![]() But the MOAB hasn't made a comeback - yet. arsenal - the 21,600-pound GBU-43 Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) nicknamed "mother of all bombs" - in Afghanistan in the first-ever use of the munition in combat. Whether commanders will use the Raptors again for another mission in the country remains to be seen.Įarlier this year, the military dropped the most powerful conventional bomb in the U.S. The Raptors are part of the 95th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron out of Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. The F-22s launched from Al Dhafra, where the planes reside for operations in the Middle East. 20 and 21, the Air Force conducted "additional strikes on narcotic facilities using F-16s based out of Bagram and they were supported by the Kandahar-based KC-135s." He added, that throughout the night between Nov. "The KC-135s based out of Kandahar,, provided refueling support for F-16s conducting routine close air support and strike missions that continued in Afghanistan while this new offensive was underway," the spokesman said. The command used tankers in Afghanistan for the F-16s to distribute support, he said. "These aircraft were used to refuel aircraft coming from both locations, as well as fuel other aircraft operating in the theater during" the strikes, between Nov. Refueling tankers - including KC-135 Stratotankers from Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, and KC-10 Extenders from Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates - provided refueling support for the Raptors. "To a commander, it's silly to have a usable asset and not use it just because you think it may be overqualified."į-22s began the mission, Pickart said, and F-16 Fighting Falcons continued the operation as the bombing runs kept rolling. "But if is to be believed, many of them were busy elsewhere," the source said. Granted, the military has a number of aircraft - the F/A-18E/F and F-15 E Strike Eagle - that can drop the GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb, a precision-guided glide bomb developed by Boeing Co. is fighting a war, the analyst added, "it's not about choosing the cheapest weapon - it's about using the one that will get there when you need it with what you need aboard." "We both have a generation of weapons that we haven't used in combat, and the more we can learn about how they actually work as opposed to how they work on our test ranges, the better equipped will be for when it's not a permissive fight." "We're using F-22s in Afghanistan for the same reason the Russians are using their latest bombers and ships and missiles in Syria: Realistic training," the source told on background. ![]() When asked about the strike, Nicholson said the Raptor was employed "because of its ability to deliver precision munitions."īut it's not just about the weapons they employ - it's also extra practice for pilots, according to at least one defense analyst in Washington, D.C. John Nicholson, commander of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission and U.S. The F-22s were joined by B-52 Stratofortresses and Afghan A-29 Super Tucanos to conduct an expanded strike mission - called the new offensive campaign - against the Taliban's revenue stream, said Army Gen. Col Damien Pickart, spokesman for Air Forces Central Command, said in response to an email from .Īt the onset, the decision to use the Raptor seemed puzzling, as the Taliban and militants in region do not have the sophisticated weaponry the aircraft was built to dodge. "We opted to use the F-22 for this operation because of its ability to carry the small diameter bomb that was necessary to keep collateral damage to an absolute minimum, and because the SDBs needed for the operation were located there with the aircraft," Lt. ![]() Did the Air Force Dash Hopes for Building More F-22s?.Why the F-22 Raptor Didn't Get the Air-to-Air Kill in Syria.Air Force's Monthly Bombing Campaign in Afghanistan Hits 5-Year High.While some observers criticized the mission as overkill and a waste of resources, officials inside and outside of the Air Force said it served a purpose by employing particular munitions designed to minimize collateral damage and by offering realistic training to learn more about how the weapon system performs in combat scenarios. Similarly, when the Raptor made its combat debut on Sunday in Afghanistan, the jet conducted a ground-attack mission, pummelling suspected drug labs in the country with small diameter bombs, Air Force officials said. ![]()
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