https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/41758/challenge-coin-emerges-for-secretive-unit-that-still-flies-the-f-117-nighthawk
Some new details about continuing use of the F-117.
"Perhaps the most significant link between these coins and the still-operated F-117s were crests seen painted just behind the right engine intakes on two Nighthawks that Joerg Arnu, who runs the great website Dreamlandresort.com, photographed flying near Coyote Summit in Nevada earlier this month. There are very strong visual similarities between what we can see of those logos in the pictures and the design of the "Licentia Ex Dominatus" side of the coins.
This all adds further evidence that the Air Force has formally re-established a unit of some kind dedicated to the continued operation of at least some of the remaining F-117s in the aggressor, research and development, and other support roles. That would be in line with other evidence that the service has significantly expanded the use of this "post-retirement" Nighthawk fleet, including clearing them earlier this year to refuel from any standard KC-135R tanker, rather than force them to continue to rely on a very small number of NKC-135R test tankers.
In addition, satellite imagery that The War Zone obtained last year showed evidence of a major event at Tonopah in September that looked to include photoshoot in front of an F-117. This could have been arranged in order to get a commemorative group shot of personnel assigned to Air Force's current Nighthawk unit.
The remaining operational F-117s might be part of a larger airborne signature evaluation entity, too, which could also include the Air Force's secretive NT-43A flying signature measurement aircraft. The NT-43A, also commonly referred to by its callsign "RAT 55" is a heavily modified Boeing 737-200 that is known to routinely operate from Tonopah, as well as Area 51.
"The Air Force retired the F-117 from active service, but pilots from the Air Force Test Center still fly them for limited research activities," the service had told The War Zone in a statement earlier this year. This was effectively identical to what we were told back in 2019 when we were first to report on who was still flying these jets and why, at least officially.
Their official statement was:
"The Air Force retired the F-117 from active service, but pilots from the Air Force Test Center still fly them for limited research activities."