzles
Armament One M61A2 20-mm cannon with 480 rounds, internal side weapon bays carriage of 2 AIM-9 infrared (heat seeking) air-to-air missiles and internal main weapon bays carriage of 6 AIM-120 radar-guided air-to-air missiles (air-to-air loadout) or two 1,000-pound GBU-32 JDAMs and two AIM-120 radar-guided air-to-air missiles (air-to-ground loadout)
Unit Cost $143 million
Initial operating capability December 2005
Inventory Total force, 183
The United States Air Force is the only operator of the F-22. It ordered 8 test and 187 operational production aircraft. In November 2012, it had 184 production aircraft in inventory
The United States Air Force is the only operator of the F-22. It ordered 8 test and 187 operational production aircraft. In November 2012, it had 184 production aircraft in inventory

 

F119-PW-100 Characteristics

Type Twin-spool, augmented turbofan
Thrust 35,000 pound/15,876 kg/156 kN thrust class
Engine control FADEC (Full-Authority Digital Engine Control)
Compression system Dual-rotor, counter-rotating, axial flow, low aspect ratio
·         Three-stage fan
·         Six-stage high-pressure compressor
Combustor Annular, Floatwall configuration
Turbines Axial flow, counter-rotating
·         One-stage high-pressure turbine
·         One-stage low-pressure turbine
Nozzle Two-dimensional pitch-vectoring convergent/divergent
F119-PW-100 Thrust Vectoring Test
F119-PW-100 Thrust Vectoring Test