Increasingly concerned about oxygen-supply problems, Panetta announced that flights must "remain within the proximity of potential landing locations," reports CNN Security Blog.

 Like a kid whose parents won't let him cross the street and insist he be home before dark, the F-22 can now venture only a short distance from its home base before being forced to return. Close enough that if a pilot gets sick, he can high-tail it home and get the hell out of the cockpit.

The order is officially intended to ensure a pilot can land and recover in case of "unanticipated physiological conditions."