F-22A Raptor Can't Cross The International Date Line

Originally posted by LogansRun
If the tankers weren't within "visual contact" we potentially could have lost 2 VERY expensive planes, not to mention the lives of the pilots flying them.

i highly doubt it. the tanker also has radar....and he could guide the fighters into visual range. i've seen it done. and lets not forget that US pilots are some of the most highly trained in the world. just because their primary means of navigation goes down doesnt mean that they have forgotten the rest of their training.

wow. anti american sentiment has never been higher in my lifetime than it is right now.

There is only one thing to take from this story. Thank god the pilots are OK.

Anything else is shameless political mud slinging

[edit on 27-2-2007 by syrinx high priest]

It Sounds Like A Simple Software Adjustment To Me.hardly A Concern As A Major Structural Flaw Would Warrant.

The lead pilot contacted Lockheed in air and fixed the problem in air while the rest of the planes returned to Hickam AFB. The planes have traditional compasses to navigate by as a backup so they were not in any immediate danger of crashing. Any plane ever developed has had this problem and with the use of more computers, there is going to be software problems that arise.

Well its not something the plane should be scrapped for obv, but its serious enough to fire some people..

Originally posted by iori_komei

Originally posted by BlueRaja
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Already in discussion.

A topic can be discussed both in a normal section and in the news section.

I wasn't saying that it shouldn't be discussed- just that it wasn't breaking news.

BS. every single civilization in history that has decided it was too "civilized" to maintain a proper military very soon thereafter ceased to exist.

Costa Rica hasn't had a military for years, just a police force.
Despite living in a rather rough neighborhood.
As far as I know, Costa Rica still exists...

As far as the topic goes - it's just a software glitch, not a reason to scrap the program. But considering the amount of taxpayer money that has been sunk into the F-22, it's more than a little worrying that something so simple will shut down half the plane's systems...


[edit on 2/28/07 by xmotex]

Originally posted by ug87
The lead pilot contacted Lockheed in air and fixed the problem in air while the rest of the planes returned to Hickam AFB.

First they did not fix it in the air, It took hours/days to loicate and fix the problem. Rebooting the aircraft systems would not work and ALL planes returned to Hawaii where they were fixed.

One pilot was able to contact contractor Lockheed Martin to troubleshoot the error during the flight, the Air Force said. Several pilots attempted to reboot the system with no success and returned to Hawaii with the help of aerial refueling tankers as a safety precaution.

Engineers were able to locate the problem within hours and fixed the glitch in a matter of days on the aircraft, according to the Air Force.

Spource

[edit on 2/28/2007 by shots]

Originally posted by snafu7700

i highly doubt it. the tanker also has radar....and he could guide the fighters into visual range. i've seen it done. and lets not forget that US pilots are some of the most highly trained in the world. just because their primary means of navigation goes down doesnt mean that they have forgotten the rest of their training.

Thats what I thought too, however it specifically stated in the OP that the navigation, communications & fuel systems - I take it that means radar and radio were out...

Sad, as advanced and impressive as the raptor is, there are no analog components left such as altomiter to aid the pilot in such an instance.

Not all communications went out, same with other critical systems such as the propulsion or flight control system (FLCS). As has been mentioned above the F-22's could still talk to the tankers and one pilot even contacted LM from the middle of the Pacific.