Naval Air Systems Command Welcomes Second F-35B

By Craig Taylor

December 30, 2009

The second F-35B Lightning II short takeoff/vertical landing stealth fighter arrived yesterday at Naval Air System Command in Patuxent River, Md.

U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Joseph T. "O.D." Bachmann piloted the aircraft nonstop from Lockheed Martin's plant in Fort Worth, Tex., successfully completing aerial refueling en route.

"Pax River is ready to begin the extensive four-year flight test campaign to help field the future of Marine Corps and Navy Aviation," said Dan Crowley, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and F-35 program general manager. "Over the next year, an integrated government/industry test team will ramp up the flight test at Pax River for the F-35B variant and F-35C carrier variant, and at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., for the F-35A conventional takeoff and landing variant."

The F-35 Lightning II is a 5th generation fighter, combining advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations, advanced sustainment, and lower operational and support costs.