TUSKEGEE AIRMAN SEES F-22 RAPTOR FOR FIRST TIME

Staff Sergeant Leslie Edwards, a member of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, has seen his fair share of military aircraft. Drafted in 1943, Edwards flew piston-engine planes like the P-51 during WWII. Decades later, he got an up-close look at the cutting-edge F-22 Raptor, a jet powered by modern technology.

While watching the F-22 take off, Edwards was struck by the massive leap in aviation technology. The contrast between the piston-engine planes of his youth and the sophisticated jet fighters of today was overwhelming. Edwards, visibly impressed, remarked:

“I admired the P-51 when it flew over my head. I admired the P-40 when it flew. But now… what I’m looking at… this F-22… Yes, we have made progress – that is clear to me!”

For Edwards, witnessing the transition from the iconic P-51 Mustang to the F-22 must have been a moment of profound reflection, seeing firsthand how far military aviation has come since his days in the skies.