F-22 Student Pilots Train in Georgia

F-22 student pilots from the 325th Fighter Wing at Tyndall AFB, Fla., recently concluded several weeks of training at the Combat Readiness Training Center in Savannah, Ga., according to a Tyndall release. The training offered them more realistic scenarios for their dissimilar air combat drills, along with more overall time in the cockpit compared to their normal training routines, states the March 21 release. Supporting the F-22s were T-38 adversary aircraft from Tyndall, along with F-15s, F-16s, Navy F/A-18s, and KC-135 tankers from nearby bases. Typically, F-22 students fly against the T-38s at Tyndall, home of the Air Force’s F-22 schoolhouse. The addition of the other fighter types presented the F-22 pilots with a more realistic look at how potential threat airplanes might act, said Capt. Christopher Sweeney, an instructor pilot with Tyndall’s 43rd Fighter Squadron. “It was truly an experience no student has had before,” he said. Maintainers were able to generate 45 student missions in two weeks, something that would normally take twice as long, according to the release. For some sorties, the F-22s and F-15s flew on the same team. (Tyndall report by Ashley M. Wright)