Tag Archives: F-35B

Marines Refining F-35B Operations, Maintenance At Sea During Final Developmental Test

Marines Refining F-35B Operations, Maintenance At Sea During Final Developmental Test

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Peter "Wizzer" Wilson and Maj. John Dirk arrive aboard USS America for STOVL DT-III, 28 October 2016. US Navy photo.

Peter “Wizzer” Wilson and Maj. John Dirk arrive aboard USS America for STOVL DT-III, 28 October 2016. US Navy photo.

This article is the first in a two-part series on the future of Marine Corps aviation. To read about how MAWTS-1 is discovering how to best integrate the F-35B and other weapons systems for a high-end air fight, please click this link.

ABOARD USS AMERICA, OFF THE COAST OF CALIFORNIA – After years of testing to make sure the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter and its subsystems work as designed, the Marine Corps has a contingent of pilots and maintainers aboard USS America (LHA-6) now to ensure the new plane can operate from the amphibious ship, in a final test period ahead of next year’s first deployment. Read More →

USS Wasp to Japan Next Year in Support of Marine F-35B Squadron Next Year; USS Bonhomme Richard to San Diego

USS Wasp to Japan Next Year in Support of Marine F-35B Squadron Next Year; USS Bonhomme Richard to San Diego

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Sailors celebrate the U.S. Navy's 241st birthday aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) on Oct. 12, 2016. US Navy Photo

Sailors celebrate the U.S. Navy’s 241st birthday aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) on Oct. 12, 2016. US Navy Photo

CORRECTION: A previous version of this post had the incorrect unit number for the first Marine Fighter Attack Squadron to field F-35Bs in Japan. It’s Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 (VMFA-121) “Green Knights,” no VMFA-211.

Next year the Navy will relocate big deck amphib USS Wasp (LHD-1) from Naval Station Norfolk, Va. to a new homeport in Sasebo, Japan, U.S. Fleet Forces announced on Monday. Read More →

Underway on USS America

Underway on USS America

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The amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) conducts flight operations while underway to Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2016. US Navy photo.

The amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) conducts flight operations while underway to Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2016. US Navy photo.

ABOARD USS AMERICA — The new amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA-6) has raised more than a few questions in its short life, with sailors and Marines alike wondering what it will mean to have an amphibious ship without a well deck and therefore without the ability to deploy landing craft to move heavy tanks and equipment ashore.

America’s recent participation in the Rim of the Pacific 2016 international exercise may have allayed some concerns – the resounding feedback from those involved in the ship’s operations is that, if the Marines are willing to tweak the composition of the deploying Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), America can move them faster, more agilely and more safely. Read More →

F-35B Tactics Evolving As Pilots' Understanding Of Technology Matures

F-35B Tactics Evolving As Pilots’ Understanding Of Technology Matures

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An F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121 takes off during exercise Red Flag 16-3 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., July 20. This is the first time that the fifth generation fighter has participated in the multiservice air-to-air combat training exercise. US Marine Corps photo.

An F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121 takes off during exercise Red Flag 16-3 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., July 20. This is the first time that the fifth generation fighter has participated in the multiservice air-to-air combat training exercise. US Marine Corps photo.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Marine Corps’ top aviator said the F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter pilots have matured in their understanding of the new platform in the year since the service declared initial operational capability (IOC), pushing themselves to push past planned tactics and create a new way of using the fifth-generation technology. Read More →

Marine Corps F-35B Makes its Red Flag Air Combat Debut

Marine Corps F-35B Makes its Red Flag Air Combat Debut

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A F-35B, assigned to the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, flies level as a F-16 Fighting Falcon from the 177th Fighter Squadron from the New Jersey Air National Guard, banks hard during approach July 15, 2016 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. US Air Force Photo

A F-35B, assigned to the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, flies level as a F-16 Fighting Falcon from the 177th Fighter Squadron from the New Jersey Air National Guard, banks hard during approach July 15, 2016 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. US Air Force Photo

The Marine Corps’ next-generation fighter took to the skies last week with its military contemporaries during Red Flag, the military’s premier advanced aerial combat training exercise. Read More →

Second F-35B Squadron Stands Up At Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

Second F-35B Squadron Stands Up At Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

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U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 (VMFA-211) performs it’s first flight at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., June 29, 2016. US Marine Corps photo.

U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 (VMFA-211) performs it’s first flight at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., June 29, 2016. US Marine Corps photo.

The Marine Corps’ second F-35B Joint Strike Fighter squadron stood up today, as the AV-8B Harrier-flying Marine Attack Squadron (VMA) 211 became Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 211. Read More →

Marines Taking 30 Hornets From Boneyard, Navy Inventory To Address Readiness Crisis

Marines Taking 30 Hornets From Boneyard, Navy Inventory To Address Readiness Crisis

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A Marine inspects an F/A-18C Hornet from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323, Jan. 7, 2015. US Marine Corps photo.

A Marine inspects an F/A-18C Hornet from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323, Jan. 7, 2015. US Marine Corps photo.

Marine Corps aviation, struggling to meet its operational and training missions with a shrinking fleet of aged F/A-18 Hornets, is pushing a program to recover and update 30 out-of-service F/A-18Cs in an effort to remain combat ready until the new F-35B is fielded in numbers. Read More →

Opinion: Expanding the Distributed Lethality Web

Opinion: Expanding the Distributed Lethality Web

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An F-35B Lightning II takes off from the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) on May 25, 2015. US Navy Photo

An F-35B Lightning II takes off from the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) on May 25, 2015. US Navy Photo

The U.S. Navy’s Aegis Weapon System revolutionized fleet air defense at the height of the Cold War. The 1983 commissioning of the first Aegis guided missile cruiser USS Ticonderoga (CG-47) and the 26 cruisers that followed provided the Navy with unrivaled capability at a time when an expansionist Soviet navy was bent on challenging the United States on the world’s oceans. Read More →

SASC Passes FY17 NDAA; Bill Would Preserve LCS Cuts, Fund Readiness, Buy Additional Aircraft

SASC Passes FY17 NDAA; Bill Would Preserve LCS Cuts, Fund Readiness, Buy Additional Aircraft

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The "Gunslingers" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 105 conduct a flyover during their homecoming at Naval Air Station Oceana, Va. on April 17, 2014. US Navy Photo

The “Gunslingers” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 105 conduct a flyover during their homecoming at Naval Air Station Oceana, Va. on April 17, 2014. US Navy Photo

The Senate Armed Services Committee passed its version of the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act on Thursday, laying out a spending plan that falls just short of a bill the House Armed Services Committee passed last month. Read More →

3rd MAW Preparing To Deploy F-35B While Struggling To Keep Older Planes Ready: An Operational Perspective

3rd MAW Preparing To Deploy F-35B While Struggling To Keep Older Planes Ready: An Operational Perspective

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An F-35B Joint Strike Fighter from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 takes off from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., launching the squadron's first orientation flight, Feb. 21, 2013. US Marine Corps photo.

An F-35B Joint Strike Fighter from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 takes off from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., launching the squadron’s first orientation flight, Feb. 21, 2013. US Marine Corps photo.

This article is part of a two-story package on the current state of Marine Corps aviation. Please read USMC Emphasizing Spare Parts, Maintainer Training To Regain Aviation Readiness: A Headquarters Perspective for the headquarters perspective.

The flight line at Yuma Marine Corps Air Station, Ariz., got busier on Monday when two operational F-35B Joint Strike Fighter jets arrived at their new West Coast home. The single-seat jets are the first to join Marine Attack Squadron 211, which has flown the AV-8B Harrier II jump jet as part of 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW). Read More →

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