Stealth Vs Stealth: U.S. F-22s dogfight against Norwegian F-35s

Stealth Vs Stealth: U.S. F-22s dogfight against Norwegian F-35s

By Dario Leone
Aug 16 2018
Share this article

“The F-22 is a very formidable opponent,” Royal Norwegian Air Force Major Morten Hanche

Two F-22s from the 95th Fighter Squadron flew to Orland Air Base, Norway, Aug. 15, for a one-day exercise with Norwegian F-35s.

The two U.S. F-22s are among 13 in Europe for a series of short-term deployments in places such as Greece and Poland, with further training missions planned in undisclosed locations in coming days.

As reported by Reuters, Colonel Leslie Hauck, chief of the fifth generation integration division at the U.S. Air Force’s headquarters in Europe, said that even if the Norwegian deployment lasted just one day it will lay the groundwork for NATO allies as they work to integrate their stealth warfare capabilities.

Growing numbers of Lockheed Martin F-35s are arriving in Europe as the world’s most advanced warplane and most expensive weapons program matures following a raft of cost increases and technical challenges in its early years.

“Every training opportunity that we have betters our readiness for any potential adversary of the future,” Hauck said at the Orland air base, already home to six of Norway’s expected 52 F-35s.

Hauck leads a new office at Ramstein Air Base in southwestern Germany, that is working to ensure a smooth transition for some 40 F-35s due to be on site in Europe by year end. The first U.S. F-35s are set to arrive in 2021.

Stealth Vs Stealth: U.S. F-22s dogfight against Norwegian F-35s
This print is available in multiple sizes from AircraftProfilePrints.com – CLICK HERE TO GET YOURS. F-22A Raptor 192nd Fighter Wing, 149th Fighter Squadron, FF/04-4082 – Langley AFB, VA – 2014

Next month, a group of senior officials from the U.S. and seven other F-35 operator countries – Norway, Denmark, Italy, Turkey, Israel, Britain and the Netherlands – will meet to compare notes on the new warplane, which was first used in combat by Israel in May.

Actually the U.S. already has more than 150 of the aircraft, whose sensors pilots say give them the most extensive overview about a battlefield of any combat jet available.

Royal Norwegian Air Force Major Morten Hanche, who piloted one of the Norwegian F-35s, said the mock fight with the F-22s was great practice, especially since the F-35s generally surprise and overpower other non-stealthy aircraft.

He declined to name the winning aircraft, saying only: “The F-22 is a very formidable opponent.”

A claim confirmed by Jeffrey Parker, former U.S. Air Force (USAF) fighter pilot and CEO of Airborne Tactical Advantage Company (ATAC), who said last year that “The Raptor is such an uneven fight, that if you send out two Raptors against anything else, there’s no challenge, no work for the pilots to do. For a ‘two-ship’ they want 12 bandits.”

Lockheed Martin to offer Japan hybrid of F-22 and F-35

We are looking forward to the outcome of the mock dogfights.

Photo credit: Senior Airman Preston Cherry / U.S. Air Force and Airwolfhound from Hertfordshire, U.K. via Wikipedia

Artwork courtesy of AircraftProfilePrints.com


Share this article

Dario Leone

Dario Leone

Dario Leone is an aviation, defense and military writer. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviation Geek Club” one of the world’s most read military aviation blogs. His writing has appeared in The National Interest and other news media. He has reported from Europe and flown Super Puma and Cougar helicopters with the Swiss Air Force.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Share this article


Share this article
Share this article

Always up to date! News and offers delivered directly to you!

Get the best aviation news, stories and features from The Aviation Geek Club in our newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.



    Share this article
    Back to top
    My Agile Privacy
    This website uses technical and profiling cookies. Clicking on "Accept" authorises all profiling cookies. Clicking on "Refuse" or the X will refuse all profiling cookies. By clicking on "Customise" you can select which profiling cookies to activate. We and our selected ad partners can store and/or access information on your device, such as cookies, unique identifiers, browsing data. You can always choose the specific purposes related to profiling by accessing the advertising preferences panel, and you can always withdraw your consent at any time by clicking on "Manage consent" at the bottom of the page.

    List of some possible advertising permissions:

    You can consult: our list of advertising partners, the Cookie Policy and the Privacy Policy.
    Warning: some page functionalities could not work due to your privacy choices