F-35 Aerial Refueling
06/19/2015
06/15/2015: An F-35 Lightning II gets refueled on June 10, 2015 Credit:99th Air Base Wing Public Affairs:6/10/15
Air Refueling of F-35s
06/19/2015
2015-06-19 F-35′s from the 56th Fighter Wing are seen with two KC-135′s for an aerial refueling mission over Arizona. Credit Video: 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs 6/5/15 And the perspective from MCAS Beaufort: Fueling a fighter jet mid-mission isn’t as easy as exiting a highway to top off your tank. It’s really…
An Update on Italian F-35s
06/19/2015
2015-06-19 Our partner, Rivista Italiana Difesa, recently provided an update on the F-35s for Italy. [caption id="attachment_75658" align="alignnone" width="300"] The first Italian F-35 leaves the factory at Cameri in March 2015. [/caption] At the Le Bourget Air Show, RID had the opportunity to obtain some exclusive information. Lockheed Martin is…
MAG-31 in Transition: The Warlords at Beaufort
06/15/2015
2015-06-12 By Robbin Laird and Murielle Delaporte Marine Air Group 31 is located at MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina. It is the home of six F-18 squadrons and one F-35 squadron. The F-35 Squadron – VMFAT-501 – is training coalition and USMC F-35B pilots to operate the F-35B. When Second Line…
56th Fighter Wing F-35 Refueling Mission
06/15/2015
06/15/2015: F-35's from the 56th Fighter Wing took flight with two KC-135's for an aerial refueling mission over Arizona. Credit:56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs:6/5/15 And the perspective from MCAS Beaufort: Fueling a fighter jet mid-mission isn’t as easy as exiting a highway to top off your tank. It’s really…
Preparing to Operate Off of the HMS Queen Elizabeth: Working with the Marines at VFMAT-501
06/15/2015
2015-06-10 By Robbin Laird and Murielle Delaporte During a visit to the 31st Marine Air Group, we visited VFMAT-501, the Warlords and met with the CO of the Squadron “OD” Bachman, Major Brian Bann and Squadron Leader Hugh Nichols from the Royal Air Force. In separate pieces, we are publishing…
Shaping a New Capability for the Osprey: Delivering the F-35 Engine to the USS Wasp
06/14/2015
2015-06-14 By Robbin Laird When visiting the USS Wasp and both seeing part of the operational tests as well as discussing those tests with the US and British personnel involved in the testing, one of the highlights was the demonstration of being able to fly the largest module of the…
The Coming of the F-35: A Special Report on the Introduction of the New Air System
06/12/2015
2015-06-04 By Robbin Laird and Ed Timperlake In a meeting last year in the United Kingdom with one of the RAF officers responsible for the introduction of the F-35 into the UK forces, Group Captain Paul Godfrey highlighted the behind the scenes work to roll out an F-35 fleet, an…