LOT OF 6 PINS F-117 F117 NIGHTHAWK STEALTH PIN USAF AIR FORCE NELLIS AFB

Description

The
Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk
is a single-seat,
twin-engine
stealth
attack aircraft
that was developed by
Lockheed's
secretive
Skunk Works
division and operated by the
United States Air Force
(USAF). The F-117 was based on the
Have Blue
technology demonstrator, and was the first operational aircraft to be designed around
stealth technology
. The
maiden flight
of the Nighthawk took place in 1981 and the aircraft achieved
initial operating capability
status in 1983.
[1]
The Nighthawk was shrouded in secrecy until it was revealed in 1988.
[4]
The F-117 was widely publicized for its role in the
Persian Gulf War
of 1991. Although it was commonly referred to as the "Stealth Fighter", it was strictly an attack aircraft.
[5]
F-117s took part in the conflict in
Yugoslavia
where
one was shot down
by a
surface-to-air missile
(SAM) on 27 March 1999; it was the only Nighthawk to be lost in combat. The U.S. Air Force retired the F-117 on 22 April 2008, primarily due to the fielding of the
F-22 Raptor
. Sixty-four F-117s were built, 59 of which were production versions with the other five being demonstrators/prototypes.