Hobby Master 1/72 HA5813 F-117A Nighthawk 84-0809, USAF, 2022

Nearly 14 years after officially "retiring" its F-117A Nighthawk stealth combat jets, the Air Force may now be looking to keep them flying through at least 2034. A portion of the remaining F-117A fleet, flown by Air Force test pilots, has been very actively used for research and development, test and evaluation, and training purposes in recent years. This has included using the jets as "Red Air" aggressors and as surrogates for stealthy cruise missiles during large-scale exercises.

Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk

Designed and developed by Lockheed, the F-117 was the first operational aircraft conceived with stealth technology. It first flew on June 18, 1981, but was not officially acknowledged until 1988, when the Pentagon released a grainy, unrevealing photograph to the media (the aircraft itself was not seen by the public until 1990). With no afterburners and a shape designed to deflect radar signals, the F-117 is subsonic but effective. It has an automated planning system, sophisticated navigation and infrared target acquisition. It has been used several times in combat, most notably during the Persian Gulf War. It was retired in 2008, replaced by the more formidable F-22.