The F-22 Raptor is the Air Force's newest fighter aircraft. Its <br />combination of stealth, supercruise, maneuverability, and integrated <br />avionics, coupled with improved supportability, represents an <br />exponential leap in warfighting capabilities. The Raptor performs both <br />air-to-air and air-to-ground missions allowing full realizatioA combination of sensor capability, integrated avionics, situational <br />awareness, and weapons provides first-kill opportunity against threats. <br />The F-22 possesses a sophisticated sensor suite allowing the pilot to <br />track, identify, shoot and kill air-to-air threats before being <br />detected. Significant advances in cockpit design and sensor fusion <br />improve the pilot's situational awareness. In the air-to-air <br />configuration the Raptor carries six AIM-120 AMRAAMs and two AIM-9 <br />Sidewinders. The F-22 engines produce more thrust than any current fighter engine. <br />The combination of sleek aerodynamic design and increased thrust allows <br />the F-22 to cruise at supersonic airspeeds (greater than 1.5 Mach) <br />without using afterburner -- a characteristic known as supercruise. <br />Supercruise greatly expands the F-22 's operating envelope in both speed <br />and range over current fighters, which must use fuel-consuming <br />afterburner to operate at supersonic speeds.
