“It’s not one of those multi-role do it all type machines.”
Funny, USAF is selling it as a multi-role machine to justify the purchase. There’s a renewed emphasis on its ground attack capability in Congress, and there’s even been talk of using it as a means to jam enemy communications in Iraq (which is, frankly, just silly. The Army can do this with a truck).
“Yeah, the short sightedness is infuriating. The F-22, for all its sophistication, is a throwback to the old school way of doing things. It’s not one of those multi-role do it all type machines. It’s purpose to hunt enemy aircraft and destroy them with extreme prejudice, and this is the sort of tool we’re going to need to keep the likes of China and Russia off our doorstep. The Iranian’s air force might be a joke, but Russia’s and China’s isn’t and we need to be prepared to deal with them both.”
Actually, though it’s original mission was air dominance, the F-22 can now carry 2 1,000 lb. JDAMs, and will soon be able to carry eight Small Diameter Bombs (each with the destructive force of a conventional 500 lb. bomb). So, in addition to being the premier fighter on the planet, it’s able to deliver precision munitions deep into heavily defended territory at supersonic speeds. Sounds pretty good to me... ;-)