The US Air Force’s F-22 Raptor. IMAGE: US Air Force
US F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets deterred 587 “enemy aircraft” during their first “combat surge” in operations over Syria, the Pentagon reported on October 10.
According to the released statement, during the 6-month deployment, the 94th Fighter Squadron “logged over 590 sorties and more than 4,600 flight hours, dropping 4,250 pounds of ordnance and deterring 587 enemy aircraft. The squadron also accomplished the first-ever F-22 Raptor combat surge, which maximized combat sorties over a 3-day period.“
F-22 jets of the 94th Fighter Squadron als escorted F/A-18 Hornet warplanes of the US Navy in the framework of their operation.
“The squadron also flew Offensive Counter Air missions deep into Syrian territory, facing both enemy fighters and surface-to-air missile systems, as the United States and Coalition forces launched deliberate attacks in response to the Syrian regime’s illegal use of chemical weapons. On several occasions, the Raptors provided armed over watch for U.S. Navy aircraft as they transited through the Straits of Hormuz,” the Pentagon said.
Besides this, it’s intersting to note that some media went so far in their war-style rhetorics amid the US-Iranian tensions and reproted that F-22 jets even intercepted Iranian warplanes. For example, Business Insider reported:
“Russian, Syrian, and Iranian combat aircraft all operate in the skies above Syria, and US air assets have frequently deterred or defeated air attacks against US troops there.
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US F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets just completed their first “combat surge” in operations over Syria, and in doing so deterred almost 600 enemy aircraft in the crowded skies there that see Syria, Iranian, and Russian combat aircraft on a regular basis, the Pentagon said.”
The only problem with these claims is that Iran does not use fighter jets in its military operation to support the Syrian government. The only offensive air component of Iranian forces in the war-torn country is unmanned combat aerial vehicles, which can hardly be “deterred” because they pose no threat to warplanes of the US-led coalition flying over Syria.
