To date the only major functional issues with raptor have been lack of numbers, lack of a off bore sight helmet and a oxygen generator issue.
it hardly seems the model of failure.
The decision to postpone helmet mounted sight is a recognition of the fact that all the hype around TVC and hyper maneuverability aside, close combat has dropped far down the list in importance amongst the role the F-22 might be asked to play. This has to be taken in the context of how much the f-22's overall design emphasized close combat capability and sacrificed other important features such as range, mission versatility, even some degree of supercruise to achieve it.
This in turn is a recognition that cost of f-22's close combat capability was uneconomical, in the sense that while a impressive degree of individual superiority was indisputably achieved, the cost of this individual superiority was so great it threatened collective superiority. So the f-22's individual superiority in close combat is best for America overall if not put to real large scale test in battle. An analogy of Panther vs T-34 comes to mind.
So for a massive investment in a feature that is, while impressive, too expensive to be used, f-22 definitely sacraficed other features, like range, which would certain have been useful and frequently used if available. This is certainly a model for overall specification and project direction failure.
As to whether f-22 was a big Lockheed fraud, not for this reason. The fact that the airforce insisted so much be sacraficed for a role by a fighter too expensive to play that role was the culprit.
