F-22 Raptor (World Fighter Aircraft Collection)

The F-22 Raptor is the world's first true stealth fighter, able to evade radar and hit enemy aircraft before they're even aware of the Raptor's presence.   Here it can be seen taxying during the military exercise Red Flag 07-2 at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

The F-117 Nighthawk was referred to as the "stealth fighter" long before the Raptor arrived on the scene, but in fact it was a ground attack aircraft and not a fighter.   The Nighthawk's "F-117" fighter designation was a deliberate attempt to mislead people about the aircraft, which was a top-secret black project until it was finally revealed to the public at the end of 1988, many years after it had entered service.   The F-117 was theoretically capable of carrying air-to-air missiles but it was never operated this way and pilots never trained for this role.

As well as its stealth, the Raptor boasts several other formidable capabilities, including thrust-vectoring and the ability to supercruise or fly supersonically without the use of afterburners.   It's often claimed that the Raptor was the first aircraft which can supercruise, but in fact the British-designed English Electric Lightning jet fighter developed in the late 1950s was the first aircraft with this ability, and the Concorde airliner spent most of its flight envelope in supercruise, using its afterburners only to achieve the desired altitude and initial speed.   Although its precise performance is classified, a combat-ready Raptor can probably supercruise faster than any other comparable fighter, largely because its entire weapon load is usually carried internally.