10 cool US military machines in Bay County

GPS-guided bombs, autonomous underwater vehicles and supersonic jets are on the cutting edge of technology — and they can all be found in Bay County.

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE — GPS-guided bombs, autonomous underwater vehicles and supersonic jets are on the cutting edge of technology — and they all can be found in Bay County.

The service members and civilians at Tyndall Air Force Base and Naval Support Activity Panama City (NSA PC) work on and with such technology every day.

Here are 10 cool machines and vehicles in service right here at home.

1. F-22 Raptor: The F-22 Raptor is arguably the most well-known aircraft at Tyndall. The base has the world’s largest contingent of F-22 Raptors, and the base’s 95th Fighter Squadron recently completed its 10,000th F-22 Raptor sortie. The Raptor first became operation in 2005. The 62-foot jet, with a wingspan of 44 feet, 6 inches, can reach 50,000 feet and speeds of almost 1,500 mph.

2. GBU-32 bomb: What weighs 1,000 pounds, rides in an F-22 and follows GPS to its destination? The answer is the GBU-32, a 1,000-pound munition assembled and loaded onto planes at Tyndall.

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