There are 18 F-22As now on duty with the 27th Fighter Squadron, and the unit will have three more by next week. ACC head Gen. Ronald Keys says the unit will reach full squadron strength of 24 airplanes in March, after which ACC will begin equipping the 94th Fighter Squadron with the new stealth fighter. Keys expects the 94th to reach full strength by October 2006. Currently, Lockheed Martin delivers about two to three new Raptors every month. Keys says that rate should continue for the next year or so, then Air Force and company officials will determine a new schedule to sustain the production line through 2010.
As the Air Force readied for its June 21-22 strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, the service was also putting its Agile Combat Employment strategy into action, dispersing combat aircraft and Airmen from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in preparation for a possible Iranian retaliatory attack. Some defense experts say…
