Larry Lawson–the executive vice president and general manager of the F-22 program for Lockheed Martin–has offered some of the recent performance results of the Fifth Generation stealth fighter. During Operation Northern Edge in Alaska, he said, F-22s dominated air-to-air engagements, even though outnumbered four-to-one by opposing forces composed of F-15C and F-15E Eagles and F/A-18 Hornets. Lawson made his presentation at the Farnborough Air Show. Lt. Col. Wade Tolliver, 27th Fighter Squadron commander, added, “We have been able to show that the integration of the F-22 … can produce a team that is unmatched.” Gen. John Corley, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff, had earlier disclosed by the F-22s posted an eye-watering 180-to-0 record against the opposition.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
