Washington ( CNN ) -- The problem-plagued F-22 Raptor took part in its first combat mission Monday night , hitting ISIS targets in Syria . The price tag for those jets , which were in development for decades , is a staggering $ 412 million each -- triple its expected cost , according to the Government Accountability Office ( GAO ) . Originally designed and built to replace other fighter and ground attack aircraft in the U.S. military 's arsenal , the radar-evading F-22 is an evolutionary dead end . The Air Force acquired only 188 of them from aerospace maker Lockheed and does n't plan to have any more produced . Even though they formally came into service in 2005 , the F-22 had been grounded repeatedly because of what were indeterminate causes that resulted in pilots losing consciousness in the air . Obama : Syria strikes show 'this is not America 's fight alone ' The Air Force is confident it solved the problem , but some top pilots still refused to fly the plane , citing safety concerns . Today , the Air Force has 187 of the fighters after one crashed in 2010 , killing the pilot . A subsequent report by the Pentagon watchdog found the Air Force initially blamed the crash on pilot error when in fact a mechanical error was at fault . The F-22 has also been accused of causing a mysterious illness in mechanics charged with maintaining it . In 2012 : More problems for F-22 . Last year , the Air Force lifted all flight restrictions on the F-22 , saying the plane is now safe to fly . The military 's other prized fighter program , the F-35 fighter-bomber , has faced similar questions about massive cost overruns and mechanical problems .
The F-22 flew its first combat mission against ISIS . The government estimates that each plane costs $ 412 million . Comment: