"The Lockheed F-117A Blackjet is a single-seat, twin-engine stealth ground attack aircraft operated solely by the United States Air Force (USAF). It was the first operational aircraft initially designed around stealth technology. Also known as the Nighthawk, it has a string of other nicknames. Before it was given an official name, engineers and test pilots referred to it as “Cockroach”, a name that is still sometimes used. As it prioritized stealth over aerodynamics, the first model was nicknamed “The Hopeless Diamond”. It was also called “Wobblin' Goblin” due to its alleged instability at low speeds. Locals in the area around Holloman Air Force Base (AFB) referred to it as simply “Stealth”. The unique design of the F-117A provides exceptional combat capabilities. The aircraft can employ a variety of weapons and is equipped with sophisticated navigation and attack systems. A digital avionics suite increases mission effectiveness and reduces pilot workload. The first Blackjet was delivered in 1982, and the last delivery was in the summer of 1990. The F-117A has been used several times in war. It first saw combat in the United States invasion of Panama, during which two Blackjets dropped two bombs on Rio Hato airfield. During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, F-117As flew approximately 1,300 sorties and scored direct hits on 1,600 high value targets in Iraq. Although the F-117As flew through some of the most heavily defended areas in Desert Storm, not one aircraft was shot down or damaged. "
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"The Republic F-105 Thunderchief, also called as the ""Thud"", was the first single-seat supersonic, all-weather strike fighter-bomber used by the U.S. Air Force. First flown on October 2, 1955, the Thunderchief entered service in 1958. Aside from being the largest, single-engine tactical aircraft in history, the F-105 was notable for its large internal bomb bay and unique swept-forward engine inlets in the wing roots. The wing was highly swept and incorporated low-speed ailerons and high-speed spoilers for lateral control, and a droop-snoot leading edge. Originally designed to deliver nuclear weapons at supersonic speeds, the F-105 Thunderchief, like the B-52, was pressed into service delivering iron bombs to North Vietnam. In this role the F-105 excelled and by the end of 1970 the F-105 had flown 75% of the bombing missions to North Vietnam. With over 20,000 Thunderchief sorties were flown, with 382 aircraft lost (nearly half of the 833 produced) including 62 operational casualties. Although it lacked the agility of smaller MiG fighters, USAF F-105s demonstrated the effectiveness of guns, and were credited with downing 27.5 enemy aircraft. The F-105D variant was the definitive production model of the Thunderchief series. The D-model was an all-weather strike fighter bomber, fitted with monopulse and Doppler radar for night or bad weather operations. This radar was capable of terrain avoidance commands. The original weapons bay, designed for nuclear stores, was sealed and fitted with additional fuel tanks. Bombs were carried on multiple weapons racks on the centerline of the fuselage, and on wing pylons. The aircraft was fitted with a retractable in-flight refueling probe. During the Vietnam War, F-105 units operated from bases in Thailand. First flew on June 9 1959, the F-105D entered service with 335th TFS in 1960. The last F-105D was withdrawn from USAF service on July 12, 1980. A total of 610 D Model of the Thunderchief were built. "
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"The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was a single-engine, high-performance, supersonic interceptor aircraft that served with the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1958 until 1967 and continued in service with the Air National Guard until it was phased out in 1975. Because of its physical appearance and performance, the F-104 has often been called the ""missile with a man in it."" The design was a product of the Korean War, and was unique in several respects. The F-104 Starfighter had its first flight on March 4, 1954 and first introduced on February 10, 1958. The F-104C variant was the tactical strike version of the Starfighter. The first F-104C, unofficially designated YF-104C, took off on its maiden flight on July 24, 1958. The F-104C was powered by a General Electric J79-GE-7 engine rated at 10,000 lb.s.t. dry and 15,800 lb.s.t. with afterburner. This thrust was almost a thousand pounds greater than the -3A/3B of the F-104A/B. This increase in power was made possible by increasing the diameter of the turbine by 3 inches. The F-104C was designed mainly for delivery of tactical nuclear weapons, which it could carry on a centerline pylon attachment which had a 2000-pound capacity. It could carry the Mark 28 and Mark 43 nuclear weapons. Although some references claim that a 225 US gallon drop tank could be carried on this centerline pylon, it was exclusively a weapons pylon and was not plumbed to take fuel ports. The Starfighter was the first aircraft to hold simultaneous official world records for speed, altitude and time-to-climb. It set a world altitude record of 103,395 feet on Dec. 14, 1959 and flown by Captain Joe B. Jordan. This was the first time that an aircraft taking off under its own power exceeded the 100,000-foot mark. During the flight, the aircraft also reached a speed of Mach 2.36 and established a time-to-height record to 30,000 meters (98,425 feet) of 15 minutes 4.92 seconds from brake release. "
