Bombs And Tanks Away

Certification testing of the F/A-22's primary air-to-ground armament began on 15 April at Edwards AFB, California. Following successful ground jettison tests of 1,000-pound GBU-32 satellite-guided Joint Direct Attack Munitions, the first JDAM separation test took place during a Raptor 03 flight on 23 April. The day before, in-flight separation testing of the F/A-22's 600-gallon external tanks began. A total of sixteen tanks will be dropped during eight in-flight tests. The tanks will be used on long-range ferry missions or when stealth is not essential.

[Editor's note: These photos were inadvertently misidentified in the last issue of Code One.]

Photo By Kevin Robertson