[Photo] F-22 Raptor stealth jet pilot flies air strike in Syria with U.S. flag in the cockpit

September 25, 2014 Military Aviation, Syria, Troubled Areas, War on ISIS

Close up image unveils an interesting detail inside the cockpit of an F-22 Raptor.

The photo in this post shows an F-22 Raptor of the 1st Fighter Wing, taking fuel after a mission over Syria, where the stealth fighter jet had its baptism of fire operating along other U.S. assets including the F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft.

The image, taken from a KC-135 tanker (based at Al Udeid, Qatar), shows an interesting detail inside the cockpit of the F-22, based at Al Dhafra, UAE, where the Strike Eagles are deployed as well: a U.S. flag.

It’s not infrequent for U.S. pilots to carry the American flag inside the cockpit during real ops and wars.

Image credit: U.S. Air Force via Guido Olimpio

About David Cenciotti 4380 Articles

David Cenciotti is a freelance journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written four books.