Fighter aircraft ‘activates its cloaking device’ and people have a lot to say about it

Incredible footage of a fighter aircraft 'activating its cloaking device’ has resurfaced and people can't believe it's real.

While it may seem like something out of a Top Gun movie, this footage actually real and a must-watch for any flight nerds out there.

The aircraft seen in the footage is the F-22 Raptor, which is known in full as the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor.

It was photographer and videographer Mark Fingar who shared the video online, with it showing the remarkable footage of the F-22 as it nears to breaking the sound barrier, at which point it is enveloped in what people have described as its 'cloaking device'.

But first, let's take a look back at the F-22 and its role in aviation history.

The F-22's impressive history

The F-22 was once arguably one of the most advanced fighter jets ever created when it was developed for the United States Air Force.

It first took flight in 1997 in Georgia, US after six years of development, but in 2021 a former Air Force chief of staff expressed belief the F-22 would be fully retired by the end of the decade.

However, the agency has since decided to upgrade the jets, likely giving them a life into the 2030s.

The F-22 pictured in Santiago, Chile, last year (RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP via Getty Images)

The 'cloaking device' explained

The jets can hit speeds of 1,500 mph - 2.2 times the speed of sound - and burn around 5,000 pounds of fuel every hour. However, despite what it might look like, the jet doesn't come equipped with a 'cloaking device'.

Instead, the plane creates what's known as a vapor cone in the moments before it breaks the sound barrier, and some people have - fairly accurately - compared this online to a 'cloaking device'.

In Fingar's video, one of the planes can be seen being engulfed by a vapor cone, making it difficult to see to the naked eye.

The clip left social-media users floored when it was shared online, with one person posting the video on Twitter and writing: "Mark Fingar captured an F-22 Raptor activating its cloaking device."

Meanwhile, someone else compared it to something out of a Harry Potter movie.

"It's how they play peekaboo in the clouds," joked another.

The video has people on social media in shock (Instagram/Mark Fingar)

What causes vapor cones?

Vapor cones occur because of condensed water that can sometimes form around an object moving at high speed through moist air.

When localized air pressure around an object like an F-22 Raptor drops, so does the temperature. Then, if the temperature drops below saturation temperature (the temperature for a corresponding saturation pressure at which a liquid boils into its vapor phase), a cloud will form.

The change in temperature can also cause a shockwave.

Rod Irvine, the chairman of the Royal Aeronautical Society’s aerodynamics group, explained to the BBC: "If you see a vapor cone, you’ve got a shockwave, because you’ve got a change in pressure and temperature.

"The aircraft isn’t necessarily travelling faster than the speed of sound, but the air travelling over the wing is accelerated and locally breaks the sound barrier."