CHESHIRE -- The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to kill the F-22 Raptor fighting jet program, directly impacting Pratt & Whitney the aircrat's sole engine maker, and dozens of local subcontractors.

The Senate's vote echoes that of President Obama and the U.S. House of Representatives that the stealth aircraft-- at a cost of $350 million each ---are too expensive and no longer needed in today's warfare.

U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd D-Connecticut opposed eliminating the programs and argued that doing so would weaken the nation's defense by sidelining highly-trained engineers and mechanics, according to news reports.

The Senate vote came several hours after Pratt and Whitney announced dismal second-quarter results and that it would possibly close an engine-repair operation on Knotter Drive and a business unit in East Hartford.