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"The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a joint, multinational acquisition program for the United States Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and eight cooperative international partners. It was created to replace various aircraft while keeping development, production and operating costs down. The objective is to develop a technically superior and affordable fleet of aircraft that would be capable of a wide range of missions in a variety of theaters. The program began in November 1996 with a 5-year competition between Lockheed Martin and Boeing to determine the most capable and affordable preliminary aircraft design. On October 26, 2001, the contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin, whose X-35 experimental aircraft outperformed Boeing's X-32. The JSF aircraft design has three variants: conventional takeoff and landing (F-35A), short takeoff and vertical landing (F-35B), and carrier-based (F-35C). The program's hallmark of affordability is achieved through a high degree of commonality among the variants; 80 percent of the parts are shared. The F-35C naval variant will have a larger, folding wing and larger control surfaces for improved low-speed control, and stronger landing gear for the stresses of carrier landings. The larger wing area provides increased range and payload, with twice the range on internal fuel compared with the F/A-18C Hornet, achieving the same goal as the heavier F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The US Navy intends to buy 480 F-35Cs to replace the Hornets. It will also serve as a stealthier complement to the Super Hornet. The F35C is expected to be available beginning in 2012. "
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"The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a joint, multinational acquisition program for the United States Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and eight cooperative international partners. It was created to replace various aircraft while keeping development, production and operating costs down. The objective is to develop a technically superior and affordable fleet of aircraft that would be capable of a wide range of missions in a variety of theaters. The program began in November 1996 with a 5-year competition between Lockheed Martin and Boeing to determine the most capable and affordable preliminary aircraft design. On October 26, 2001, the contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin, whose X-35 experimental aircraft outperformed Boeing's X-32. The JSF aircraft design has three variants: conventional takeoff and landing (F-35A), short takeoff and vertical landing (F-35B), and carrier-based (F-35C). The program's hallmark of affordability is achieved through a high degree of commonality among the variants; 80 percent of the parts are shared. The F-35C naval variant will have a larger, folding wing and larger control surfaces for improved low-speed control, and stronger landing gear for the stresses of carrier landings. The larger wing area provides increased range and payload, with twice the range on internal fuel compared with the F/A-18C Hornet, achieving the same goal as the heavier F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The US Navy intends to buy 480 F-35Cs to replace the Hornets. It will also serve as a stealthier complement to the Super Hornet. The F35C is expected to be available beginning in 2012. "
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An STOVL is an acronym for Short Take Off and Vertical Landing. It is an ability of some aircraft like the F35B to take off from a short runway or take off verticalyy if it doesn't have a very heavy payload and land vertically. This is often accomplished on aircraft carriers through the use of "ski-jump" runways, instead of the conventional catapult system. STOVL use tends to allow aircraft to carry a larger payload as compared to during the VTOL use, while still only requiring a short runway.
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"The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a joint, multinational acquisition program for the United States Air Force (USAF), Navy, Marine Corps and eight cooperative international partners. It was created to replace various aircraft while keeping development, production and operating costs down. The objective is to develop a technically superior and affordable fleet of aircraft that would be capable of a wide range of missions in a variety of theaters. The F-35 Lightning II, which is descended from the X-35, has become synonymous with the JSF program. "
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"The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a joint, multinational acquisition program for the United States Air Force (USAF), Navy, Marine Corps and eight cooperative international partners. It was created to replace various aircraft while keeping development, production and operating costs down. The objective is to develop a technically superior and affordable fleet of aircraft that would be capable of a wide range of missions in a variety of theaters. The program began in November 1996 with a 5-year competition between Lockheed Martin and Boeing to determine the most capable and affordable preliminary aircraft design. On October 26, 2001, the contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin, whose X-35 experimental aircraft outperformed Boeing's X-32. The F-35 Lightning II, which descended from the X-35, has become synonymous with the JSF program. It is a single-seat, single-engine, stealth-capable military strike fighter that can perform multiple roles such as close air support, tactical bombing and air-to-air combat. The name Lightning II was officially announced by the USAF on July 7, 2006, in honor of Lockheed's P-38 Lightning and the English Electric Lightning. Expected to be the largest military aircraft procurement ever, the F-35 will replace a wide range of aging fighter and strike aircraft. It is being designed and built by an aerospace industry team led by Lockheed Martin, with Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems as major partners. While the United States is the primary customer and financial backer of the F-35, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Australia and Turkey have contributed toward the development costs of the program. "
