The F-22 prototype first flew 32 years ago. Now Congress and the Air Force are at odds over the stealth jet’s future. On September 29, 1990, the YF-22 demonstration aircraft took off for the first time. The YF-22 would become the F-22, a dominant air-superiority stealth fighter for nearly 30 years. Now the F-22''s future is in doubt, with Congress and the US Air Force at odds about its retirement. On September 29, 1990, a unique aircraft took off for the first time in Palmdale, California. During its 18-minute flight, it reached a speed of about 290 mph and a height of 12,500 feet before landing at Edwards Air Force Base. The aircraft was the YF-22, the test demonstrator for what would become the F-22 Raptor stealth fighter. It was the second model of the US Air Force''s Advanced Tactical Fighter program to take to the skies, with the test itself the culmination of a nearly 50-month demonstration and validation phase. Thirty-two years later, the F-22 has proven itself as an air-superiority fighter and inspired and informed the development of other fifth-generation fighter aircraft. Despite its accomplishments and reputation, Congress and the US Air Force are at odds over the future of one of the deadliest aircraft ever to take to the skies. ''First look, first shot, first kill'' A Soviet MiG-29 at an air show in Farnborough, England in September 1990.