The aircraft's faceted shape (made from two-dimensional flat surfaces) heavily contributes to its relatively low radar cross-section of about 0.001 m 2 (0.0108 sq ft). All aircraft were initially based at Tonopah Test Range Airport, Nevada. The first production F-117 was delivered in 1982, and its initial operating capability was achieved in October 1983. A total of five prototypes would be produced the first of which performed its maiden flight during 1981 at Groom Lake, Nevada. On 1 November 1978, it was decided to proceed with the F-117 development program. During 1976, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) issued Lockheed with a contract to produce the Have Blue technology demonstrator, the test data from which validated the concept. Work on what would become the F-117 was commenced in the 1970s as a means of countering increasingly sophisticated Soviet surface-to-air missiles (SAMs). It was the first operational aircraft to be designed with stealth technology. The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk is a retired American single-seat, subsonic twin-engine stealth attack aircraft developed by Lockheed's secretive Skunk Works division and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF).
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