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"The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a joint, multinational acquisition program for the United States Air Force (USAF), Navy, Marine Corps and eight cooperative international partners. It was created to replace various aircraft while keeping development, production and operating costs down. The objective is to develop a technically superior and affordable fleet of aircraft that would be capable of a wide range of missions in a variety of theaters. The program began in November 1996 with a 5-year competition between Lockheed Martin and Boeing to determine the most capable and affordable preliminary aircraft design. On October 26, 2001, the contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin, whose X-35 experimental aircraft outperformed Boeing's X-32. The F-35 Lightning II, which descended from the X-35, has become synonymous with the JSF program. It is a single-seat, single-engine, stealth-capable military strike fighter that can perform multiple roles such as close air support, tactical bombing and air-to-air combat. The name Lightning II was officially announced by the USAF on July 7, 2006, in honor of Lockheed's P-38 Lightning and the English Electric Lightning. Expected to be the largest military aircraft procurement ever, the F-35 will replace a wide range of aging fighter and strike aircraft. It is being designed and built by an aerospace industry team led by Lockheed Martin, with Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems as major partners. While the United States is the primary customer and financial backer of the F-35, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Australia and Turkey have contributed toward the development costs of the program. "
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"The Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 was a prototype fighter aircraft designed for the United States Air Force. It was entered in the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program in the early 1980s, but lost out to the Lockheed YF-22, which entered production as the F-22 Raptor. Two YF-23 prototypes were designed and built by Northrop and McDonnell Douglas as part of the demonstration and evaluation phase of the ATF selection program, which concluded in 1990. One prototype was powered by twin Pratt and Whitney YF119 turbofan engines, while the other was installed with two General Electric YF120 turbofan engines. The YF-23 employed stealth characteristics and was capable of supersonic cruise flight without afterburner. The aircraft achieved a speed of Mach 1.8 during the program. There was no official USAF nickname for the YF-23A, thus the Northrop YF-23A team personnel chose the name “Black Widow II” to commemorate the Northrop P-61 Black Widow, the first American aircraft specifically designed as a night fighter. In April 1991, the Air Force selected Lockheed's YF-22 design for full-scale development. According to the USAF, factors in the selection for production of the F-22 were better design for maintainability, greater potential for future development, and slightly lower cost. Supporters of the YF-23 believe that the YF-23 should have won the ATF competition due to its agility, stealth and greater fuel capacity. "
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"Boeing teamed with Lockheed Martin in the mid-1990s to develop and build the F/A-22, an extremely advanced tactical fighter. It combines stealth, integrated avionics and maneuverability and is intended as a replacement for the F-15 as America's front-line dominance fighter. The first production of F/A-22 was unveiled in April 9, 1997 and it was the first nine flyable F/A-22s built for flight testing. Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Systems is responsible for program management, the integrated forebody (nose section) and forward fuselage (including the cockpit and inlets), leading edges of the wings, the fins and stabilitators, flaps, ailerons, landing gear and final assembly of the aircraft. The company is also responsible for the center fuselage; stores management; integrated navigation and electronic warfare systems; the communications, navigation and identification system and the weapon support system. As of April 2005, Boeing had delivered 61 sets of wings and 66 aft-fuselages, as well as a number of integrated avionics flight-test packages and updates to Lockheed Martin. As a replacement for the F-15C, the fast, agile, stealthy F/A-22 was designed to take over the air superiority role with the Air Combat Command starting in 2005. F-22s demonstrated exceptional performance at joint training exercise Northern Edge in Alaska during June 2006. F-22s also participated in the U.S. Air Force's Red Flag exercise at Nellis AFB, Nevada, for the first time in February 2007 with superb performance in air maneuvers as well as maintenance. Ongoing modernization efforts, including integration of the Small Diameter Bomb, electronic attack capability, synthetic aperture radar and the Coordinate Seeking Weapon, all of which will ensure the Raptor's relevance throughout its 40-year service life. "
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"Manufactured by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, the F-18E Super Hornet is a distinct, evolutionary upgrade to the F-18 designed to serve a complementary role with Hornets in the U.S. Navy. The Super Hornet is equipped with all the capability, flexibility and performance necessary to modernize the air or naval aviation forces of any country. The Super Hornet’s suite of integrated and networked systems provides enhanced interoperability and support for ground forces as well as the overall force commander. On July 24, 2002, the first operational cruise of Super Hornet, F 18E, was with VFA-115 onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). The Super Hornet saw initial combat action on Nov. 6, 2002, when they participated in a strike on hostile targets in the ""no-fly"" zone in Iraq. Built by the industry team of Boeing, Northrop Grumman, GE Aircraft Engines, Raytheon and more than 1,800 suppliers nationwide, the Super Hornet provides the warfighter with today’s newest advances in multi-mission capability and growth for decades to come in mission roles and technology. "
