1st F-35B Student Pilot [from USN flight training school]

Production milestones, roll-outs, test flights, service introduction and other milestones.
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by spazsinbad » 31 Oct 2015, 16:48

The Next Step in the USMC F-35 Modernization Path: The First F-35B Student Pilot
31 Oct 2015 SLDinfo

"2015-10-31 Until now, Marine Corps pilots flying the F-35B have been second tour pilots. That is, they are pilots with flying backgrounds and with combat experience. Now the Warlords at Beaufort Air Station have their first tour pilot coming to fly the F-35B. We will now see what Lt. General “Dog” Davis, Deputy Commandant of Aviation, once called the I Pad generation pilots coming into the force....

"...According to Richard Stewart, Chief of Naval Air Training public affairs: KINGSVILLE, Texas – Marine Corps 1st Lt. Taylor Zehrung, from Seattle, a Student Naval Aviator with Training Squadron (VT) 22 located at Naval Air Station Kingsville, Texas, earned his Wings of Gold October 23, 2015, becoming the first jet pipeline aviator to be selected to train and fly the new F-35B Lightning II.

Lt. Col. Robert George, Commanding Officer of VT 22 said, “1st Lt. Zehrung will be the first CAT I pilot selected to fly the F-35B. This is a big step towards the transition of sustaining a long term F-35B fleet.”

In 2008, the first six pilots to fly the F-35B operationally were chosen by the Marine Corps. All six were former weapons school graduates and most were weapons school instructors at Weapons and Tactics Instructor course or at Top Gun. In the last few years, the Marine Corps selected more junior pilots to transition to the F-35B to balance out the experience in the F-35B ready rooms. Until today, all current F-35 pilots are experienced Marines selected from operational units flying other fleet aircraft (F/A18, AV-8B, EA-6B).

“1st Lt. Zehrung will be the first to go directly from flight school to the F-35B Fleet Replacement Squadron,” said George “His training will start at MCAS Beaufort, SC flying with the “War Lords” of Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501 (VMFAT-501). He was chosen from a very competitive group of peers in large part due to his impeccable officer-like qualities to include professionalism, integrity, and sound judgment. He did a phenomenal job as a student aviator and his grades were exceptionally high earning him the distinction of being on the Commodore’s list. We’re very proud of him and are excited to be a part of this significant milestone for 1st Lt. Zehrung and the Marine Corps.”

When 1st Lt. Zehrung was asked how he felt being the first student selected to fly the F-35B, he said, “I feel very honored and proud. It is very exciting and exhilarating, and I truly am looking forward to the future. I know that the program is going to require a lot from me, but I am ready to give 100 percent and set the bar for future student naval aviators.”"

Photo Caption: "1st Lt. Taylor Zehrung has his Wings of Gold put on by his father Steve while his sister Aimee looks on during Training Air Wing Two’s winging ceremony and becomes the first naval aviation student selected to fly the F-35 Lightning II." http://www.sldinfo.com/wp-content/uploa ... C_7312.jpg (1.4Mb)


Source: http://www.sldinfo.com/the-next-step-in ... ent-pilot/
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1st Lt. Taylor Zehrung Wings of Gold father Steve & sister Aimee.jpg


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by blindpilot » 31 Oct 2015, 18:11

spazsinbad wrote:
The Next Step in the USMC F-35 Modernization Path: The First F-35B Student Pilot
31 Oct 2015 SLDinfo

" We will now see what Lt. General “Dog” Davis, Deputy Commandant of Aviation, once called the I Pad generation pilots coming into the force....


I believe everyone here knows I think this is a major distinguishing element of the future F-35 forces. This is not a minor element without consequence.

I recall the transition when training my kids (now 40ish) in the high tech world moving from Pong and 8080s to PCs and networks. I taught my son how to make an ethernet cable in his teens, and he quickly had lower rates of bad cables made than I did. I used him to make quality cables, and I had taught him. My phone cabinet patching upbringing didn't bring the same quality work to the job.

Their children, now 16-20ish have been working on split multiple screen console internet connected desk top stations, that look more like something I used at NORAD than a PC, since they were able to walk. They have been using cell phone/touch tablets since they were first sold in every version/operating system/platform. They don't need manuals to switch from Android to iOS to Windows 8/10 seemlessly and do everything from new version reviews to auto repair with YouTube. They have played massive multiplayer realtime games with kids from Japan and Norway, since grade school.

They (and this young Lt's) brains have been wired for the F-35 system type approach. We are about to see a generational leap in military pilots and their ability to use the systems in ways no one ever imagined.

Now. My 38 year old son thinks he can still kick his 16 year old's butt in computer games .... But I also thought I could make better cables and convert decimal to hex quicker than he could ... I was wrong. Those Top Gun pilots in their 30's better snug up their big boy pants! You can only fake it with the smoke and mirrors of experience for so long ... :D :D

MHO anyway,
BP


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by spazsinbad » 06 Nov 2015, 04:40

For the FIRST STUD thread?
A Message from Lorraine Martin
30 Oct 2015 LM

"...Pilot training at Luke AFB continues at full speed. Last month, the first two Italian and two Norwegian F-35 students began training. This month, Luke surpassed the 2,500th F-35 sortie mark. At the same time, Luke is readying their operation to welcome the first two Norwegian F-35As, which are expected to arrive in November....

