Flight Lt. Dan Robinson of the Royal Air Force has been fascinated with aircraft for a long, long time. “I was that kid who always wanted to talk to the pilot,” he said. Now, he can make a boast no other RAF pilot can match: He has completed flight training on a Fifth Generation fighter–the F-22 Raptor. Robinson, currently assigned to the 43rd Fighter Squadron as part of an exchange program had been undergoing two months in the training cycle at Tyndall AFB, Fla. He graduated this week.
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.