he U.S. Air Force could be sending some of its most advanced warplanes to Europe in a show of force against Russian actions in Ukraine and elsewhere around the continent, the service’s top civilian said Monday.
“The biggest threat on my mind is what’s happening with Russia and the activities of Russia,” Secretary of the Air Force Deborah James said during a visit to the Paris Air Show. “It’s extremely worrisome on what’s going on in the Ukraine.”
James’ remarks were reported by Military.com, Breaking Defense and other websites.
For months, the Pentagon has been rotating aircraft through Europe for exercises with allies under Operation Atlantic Resolve, which it calls “America’s commitment to European security.”
Participating in those exercises and rotations have been B-2 and B-52 bombers, F-15Cs and A-10 attack planes as well as Army and Navy assets.
James said the F-22 Raptor, the Pentagon’s premier fighter, could join that list.
“I could easily see the day — though I couldn’t tell you the day exactly — when the F-22, for example, rotates in is a possibility. I don’t see why that couldn’t happen in the future,” James said, according to Military.com.
The stealthy F-22s, which became operational in 2005 but only saw their first combat in attacks on ISIS positions in Syria late last year, can be configured to attack other aircraft or bomb ground targets.
“The F-22 cannot be matched by any known or projected fighter aircraft,” says the Air Force’s fact sheet for the Raptor, which costs about $143 million each. That would include what Russia currently puts in the air.Russian reaction to James’ remarks came through state-sponsored media Sputnik International.