"Tyndall F-22s damaged by Hurricane Michael likely fixable," Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says

“Tyndall F-22s damaged by Hurricane Michael likely fixable,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says

By Dario Leone
Oct 17 2018
Share this article

“I’m not ready to say that all the F-22s can be fixed, but our initial review was perhaps more positive than I anticipated … in light of the amount of damage,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis

As reported by Air Force Times, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis sounded optimistic Monday about the chances of repairing an unknown number of F-22s and other aircraft that were damaged when Hurricane Michael battered Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB) in Florida last week.

In a gaggle with reporters on the way to Vietnam, Mattis said that based on the initial review of damaged aircraft, it “looks like all the planes are fixable.” But he cautioned that a deeper inspection of the planes — which, for maintenance or safety reasons, were not flown to different location — is necessary before the U.S. Air Force (USAF) can be sure.

“I’m not ready to say it can all be fixed, but our initial review was perhaps more positive than I anticipated … in light of the amount of damage,” Mattis said.

More than a dozen F-22 Raptor stealth fighters were left behind as Hurricane Michael bore down on Tyndall AFB on Oct. 10, 2018. As we have previously explained, it was initially reported that in Michael’s wake, many of those Raptors were damaged beyond repair, at a cost of more than $1 billion."Tyndall F-22s damaged by Hurricane Michael likely fixable," Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says

A message from someone identifying themselves as a member of the 43rd Fighter Squadron appeared on a Facebook page called Air Force Forum. “Four 43d F-22s were left behind to ride out the hurricane,” the anonymous poster wrote. “One of them was scheduled to leave but GABed [ground aborted] after an issue prior to taxi. The other three were jets that couldn’t be spun up in time to fly.” He pointed out that two had been cannibalized for parts and the others had “issues that couldn’t be fixed. They were in hangars that [they] are usually put in according to hurricane plans.”

He also added that off-duty maintenance crews were recalled to duty “on Monday afternoon to spin up as many jets as they could to fly, with the last ones launched on Tuesday morning.”

However F-22 Raptors stationed at Tyndall AFB that were evacuated to Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, ahead of Hurricane Michael arrived at Langley AFB, Virginia, Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018, where they will operate temporarily and continue to train to provide combat air power for America.

"Tyndall F-22s damaged by Hurricane Michael likely fixable," Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says

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

Photo credit: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Derek Seifert

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.

Error: Contact form not found.


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