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"The F/A-18 Hornet is a modern all-weather carrier-capable strike fighter jet, designed to attack both ground and aerial targets. It was designed in 1970 for service with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. It has been the aerial demonstration aircraft for the Blue Angels since 1986. The F/A-18's primary missions are fighter escort, fleet air defense, suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD), interdiction, close air support and reconnaissance. Its versatility and reliability have been proven it to be a valuable carrier asset, though it has been criticized due to its lack of range and payload compared to its contemporaries. The F-18, initially known as McDonnell Douglas Model 267, was drastically modified from the YF-17 while retaining the same basic configuration. For carrier operations, the airframe, undercarriage, and arrestor hook were strengthened, folding wings and catapult attachments were added, and the landing gear widened. With redesign of the stores stations and improvements in avionics and multifunction displays, it became possible to combine the A-18A and F-18A into one aircraft. Starting in 1980, the aircraft began being referred to as the F/A-18A, and the designation was officially announced on 1 April 1984. Therefore, F-18 was designated as F/A-18. The Blue Angels first flew three aircraft in formation, then four and currently operate six aircraft per show. The Opposing Solos usually perform maneuvers just under the speed of sound which showcase the capabilities of their individual F/A-18 or F-18 Hornets through the execution of high-speed passes, slow passes, fast rolls, slow rolls and very tight turns. Some of the maneuvers include both solo F-18s performing at once, such as opposing passes (toward each other in what appears to be a collision course, narrowly missing one another) and mirror formations (back-to-back, belly-to-belly, or wingtip-to-wingtip, with one jet flying inverted). On November 8, 1986 the Blue Angels completed their 40th anniversary year during ceremonies unveiling their present aircraft, the sleek McDonnell Douglas F-18 Hornet, the first multi-role fighter/attack aircraft now serving on the nation's front lines of defense since the F-4 Phantom. On December 2, 2004, an accident occurred when pilot Lt. Ted Steelman suffered minor injuries after ejecting from his Blue Angels F-18 approximately one mile off Perdido Key due to mechanical problems and loss of power. The F-18 Hornets has been exported to several nations worldwide."
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"The Thunder Airbirds were the Air Demonstration Squadron of the USAF. The Thunderbirds performed aerobatic formation and solo-flying in specially marked US Jet aircraft. The Squadron was activated, after six months training in unoffficial status on January 1, 1953 as the 3600th Air Demonstration Team based in Arizona. Their debut expedition was flown a week later and began public exhibitions at the 1953 Cheyenne Frontier Days in Cheyenne, Wyoming. By August, the team had flown 26 shows. the first team leader was Major General Dick catledge. the first plane flown by the squadron was the F-84 Thunderjet. The next year, the Thunderbirds performed their first overseas show in South America. the squadron's aircrafts were changed drastically by the years; In 1995, they changed their aircraft to 84-F Thunderstreak; In 1956, they changed it to F-100 superSabre; then the team switched to F-35 Thunderchief after the disbanding of the Skyblazers. The Thunderbirds also faced several disasters and challenges; While practicing the 4 plane diamond loop, four crew members/pilots died and it was due to the pilot's miscalculations. It was then in 1982, that the team switched to F-16A Fighting Falcon. This transition was already under consideration before the Diamond Crash in January 18, 1982. The F-16A was initially equipped with the Westinghouse AN/APG-66 pulse dropper radar, Pratt and Whitney F-100-PW-200, rated at 14,670 lbF (106.0 kN) with afterburner. The USAF bought F-16As with delivery completed in March 1985. The Thunderbirds still continue to fly the F-16 until today. "
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"The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a compact, single-engined jet fighter aircraft manufactured by General Dynamics and later Lockheed Martin for the United States Air Force (USAF). Though designed as a lightweight fighter, it has evolved into a successful multirole aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and has proven its worth in air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack. The Falcon is the largest Western fighter program with over 4,000 aircraft built since its production in 1976. Though no longer produced for the Air Force, it is still being made for export. Its relatively low cost and high performance has made it popular in the United States and allied nations, serving a total of 24 countries. USAF pilots gave the F-16 the unofficial nickname of “Viper” in homage to the fictional Battlestar Galactica starfighter. From the very beginning, the Falcon was intended to be a cost-effective workhorse that could perform various missions. Advanced aerospace science and proven reliable systems from other planes such as the F-15 and F-111 were integrated into the F-16. These simplified the aircraft and reduced its size, weight, purchase price and maintenance costs. Other innovations include a frameless, bubble canopy for better visibility, a side-mounted control stick to ease control while under high g-forces, and a reclined seat to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot. The F-16 has excellent acceleration, being one of the few jets with a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one. It can also be armed with a wide variety of air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles, rockets or bombs. An all-weather capability allows it to accurately deliver ordnance during non-visual bombing conditions. "
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