New upgrades to the F-22 Raptor allowed for a 1,000-pound GBU-32 Joint Direct Attack Munition to be dropped on self-generated target coordinates, Pacific Air Forces announced on 19 April 2012. Software and hardware upgrades, part of the F-22 modernization effort known as Increment 3.1, allow for pilots to map the ground using the radar before dropping the munitions. Previously pilots had to rely on outside sources to locate targets and provide coordinates before dropping a weapon. Increment 3.1 drops have, until now, only been accomplished on test missions. The pilot on the milestone mission, which occurred in early April, was from the 90th Fighter Squadron, one of two active duty units at JB Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
