The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a twin engined stealth fighter plane that was developed in 1981 by Lockheed Martin to suit the needs of a new fighter to replace the aging F-16 and F-15 models. The F-22 was designed to be an ATF or Advanced Tactical Fighter. It was the first fighter plane to carry stealth capabilities, and still be agile enough to perform in dogfights. The way it achieves this is by carrying all of its weapons inside the plane itself, along with Top Secret material used to reflect radar beams. The Raptor has 3 internal weapons bays and can carry up to 8 missiles at a time. It also carries a 20mm rotary cannon inside the right wing. Carrying the weapons inside also allow the Raptor to have a high speed. Its two Pratt & Whitney turbofan engines give it an estimate of about 35,000 pounds of thrust. This allows the Raptors cruising speed to be about Mach 1.82 (1,220 mph), and over Mach 2 (1,320 mph) with afterburners on. Although the F-22 is a superior plane, its cost of 150 million dollars per plane, makes it very difficult to mass produce.
