F-22 Crashes Near Tyndall
 

From Associated Press:

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. —
An Air Force F-22 Raptor fighter jet crashed near a Florida Panhandle highway Thursday, but the pilot was able to eject safely and there were no injuries on the ground, the military said.
The single-seat stealth fighter, part of a program that has been plagued with problems, went down Thursday afternoon near Tyndall Air Force Base, just south of Panama City on The Gulf of Mexico. The pilot received medical treatment and a section of Highway 98 that runs through the base was closed as rescuers responded.
The crash was on Tyndall land and no one on the ground was hurt, said Air Force Sgt. Rachelle Elsea, a spokeswoman for the base where F-22 pilots train.
The Air Force said the plane went down in a wooded area near the highway.
The cause of the crash isn't clear, but the Air Force has been trying to address problems with the $190 million aircraft for several years. In 2008, pilots began reporting a sharp increase in hypoxia-like problems, forcing the Air Force to finally acknowledge concerns about the F-22's oxygen supply system. Two years later, the oxygen system contributed to a fatal crash. Though pilot error ultimately was deemed to be the cause, the fleet was grounded for four months in 2011.
New restrictions were imposed in May, after two F-22 pilots went on the CBS program "60 Minutes" to express their continued misgivings. The Air Force has said the F-22 is safe to fly - a dozen of the jets began a six-month deployment to Japan in July - but flight restrictions that remain in place will keep it out of the high-altitude situations where pilots' breathing is under the most stress.
Internal documents and emails obtained by The Associated Press earlier this year show Air Force experts actually proposed a range of solutions by 2005, including adjustments to the flow of oxygen into pilot's masks. But that key recommendation was rejected by military officials reluctant to add costs to a program that was already well over budget.

469 million per copy.:(

It doesn't cost that much.

Congress stretching procurement out over 25 years will make that happen. Splitting the RDA costs over 187 aircraft is a little specious when the real buy was supposed something like 800. How much would the F35 cost if the raptor R & D money was never spent. How much F22 technology has gone into every other DOD program over the last 25 years?

The Air Force was quick to say it wasn't the oxygen system.

Military: Oxygen system didn’t cause crash - Air Force News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Air Force Times

Sorry, went off the estimated F35 per copy price.

The Pentagon announced that it awarded a contract worth as much as $7.4 billion to aerospace giant Lockheed Martin Corp. to upgrade the Air Force's fleet of problem-plagued F-22 Raptor fighter jets.

The announcement said that the Bethesda, Md., company would “add new capabilities and enhance the performance" of the aircraft.

Lockheed referred all questions about the contract to the Air Force, which said it could not provide details about the upgrade announced Friday.

The F-22, which cost an estimated $412 million each, is the military’s most expensive fighter jet and known to be its most advanced. Yet the stealthy, supersonic plane has never been used in Iraq, Afghanistan, or any other combat zone since it entered service for the military in 2005.

Yes, it cost $400M+ per copy. Some of that R&D might benefit other programs to be sure, but that's still what it cost.

I hope this $7B upgrade is a lot more than new OBOGS...

It is primarily an air superiority fighter (AF likes to call it "supremacy" in this case), so it really wouldn't make sense to use it for air-to-mud if other cheaper assets are available. It has an A2G capability, but that was not the original intent of the program.

Look at where they are based...they being employed in their intended role, to protect the US. They can also be forward deployed in support of a conflict with an enemy which posses an air-to-air capability (China, DPRK, Iran).