Editing Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk (section)

=== Designation ===
The operational aircraft was officially designated "F-117A".<ref name="dtic3" /><ref name= "bomber 277"/> Most modern U.S. military aircraft use [[1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system|post-1962 designations]] in which the designation "F" is usually an [[Fighter aircraft|air-to-air fighter]], "B" is usually a [[bomber]], "A" is usually a ground-attack aircraft, etc. (Examples include the [[McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle|F-15]], the B-2, and the [[Grumman A-6 Intruder|A-6]].) The F-117 is primarily an attack aircraft,<ref name=eden_p240>{{harvnb|Eden|2004|p=240.}}</ref> so its "F" designation is inconsistent with the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] system. This is an inconsistency that has been repeatedly employed by the USAF with several of its attack aircraft since the late 1950s, including the [[Republic F-105 Thunderchief]] and [[General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark]]. A televised documentary quoted project manager Alan Brown as saying that [[Robert J. Dixon]], a four-star USAF general who was the head of [[Tactical Air Command]], felt that the top-notch USAF fighter pilots required to fly the new aircraft were more easily attracted to an aircraft with an "F" designation for fighter, as opposed to a bomber ("B") or attack ("A") designation.<ref name="history" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81S4W8rOCgo&t=1658s |url-status=dead |title=Modern Marvels S11E62 F117 |last=Moderns |date=13 April 2017 |via=YouTube |access-date=22 July 2018 |archive-date=8 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308223809/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81S4W8rOCgo&t=1658s}}</ref> Early on, one potential air-to-air mission considered for the F-117 was to hunt down the Soviet [[Beriev A-50|A-50 "Mainstay"]] airborne warning and control system<!-- (AWACS) -->. However, this was not deemed to be effective and this mission was passed to the nascent [[Advanced Tactical Fighter]], which eventually became the [[Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor|F-22 Raptor]].<ref name="WMOF_JB">{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lltMfkj1yPU |title=F-117 Nighthawk and F-22 Raptor with Jim "JB" Brown, President & CEO National Test Pilot School |date=21 November 2022 |publisher=Western Museum of Flight |location=Torrance, California |access-date=30 June 2023 |people=[[James E. Brown III|Brown, James "JB"]]}}</ref>

The designation "F-117" seems to indicate that it was given an official designation prior to the 1962 U.S. Tri-Service Aircraft Designation System and could be considered numerically to be a part of the earlier [[Century Series]] of fighters. The assumption prior to the revealing of the aircraft to the public was that it would likely receive the F-19 designation, as that number had not been used, but no other aircraft were to receive a "100" series number following the F-111. Soviet fighters obtained by the U.S. via various means under the [[Constant Peg]] program<ref name="airforce-magazine" /> were given F-series numbers for their evaluation by U.S. pilots, and with the advent of the [[Teen Series]] fighters, most often Century Series designations.<ref name="Merlin_groom_2011_p32">Merlin 2011, p. 32.</ref>

As with other exotic military aircraft types flying in the southern Nevada area, such as captured fighters, an arbitrary radio call of "117" was assigned. This same radio call had been used by the enigmatic [[4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron]], also known as the "Red Hats" or "Red Eagles", that often had flown expatriated [[Mikoyan#List of MiG aircraft|MiG jet fighters]] in the area, but no relationship existed between the call and the formal F-19 designation then being considered by the USAF. Apparently, use of the "117" radio call became commonplace and when Lockheed released its first flight manual (i.e., the USAF "dash one" manual for the aircraft), F-117A was the designation printed on the cover.<ref name="Miller1990" />