F-22 Milestones - Part 2

22 November 2007: Two Russian Tu-95 Bear-H bombers are intercepted and escorted by two F-22 pilots from the 90th Fighter Squadron at Elmendorf AFB. It is the first operational intercept for the F-22.

12 December 2007: Air Force Gen. John D. W. Corley, commander of Air Combat Command, declares the Raptor has reached full operational capability. The commander’s declaration means the integrated 1st Fighter Wing and Air National Guard 192nd Fighter Wing team at Langley AFB possess sufficient Raptors, equipment, and trained Airmen to be combat capable and deployable.

17 January 2008: Raptor 03 is formally inducted into the National Museum of the US Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB.

2 February 2008: Eight F-22s and 132 Airmen deploy from Elmendorf AFB to Tyndall AFB to participate in Combat Archer, a Weapon System Evaluation Program exercise. The Raptor deployment is the first for members of the 3rd Wing and Air Force Reserve Command’s 477th Fighter Group.

6 June 2008: The third operational F-22 wing stands up in ceremonies at Holloman AFB. The 49th Fighter Wing’s 7th Fighter Squadron will be the first to operate the Raptor at the base in Alamogordo.

8 July 2008: Air Combat Command’s F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team successfully carries out the first Raptor trans-Atlantic deployment. Maj. Paul Moga, demonstration team pilot, flies a practice mission on 11 July at the Royal International Air Tattoo. Moga flies the F-22 again at the Farnborough International Airshow on 14 July.

11 July 2008: An F-22 pilot with the 411th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB carries out the first supersonic release of a 250-pound GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb.

6 April 2009: US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates calls for phasing out F-22 production.

15 November 2009: Six Raptors and 150 Airmen from Langley AFB participate in Exercise Iron Falcon, a multilateral training exercise in the United Arab Emirates. The exercise marks the first F-22 deployment to the Gulf Region.

15 November 2009: Six Raptors and 150 Airmen from Langley AFB participate in Exercise Iron Falcon, a multilateral training exercise in the United Arab Emirates. The exercise marks the first F-22 deployment to the Gulf Region.

21 December 2009: The 8th Fighter Squadron at Holloman AFB receives the first of twenty F-22s. The 8th FS, established in 1941, has had no aircraft assigned to it since the F-117 was retired in 2008.

19 May 2010: Maj. Drew Allen, a test pilot with the F-22 Combined Test Force at Edwards AFB, carries out the first ripple release of four 250-pound GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs.