HILL AFB -- Some $29.4 million is being awarded to Hill Air Force Base for purchase of F-22A maintenance equipment. The announcement came Friday from Sen. Orrin Hatch's office in the nation's capital. The F-22A Raptor is the Air Force's newest and most advanced jet fighter.

Hatch's office said the Air Force has decided to fund the purchase of radar, engine-test and other equipment the base needs to maintain the new strike aircraft, which is replacing the F-15.

"Once again the Air Force has renewed its investment in Hill AFB and recognized the highly specialized work that is performed there," Hatch said in a press release. "The F-22A will play a vital role in protecting U.S. interests in the 21st century. It also provides a boost to our state's robust economy."

Thanks in part to Hatch's efforts, a multi-year plan was arranged via the 2007 Defense Authorization Act to buy the fighters in bulk rather than purchasing them on a yearly basis.

The $400 million-plus savings the plan generated helped, in large measure, to free up money in the Air Force budget to pay for the depot maintenance equipment, the release said. The F-22A is a multi-role aircraft poised to be on the "vanguard" of the U.S. strike force for years, Hatch said.

"Its capabilities are unrivaled by any other fighter in the world," the senator said. "The same can be said about Hill and its workers. Simply put, no one does depot maintenance better. No one."