HAWAII AIR NATIONAL GUARD F-22s RESUME FLIGHT OPERATIONS
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII- The Hawaii Air National Guard's (HIANG) F-22s resumed flight operations this afternoon after a four-month stand down. Two of the stealthy fighter jets took off from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam around 3:20 p.m. after being cleared for flight.
For Immediate Release September 21, 2011
HAWAII AIR NATIONAL GUARD F-22s RESUME FLIGHT OPERATIONS
WHAT: F-22 Raptor first flight since May, 2011
WHEN: Wednesday, September 21, 2011
WHO: Hawaii Air National Guard's 199th Fighter Squadron/USAF 19th
Fighter Squadron
WHERE: Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII- The Hawaii Air National Guard's (HIANG) F-22s resumed flight operations this afternoon after a four-month stand down. Two of the stealthy fighter jets took off from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam around 3:20 p.m. after being cleared for flight.
"We have full confidence in the aircraft and are very excited to get them back into the air", said Lt. Col. Chris Faurot, 199th Fighter Squadron Commander. "In the next four to six weeks, we'll walk before we run. We have a plan to have our pilots get comfortable in the aircraft first with some basic missions before moving on into more complicated, more demanding missions".
The commander of Air Combat Command directed a stand-down of the entire Raptor fleet on May 3, 2011 as a safety precaution, following 12 separate reported incidents where pilots experienced hypoxia-like symptoms.
The return-to-fly plan implements several risk mitigation actions, to include rigorous inspections, training on life support systems, and continued data collection.
Since the stand-down, HIANG pilots have been training on simulators. In late 2010, the Hawaii Air National Guard received its first of 20 F-22s.
The Raptors replaced the F-15 Eagle which has been the airframe for the 199th Fighter Squadron since 1987. The HIANG has been flying and maintaining the Raptors in association with the 15th Wing's 19th fighter Squadron of the active duty Air Force.
Video and still photographs of this first flight will be available soon on the HIANG’s 154th Wing DVIDS site: http://www.dvidshub.net/units/154WPA.
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For more information, contact:
Lt. Col. Charles Anthony
Public Affairs Officer
Phone: (808) 733-4258
