US Marines F-35s



  • 140717-M-UU619-844
    The first F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter assigned to VMFAT-501 arrived at MCAS Beaufort, on July 17, 2014. The aircraft is the first to join VMFAT-501 at MCAS Beaufort since relocating from Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter will replace the Marine Corps' aging legacy tactical fleet. [Photo by Cpl. John Wilkes]
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    USMC F-35B 168722 and USN F-35C. [Lockheed Martin photo by Liz Kaszynski ]
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    Lt. Col. J.T. 'Tank' Ryan, Marine VMFAT-501 detachment commander and F-35 pilot, delivers the first Marine Corps F-35C Lightning II #169031 a carrier variant to VFA-101 at Eglin AFB on January 13, 2015. Ryan flew the aircraft from the Lockheed Martin plant, Fort Worth, Texas, as the first of five Marine Corps F-35C model aircraft to be delivered to the VFA-101. [USAF photo by SSgt. Marleah Robertson]
  • 150113-F-SI788-099
    Lt. Col. J.T. 'Tank' Ryan, Marine VMFAT-501 detachment commander and F-35 pilot, delivers the first Marine Corps F-35C Lightning II #169031, a carrier variant to VFA-101 at Eglin AFB on January 13, 2015. Ryan flew the aircraft from the Lockheed Martin plant, Fort Worth, Texas, as the first of five Marine Corps F-35C model aircraft to be delivered to the VFA-101. [USAF photo by SSgt. Marleah Robertson]
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    USMC F-35B #169025 from VMFAT-501 is coming in for landing at NAS Fort Worth on February 13th, 2015. [Photo by Keith Snyder]
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    USMC F-35B BF-5 arrives at Eglin AFB, Florida, for testing in the McKinley Climatic Lab on September 24, 2014. [Lockheed photo]
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    USMC F-35B BF-05 sits under a giant solar lamp setup for extreme heat testing on January 15, 2015 at Eglin AFB, Florida. [Lockheed photo]
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    USMC F-35B BF-5 undergoes climatic testing at the McKinley Climatic Lab at Eglin AFB, Florida. During lab tests, temperatures drop all the way down to -40 degrees Fahrenheit on January 21, 2015. [Lockheed photo]
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    USMC F-35B BF-05 undergoes climatic testing at the McKinley Climatic Lab at Eglin AFB, Florida. During lab tests, temperatures drop all the way down to -40 degrees Fahrenheit on January 21, 2015. [Lockheed photo]
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    USMC F-35B #169027 destined for VMTAF-501 is spotted during a test flight at NAS Fort Worth on March 27th, 2015. [Photo by Keith Snyder]
  • 168061
    USMC F-35B #168061 from VMFAT-501 rolls by the 33rd Fighter Wing hot pit refueling area as two F-35As receive fuel at Eglin AFB. All of the F-35 variants use the refueling areas in conjunction with the 96th Logistics Readiness Squadron’s fuels flight. [USAF photo by Samuel King Jr.]
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    Royal Air Force pilot, Squadron Leader Hugh Nichols, hovers over the runway in Marine F-35B #168308 during the first short take-off and vertical landing sortie by a United Kingdom pilot at Eglin AFB on February 25th, 2015. The U.S. Marines began flying STOVL sorties at Eglin in October of 2013. [USAF photo by Samuel King Jr.]
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    USMC F-35B #168311 takes off from the Eglin AFB runway for a local sortie. The 33rd Fighter Wing's integrated training center for the joint strike fighter hosts squadrons for Air Force, Navy, Marines and partner nations. [USAF photo by Samuel King Jr.]
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    USMC F-35B #168313 arrives at Edwards AFB on March 5th, 2013. It's the first mission systems B-variant to arrive at Edwards. [Lockheed-Martin photo by Tom Reynolds]
  • 168723
    USMC F-35B #168723 with VMFA-121, based out of MCAS Yuma performs a vertical landing as part of required flying field carrier landing practices (FCLP) at the station’s auxiliary landing field on April 27th, 2015. [DoD photo by Cpl. Travis Gershaneck]