Lockheed Martin has delivered the first F-22 Raptor aircraft back to the U.S. Air Force ahead of schedule, with work completed at the company’s Inlet Coating Repair (ICR) Speedline facility.
The U.S. Air Force contracted Lockheed Martin to establish the Speedline in Marietta, Georgia, in August 2016 and the first F-22 arrived there in early November. A second aircraft arrived in early December 2016 and a third in late January 2017.
Lockheed Martin is on contract to perform this work on a total of 12 aircraft and a follow-on contract is anticipated.
Additionally, Lockheed Martin is providing modification support services, analytical condition inspections, radar cross section turntable support and antenna calibration.
Periodic maintenance is required to maintain the special exterior coatings that contribute to the 5th Generation Raptor’s Very Low Observable (VLO) radar cross-section.
The increase in F-22 deployments, including ongoing operational combat missions, has increased the demand for ICR.
(F-22 video showing features of this 5th generation fighter, courtesy of Lockheed Martin and YouTube)
“The inlet coatings work, coupled with future improved Low Observable materials and repair improvements, is a critical part of increasing the 325th Fighter Wing’s repair capacity and combat readiness,” said Lt. Col. Argie Moore, deputy commander of the 325th Maintenance Group.
Lockheed Martin provides sustainment services to the F-22 fleet through a U.S. Air Force-awarded Performance Based Logistics contract and a comprehensive weapons management program called Follow-on Agile Sustainment for the Raptor (FASTeR).
As the original equipment manufacturer and support integrator for the F-22 Raptor, Lockheed Martin works closely with the U.S. Air Force to integrate a total life-cycle systems management process to ensure the Raptor fleet is ready to perform its mission.
Two main areas of F-22 sustainment work include:
RAMMP, or the Reliability and Maintainability Maturation Program
- In RAMMP, our team is constantly inspecting data from the field of operations and engineering solutions to increase aircraft availability for combat.
Modernization Lines
- Lockheed Martin’s Palmdale, California, facility and Ogden Air Logistics Center at Hill AFB, Utah, house the only two F-22 Modernization lines, or Mod Lines, in the world. At these centers of excellence, we integrate the latest system capabilities keeping the F-22 Air Superiority fighter fleet the most capable fighter on the planet.to our armed forces.
Lockheed Martin F-22 depot work is part of a public-private partnership agreement between the Air Force and Lockheed Martin that has been in place for nearly a decade.
The F-22 Raptor
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the U.S. Air Force, primarily designed as an air superiority fighter, but also has ground attack, electronic warfare and signal intelligence capabilities.
A final procurement tally of 187 operational production aircraft was established in 2009, and the last F-22 was delivered to the USAF in 2012.