...On the other side of the country at MCAS Beaufort, the training squadron is making history as the first Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot, Squadron Leader Jonathan Smith, begins F-35B pilot training. Sqn Ldr Smith is the first RAF pilot to begin training at Beaufort...."

Source: https://www.f35.com/assets/uploads/docu ... _30_15.pdf (0.33Mb)


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by spazsinbad » 07 May 2016, 03:05

LM F-35 GM Weekly Update
05 May 2016 Jeff Babione

"Until now, every pilot who flies the F-35B has flight time in a legacy aircraft. U.S. Marine Corps First Lt. Taylor “Z-Man” Zehrung, the first initial qualification F-35 pilot, completed his first flight in an F-35B at MCAS Beaufort. Zehrung began his training in November and now begins the inflight part of training and could not be more excited about it. I hear when he came in from his first flight he had a permanent grin on his face...."

Source: https://www.f35.com/assets/uploads/docu ... 5_5_16.pdf (0.6Mb)


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by spazsinbad » 10 Feb 2017, 19:47

VMFAT-501 initial ascension pilots to finish training on F-35B Lightning II
09 Feb 2017 Lance Cpl. Benjamin McDonald | Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort

"Two Marines aboard Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort are training to be the first Category One F-35B Lightning II pilots in the Department of Defense. Capt. Taylor Zehrung and Capt. Robert Reddy are the first brand new pilots to finish training on the F-35B and go on to an operational squadron.

“We are considered new pilots in the Marine Corps,” said Reddy, a training pilot in Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501. “The other pilots qualified on the F-35B here all transitioned from other aircraft to the F-35. I came from my last school in Mississippi and came to Beaufort to learn how to fly the F-35. I have no previous experiences with the F-18’s or the AV-8B Harrier II.”

Because the F-35B is a new aircraft in the DOD, training on it is an experimental process. Training on the F-35 as a new pilot has never been done in the DOD yet, so creating a syllabus and training schedule was experimental and a work in progress. Reddy and Zehrung trained on a set syllabus consisting of classroom, simulator, and in-flight instruction.

“We started in a real crawl, walk, run style,” said Reddy. “We started off with classroom instruction and a lot of simulator hours. We had to learn all of the systems that make up the aircraft and how to use and troubleshoot them. We did not start training in the F-35 until we completed between 30 to 40 hours in the simulator. It was around four months until we got into the F-35. The first thing we did in the F-35 was starting it up and taxying around the flight line, to get a feel for the aircraft. It was a lot like driving a car for the first time in a parking lot.”

After learning the simulations and the different parts of the aircraft the two category one pilots were ready to fly for the first time. Reddy and Zehrung did not begin flying until 11 weeks after the beginning of training. “Our first flight was unlike anything I have experienced,” said Reddy. “I practiced flying on T-45 Goshawk and it felt like just the engine of the F-35 was the size of the Goshawk. We went out over the ocean and did a bunch of loops and barrel rolls and the Mach run, where the very first time you fly you break the sound barrier. It was awesome to go supersonic for the first time, it is a feeling you cannot recreate. After that you just come back and practice landing and taxying around the flight line again.”

The final exercise the two pilots conducted was a MAG-wide operation with aircraft from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 251 and Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401. “Our final exercise was with the entire (MAG- 31),” said Reddy. “It was considered our culminating exercise where we put everything we learned into practice. We flew with four F-18s, eight F-5’s, and four F-15s. There were about 20 jets in the air space fighting each other. It was really great to go out there and participate in such a larger scale exercise.”

After some minor simulations and exercises, Reddy and Zehrung will be considered syllabus -complete. The two category one pilots are scheduled to receive the patch of their new units during a patching ceremony scheduled for the end of February.

“These pilots are now one of a kind,” said Maj. Kyle Shoop, the executive officer of VMAT- 501. “How they trained and the success in the MAG-wide exercise validates the syllabus and is a testament to pilots in the category one program.” After the patching ceremony Zehrung and Reddy will go to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 in Iwakuni Japan. VMFA-121 is one of the first operational F-35 squadron in the Marine Corps."

Source: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/223082/vm ... ghtning-ii


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by spazsinbad » 17 Feb 2017, 04:45

This is the newbie dun good - Sir Yes Sir!
Military Leaders Praise F-35 at Congressional Hearing
16 Feb 2016 LM PR

"...USMC Lt. Gen. Jon Davis, Deputy Commandant for Aviation, addressing F-35B dominating its opponents:
“I’ll tell you that I’ve been in the Marine Corps for 37 years, flying Marine tactical airplanes for 36. I’ve commanded our Weapons School. I have not seen anything like this in the entire history of my time. We just had what we call a Marine Division Tactics Class done in Beaufort, South Carolina.

We had a scenario out there that was a 20 versus eight. Twenty bad guys against eight good guys. In those eight good guys were four Marine F-35Bs. Basically, the 20 guys had a very bad day – I will leave it at that… One of the pilots talking about all the kills they made, and the majority of the kills came from the F-35… He was a CAT I student in our fleet replacement squadron. This was his graduation exercise. We have brand new guys coming out of the training pipeline flying this airplane who are operating like Marine veterans who have three or four years’ experience.”...


Source: https://www.f35.com/news/detail/militar ... al-hearing



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