The Lockheed F-117A "Stealth" fighter is one of the most sophisticated warplanes ever built. Almost invisible to radar, the F-117 has revolutionized air warfare. It was operated at first under conditions of total secrecy, but in 1991 the U.S. Air Force deployed it openly to Saudi Arabia for service in the Gulf War. Ranging the night skies over Baghdad with impunity, it struck the most heavily defended Iraqi targets with stunning effect.

FACTS AND FIGURES

  1. The 40 F-117s deployed to the Gulf War flew more than 1,270 missions, dropping 30 percent of all precision-guided munitions.
  2. One B-52 bomber has a larger radar cross-section than all the F-117s put together.
  3. The F-117 was operational for seven years before it made its first public appearance.
  4. The F-117's weapon system can hit a target one yard square.
  5. The first combat use of the F-117 came in Panama on December 21, 1989.
  6. The F-117's radar cross-section is about one one-hundredth of a square yard - about the same as that of a seagull.