October 9, 2020
What if the F-22 Raptor Defended U.S. Navy Aircraft Carriers?
It would be a great boon, but there may not be enough of the planes to go around.
by Kris Osborn
Should an entire U.S. Navy Carrier Strike Group finds itself in a great power war on the open ocean, it seems possible that surface ships might struggle to defend against attacks from enemy fifth-generation stealth fighters. Unless, that is, large numbers of carrier-launched F-35Cs were operational and able to engage in air-to-air combat against approaching enemy aircraft.
But how about F-22 stealth fighter jets? During the U.S. Navy’s Valiant Shield exercise in the Pacific in September, the service began to explore the idea of having F-22 Raptors defend surface ships such as destroyers, amphibious assault ships and carriers.
Perhaps the stealth fighter, believed by many to be the most dominant and advanced air-superiority platform in existence, could defend carriers? Why not?
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/what-if-f-22-raptor-defended-us-navy-aircraft-carriers-170427
