An F-22 Raptor flying at Mach 1.5 released a 1,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munition from 50,000 feet over the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico last month, destroying a small ground target from a range of 24 miles, said Lockheed Martin and Boeing officials earlier this week. Lt. Col. Raymond Toth, 411th Flight Test Squadron commander, said that the May test was the highest and fastest JDAM drop yet performed with the new fifth-generation fighter, proving it’s “true in the air-to-ground mission,” as well as air-to-air.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
