Where Was The F-22 Raptor Built And Who Made It?
The F-22 Raptor represents the pinnacle of fighter jet technology. It's the fastest, meanest, and stealthiest jet in service. The Raptor can fly over 1,500 mph, twice the speed of sound, and can reach a ceiling in excess of 50,000 feet thanks to two engines that put out a combined thrust of over 70,000 pounds. Despite coming into service all the way back in 2005, the United States Air Force says: "The F-22 cannot be matched by any known or projected fighter aircraft." It's simply the best fighter jet in the world.
While its similarly stealthy cousin, the F-35 Lightning II, has been delivered to a number of air forces and navies around the world, the F-22 Raptor is staying with Uncle Sam. Only the U.S. Air Force flies the Raptor and given that it ended production in 2012, it's unlikely the United States is going to share it anytime soon. Just 195 Raptors were built, and given that relatively small number (the F-35 has already eclipsed 1,000 deliveries), it's worth exploring who made the Raptor and where was it constructed.
Multiple factories building one jet
The F-22 Raptor was developed and engineered by Lockheed Martin, with help from Boeing and Pratt & Whitney. As with most military hardware, the production line isn't as clean-cut as something like a car. Each Raptor was the result of multiple factories working simultaneously.
The "home" of the Raptor was Marietta, Georgia and that's where finished jets were sent out for delivery, but that doesn't tell the full story. The F-22's afterburning turbofan F119 engines were made at Pratt & Whitney's Middletown, Connecticut plant. The rear of the jet's fuselage and the wings were built by Boeing where the company builds most of its products, in Seattle. All of those parts were then sent to Georgia to become a completed Raptor before taking to the skies.
Of the 195 F-22s that left the factory, 183 are currently in service. Although the F-22 has not publicly recorded any combat victories against manned enemy airplanes, it notably was the aircraft used to shoot down an unmanned Chinese spy balloon that entered U.S. air space in 2023.