Aviapedia

F-22 Raptor Drops First Bomb

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah: “Weapon’s away.” Those two words from Lt. Col. Jim Hecker from 27th Fighter Squadron has marked a new stage in aviation history.

The squadron commander dropped the first bomb - a 1000-pound global positioning system-guided joint direct attack munition - from an F/A-22 Raptor Oct. 18. Shortly it was eight bombs more that followed. All the bombs hit the dummy targets succesfully.

Five F-22 Raptors carrying two bombs each were on duty first day of bombing. Each sortie led to direct hits on targets, though it was first time many of the pilots had performed an air-to-ground mission in the fifth-generation stealth fighter.

It was the first-ever deployment for the Raptors, based at Langley Air Force Base, Va.

Col. Doug Reed, Hill’s 388th Range Squadron commander: “What we saw today was an outstanding display of training and technology”. Observing the first bombing flight through a live television cam, the colonel said: “I could tell it was a successful event, but not where the bombs hit”.

Hill’s Weapons Systems Evaluation Program operators confirmed the bombs not only hit the targets, they “shacked” them. Capt. Shawn Anger, 43rd FS air-to-ground weapons chief: “That’s a fighter-pilot term for when you hit a target dead center - a bull’s-eye. Hit criteria will vary depending on the size of the target and the munitions, but when you put the bomb directly in the center of the target it’s a shack.”

As it was mentioned, nine bombs out of ten hit the target. One weapon wasn’t released from Raptor 43. The fighter’s stores management system, which enables the pilot to release the weapon, received an error message from the bomb’s internal telemetry test package, and automatically aborted the drop exactly as it was designed.

Lt. Col. Pat Minto, 1st FW maintenance squadron commander: “The Raptor’s computer didn’t receive confirmation signals from the bomb indicating it was ready to fire, so the plane wouldn’t let the bomb go. We’re continuing to investigate the details, but initial indications point to a bomb problem, not a plane problem”.

Next bombing day, 19th, was even more successful. Each and every bomb released according to the flight plan and reached the targets. One hit was so extremely accurate that bomb’s target - truck - has bounced off the ground.

Chris Robinson, range operations flight chief: “These concrete-filled inert bombs don’t carry any explosive material, but when you’re so accurate, you don’t need the explosion to see the kill.”

Source: www.defencetalk.com