The US Air Force Retired the F-117 Nighthawk in 2008 and Never Stopped Flying It. The Service Now Says the Aircraft Will Stay in the Air Until 2034 — 26 Years After Its Own Retirement.

The US Air Force Retired the F-117 Nighthawk in 2008 and Never Stopped Flying It. The Service Now Says the Aircraft Will Stay in the Air Until 2034 — 26 Years After Its Own Retirement.

Lockheed built 64 F-117 Nighthawks — 5 development aircraft and 59 production F-117As — in a classified program costing about $6,560,000,000. The Air Force flew them for 25 years and retired the fleet in 2008, calculating that it would save roughly $1,070,000,000 between 2007 and 2011. It then kept the aircraft. F-117s returned to the air in September 2021, flew in Sentry Savannah in 2022, and the Air Force says they will keep flying until 2034.