Stealth F-22 Raptors Can Fly Right Under Iran’s Fighters ‘Undetected’

Key Points – In a remarkable 2013 encounter over international waters, a US Air Force F-22 Raptor, piloted by Lt. Col. Kevin “Showtime” Sutterfield, stealthily intercepted two Iranian F-4 Phantom jets attempting to shoot down an American Predator drone.

-The F-22 pilot flew undetected under one of the F-4s to inspect its weapons load before pulling up alongside the shocked Iranian pilot and calmly radioing, “You really oughta go home.”

-The Iranian jets immediately broke off their attack.

-This incident, which followed an earlier unsuccessful attempt by Iranian Su-25s to down a drone, demonstrated the overwhelming technological superiority of fifth-generation stealth aircraft over older, conventional fighters.

When An F-22 Raptor “Maverick-ed” An Iranian F-4

The F-22 Raptor is renowned as the world’s best stealth fighter, and its advantages over older airframes are well-documented.

Back in 2013, a scene reminiscent of the film “Top Gun” occurred, where Tom Cruise flipped an F-14 Tomcat fighter inverted above a Soviet MiG fighter and snapped a Polaroid picture of the incident.

In this instance, an F-22 Raptor stealth fighter did nearly the same thing when the American pilot was flying under a Vietnam-era F-4 Phantom jet of the Iranian Air Force, surprising the Iranian pilot when he appeared right next to him.

While the funny story has been shared many times, it shows the technological disadvantages the Iranian pilots have if they attempt to attack Israeli (or American) stealth aircraft such as the F-35 or other American F-22s.

The Air Force Took Great Delight In Releasing This Story

The then-Air Force Chief of Staff, General Mark Welsh, decided to go public with the incident. He thought it was necessary to share information about the drone flight and how the Iranians are a threat, but he also wanted to give ordinary people an idea of how good the F-22 is.

Plus, the Navy had its “Top Gun” moment in Hollywood. The Air Force got its moment for real against an enemy that had been a pain in the US’ fourth point of contact for decades.

Of course, no one should be surprised that an F-22 could fly under and behind the ancient F-4s that are now obsolete and unseen. The fact that the Iranian pilots were oblivious to the F-22’s presence as it flew underneath the F-4 to see what ordinance it was carrying shows just how good the stealth is in the Raptor.

Background On the F-22 Raptor vs. Iran Incident

In 2012, an American MQ-1 Predator drone was operating in international airspace 16 miles off the coast of Iran. The Iranian Air Force (IRIAF) scrambled two Su-25 Frogfoot close-support aircraft to scare off/shoot down the drone.

And for comparison purposes, if Iran were flying a drone within 16 miles of the US coast, we’d do the same thing.

The Predator drones can loiter in the sky over a target for up to 14 hours. Still, they are very slow, with a top speed of 135 mph, obviously no match for the Su-25s, which were patterned after the American A-10 Thunderbolt. But something unforeseen occurred.

The Su-25s blasted away with their 30mm cannons, but the Predator drone was unharmed. They then stopped firing, ostensibly because they ran out of ammunition.

It is unknown whether the Su-25s purposely missed the drone to shoo it away or missed it due to poor marksmanship.

However, as a result, the United States decided to escort Predators with either F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets from the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis or F-22s flying out of the United Arab Emirates.

Six months later, the Iranians went after a Predator again. The remotely piloted craft was flying a normal intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission 16 miles from the Iranian border. This time, the F-4 Phantoms closed on the Predator and likely had every intention of shooting it down.

The Iranians –unaware of the new US drone-escort policy – tried to engage this MQ-1 Predator. The US initially withheld details of the incident but later decided to release the information, stating that the drone had also recorded the event.

General Welsh told the media that the F-22 stealth fighter jet was providing “HVAAE (High-Value Air Asset Escort) for the drone, which had come under attack.

“You Really Ought to Go Home”

Lieutenant-Colonel Kevin “Showtime” Sutterfield flew the F-22 in question.

General Welsh retold the story with obvious relish. “When the combatant commander wants air power, there is only one number to call.

“Showtime is an Air Force Reservist … he flies the F-22. He flies it really well.”

Showtime closed with the encroaching F-4 Phantom in Hollywood style worthy of his callsign, taking the sleek Raptor under the Iranian fighter to inspect the weapons it was carrying without being seen.

While reports haven’t indicated what munitions the Phantom was equipped with, it seems clear that Showtime wasn’t impressed.

As Alex Hollings wrote: “From beneath the F-4 Phantom, now only miles from its MQ-1 Predator target, Showtime banked left and picked up some altitude. He brought his Raptor up and in line with the Phantom just in time to see what must have been one very shocked Iranian fighter pilot as he quite possibly made a mess in his pants. Just to make his point clear, Showtime hopped on the radio”.

“You really oughta go home.”

And that is what both Iranian pilots did. They banked their F-4 fighters, accelerated, and made a hasty retreat.

Israel has its own stealth fighter, the F-35I Adir. It is probably why the Iranians haven’t flown their aircraft against the incessant air strikes the IAF has been flying over Iranian airspace.

About the Author:

Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.

Iran War

30,000 Pound Bunker-Buster Bombs Might Not Be Able to Destroy Fordow 

Iran Has Hypersonic Missiles 

Iran Still Flies the F-14 Tomcat