HAMPTON, Va. (AP) — The Air Force is permanently moving its its F-22 fighter jet training operation from Florida to Virginia, officials said Friday.
The F-22 training squadron will be based at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton.
The squadron originally was located at Tyndall Air Force Base near Panama City, Florida, before Hurricane Michael heavily damaged the base in October 2018. It has been temporarily located at Eglin Air Force Base in Okaloosa County, Florida.
The Daily Press reports that the unit has 31 F-22 fighters and 16 T-38 training aircraft.
Bruce Sturk, Hampton’s director of federal facilities support, estimates the squadron’s move will bring a total of 2,100 to 2,200 people to the region.
The Air Force has said the arrival of the training unit would more than double the annual number of F-22 flights from Langley’s airfield, from over 22,000 to nearly 50,000.
