Air Force Raptor fighter starts operational trials, By John J. Lumpkin

Air Force Raptor fighter starts operational trials, By John J. Lumpkin

(EXCERPT) ASSOCIATED PRESS

3:02 p.m. April 30, 2004

WASHINGTON – The Air Force's newest fighter plane has begun a final
stage of flight testing aimed at preparing it for use with combat
units.

This week, the F/A-22 Raptor underwent its first operational trials at
Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Combat pilots will gauge the
performance of the aircraft in 105 simulated missions in testing
through mid-September, Air Force officials said Friday while briefing
reporters at the Pentagon.

They said the plane is ready, and that a series of problems during
development has been solved.

Senior Air Force officials renewed their intense pitch for the plane,
which critics say is too expensive and was designed for a high-tech
enemy – the Soviet Union – that no longer exists. Some have called for
its cancellation.

If that were to happen, new generations of enemy surface-to-air
missiles and fighter jets could render...

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---------------------------
Otis Willie
Associate Librarian
The American War Library
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