The US-led strikes in Syria on today served as the first combat test for the F-22 Raptor aircraft, a new generation air-to-air fighter long in the making.
The US military and four Arab allies carried out 14 strikes against Islamist militant groups in Syria that reportedly killed dozens of fighters.
Part of the arsenal used against the Islamist forces included the F-22, a fighter jet which has radar-evading stealth capabilities and flies farther and faster than its predecessor the F-15.
It flies faster than Mach-2, has a range of nearly 3,200 kilometers and can be equipped with an array of advance anti-aircraft missiles.
And the F-22 flies at supersonic speeds without using afterburners, a capability referred to as "supercruise."
It is 19 meters in length and has a 44-foot wingspan and is primarily operated by the US Airforce.
While designed to establish air-superiority, the F-22 has some ground attack capability and can carry two 1,000-pound GBU-32 "smart" bombs or eight smaller munitions.
Due to its speed, sensors and evasion systems, the aircraft can drop its guided bombs 15 miles from a target.
The plane can also also be used for target identification for missile strikes, the role it likely performed in Syria.
The F-22 would be one of the first planes to breach Syrian airspace to neutralize military threats and identify targets.
Billed by Lockheed Martin as providing "air dominance" for the next 40 years, the F-22's production was halted in 2011 after a long and costly production process based out of Marietta, Georgia.
Around USD 70 billion was spent to acquire 195 F-22s in a project that was first launched in 1988 and involved military contractors Boeing and engine-maker Pratt & Whitney as well as Lockheed Martin.
After plane costs soared and problems persisted the F-22 production was suspended in favor of the multi-role F-35 fighter.
The F-35 has been similarly setback by cost overruns, delays and mechanical problems.
