The F
-22 Raptor Team has been selected as the recipient of the National Aeronautic Association’s 2006 Collier Trophy, the most prestigious award in aviation. Although the F-22 has long been in development and its capabilities well known, its performance in last summer’s Northern Edge exercise in Alaska, where it led Blue forces to a 241-0 kill ratio, made 2006 the year in which the Raptor’s promises came true. The trophy resides in the National Air & Space Museum in Washington; annual winners get a smaller duplicate.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
