The F/A-22 Raptor on 
Aug. 29 demonstrated its air-to-ground capability, launching two Joint Direct Attack Munitions on the Utah Test and Training Range—the culminating slice of a mission scenario, not the whole pie. It was the first of a series of follow-on operational test and evaluation missions that will run through late fall, according to officials with the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev. Each mission may include numerous sorties, all flown in “operationally realistic” scenarios with adversaries, aerial refueling, and ground control intercept, as well as the full maintenance effort needed to produce each sortie.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.