The latest deployment of F-22 Raptors to Kadena Air Base, Japan, by the United States Air Force simply speaks for itself: it will not let China take air superiority over the Pacific. Nicknamed the Keystone of the Pacific, Kadena Air Base has long served as a key operating location for US fighter aircraft since World War II. The base, which saw delivery of F-15 fighter jets in 1979, began to phase out its F-15C/D Eagles in 2023, replacing them with a mix of F-16s, F-35s, and F-22s on a rotational basis in the quest to shore up American aerial dominance.
This is a key deployment against the backdrop of China’s rapidly modernizing military forces, which include the deployment of J-20 stealth fighters to Wuyishan Air Base in Fujian province, located just 600 miles from Kadena. This base, before solely reserved for older jets and converted drones, is now home to the deployment of six Chengdu J-20 “Mighty Dragon” fighters. That represents a very powerful qualitative improvement in China’s air force. Some analysts said that contact between US F-22 Raptors and Chinese J-20s in international airspace is growing more likely, and basing Raptors at Kadena is a way to keep a technological and tactical edge over China.
In a significant development, four F-22 Raptors were recently forward-deployed to Kunsan K-8 Air Base in South Korea for joint training exercises with South Korean F-35As. According to some reports, this dogfighting is the very first exercise of its kind between these jets. Extensive training in close-quarters air combat yielded invaluable experience for both air forces. It enabled pilots to learn the latest tactics and improved their skills in close-range combat, added the Republic of Korea Air Force.
Although the F-22 was heralded at the time as the apotheosis of air superiority, this invincibility has already been called into question in past simulated dogfights. In one past example, during the 2012 Red Flag air combat exercise in Alaska, German Eurofighter Typhoons notched notional kills against F-22s in close-range Basic Fighter Maneuver (BFM) drills. According to German pilots, who did take these simulated dogfights seriously, the aggressive maneuverability of the Eurofighter Typhoon surprised the F-22 pilots, indicating an unexpected level of parity between the two aircraft in close combat situations.
The strengths of the F-22 lay in beyond-visual-range combat, where it could engage multiple enemies outside the pilot’s natural field of view, spiced up with the stealth advantage. In such combat scenarios, though, the Eurofighter Typhoon came out superior in WVR within visual range combat during the exercise, especially so when flown without external fuel tanks. TV use caused energy loss, which in turn aggravated the loss of maneuverability of the F-22 in close-in combat.
The French Rafale aircraft, too, was once much superior to the F-22 in past training exercises. In 2009, during a training exercise between the United Arab Emirates and France, the Rafale got into a position to be at an advantage against an F-22; this proves that pilot skill is an important factor during air combat. The technological superiority of the F-22 does not necessarily weigh equally against the pilot’s prowess and tactical acumen.
These encounters underscore the dynamic nature of air combat, where technologically superior jets can be matched or outperformed under certain conditions. Adding the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to the mix with the F-22 makes for an interesting dynamic in the tactical environment when facing near-peer adversaries. As the U.S. Air Force continues to evolve its fleet, these experiences provide a great deal of lessons about how best to maximize aircraft capabilities and further refine the doctrines of air combat.