F-35 Lightning II developments

[Starfighter_F-104G]

The US revealed its planned procurement quantities for lots 12, 13 and 14 in a 16 June 16 announcement.

Lot 12 would include 100 F-35As, 26 F-35Bs and 6 F-35Cs,
Lot 13 would include 104 F-35As, 26 F-35Bs and 12 F-35Cs,
Lot 14 would call for 88 F-35As, 30 F-35Bs and 18 F-35Cs.

[Starfighter_F-104G]

AL-04 & AL-05 f/f 19.07.2016

[Coati]

First flight of first Israeli F-35I Adir completed (serial 901, c/n AS-1).

http://defence-blog.com/news/israeli-f- ... light.html

[Starman]

The allocation of serial 901 is interesting from two angles: one, the "9" blocks are usually reserved for special mission a/c, rather than fighters (OK so the post GW F-16Bs got "9", but that was because there was nothing left after the first 800 deliveries*). Similarily, "01" is a first (pun intended), one might have expected 940 or 916, whatever.

Some interesting bits in the article and I quote: "In total, Israel should by the end of 2020 (get) to 33 aircraft and 4 flight simulator with a total value (resale? Ed) of $ 5.3 billion. It is planned that up to half of the training, the pilots will spend it at the gym, which should reduce the cost of training." This is obviously to deter any foreign F-35 drivers from "popping in" to Nevatim (translation, we have no bar on base).

The numbers should also be noted as: "With the Israel Air Force planning to decommission its fleet of aging F-15s and F-16s, the F-35 will continue to ensure the country’s global competitiveness." And you Dutchmen are worried about 37 Lockheed Wunderjets replacing your 50 Vipers ..... (clue, the IAF has one or two more than 50*). Just noticed, the article must be true, they call it the Israel Air Force.

Luckily Nevatim is equipped with sun-shelters, The VKs at Nellis last week had to be kept indoors as much as possible

[Starfighter_F-104G]

RNoAF 5110 delivered to Luke 28-07-2016

[Belgaviation]

Air Force declares the F-35A ‘combat ready’

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. – The F-35A Lightning II fifth generation fighter aircraft was declared ‘combat ready’ today by Gen. Hawk Carlisle, the commander of Air Combat Command.
Carlisle lauded the aircraft’s performance, noting that the aircraft had met all key criteria for reaching initial operational capability: Airmen trained, manned and equipped to conduct basic close air support, interdiction, and limited suppression/destruction of enemy air defenses in a contested environment with an operational squadron of 12-24 aircraft; the ability to deploy and conduct operational missions using program of record weapons and missions systems; and having all necessary logistics and operational elements in place.
“I am proud to announce this powerful new weapons system has achieved initial combat capability,” Carlisle said. “The F-35A will be the most dominant aircraft in our inventory, because it can go where our legacy aircraft cannot and provide the capabilities our commanders need on the modern battlefield.”
The F-35A is the latest addition to ACC’s fleet of deployable and fifth generation aircraft. It provides air superiority, interdiction, suppression of enemy air defenses and close air support as well as great command and control functions through fused sensors, and will provide pilots with unprecedented situational awareness of the battlespace that will be more extensive than any single-seat platform in existence.
“Bringing the F-35A to initial combat readiness is a testament to our phenomenal Airmen and the outstanding support of the Joint Program Office and our enterprise partners. This important milestone for our fighter force ensures the United States, along with our allies and international partners, remains prepared to deter, deny, and defeat the full spectrum of growing threats around the globe," added Deborah Lee James, Secretary of the Air Force.
Gen. David Goldfein, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, said that dynamic new capability will benefit the joint warfighter.
"The combat ready F-35A is the latest fifth generation fighter aircraft in the Air Force's inventory and provides our nation air dominance in any environment. The F-35A brings an unprecedented combination of lethality, survivability, and adaptability to joint and combined operations, and is ready to deploy and strike well-defended targets anywhere on Earth," Goldfein said. "Today's declaration of IOC is an important milestone on the road to achieving full warfighting capability for the F-35A.”
The 34th Fighter Squadron of the 388th Fighter Wing, based at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the service’s first operational F-35A squadron, having met all the established criteria for Initial Operational Capability including a successful June deployment to Mountain Home AFB, Idaho and a series of eight-aircraft sorties held in mid-July. 34 FS Airmen will fly and maintain the F-35A alongside Air Force Reservists from Hill’s 419th Fighter Wing.

[tally]

AF-102 as 14-5101/HL destined for the 388 FW, 34 FS had its first flight Aug 2nd, 2016.

Cheets,

Tally.

[ngroot]

JASDF releases images of first F-35
Gareth Jennings, London - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
15 August 2016

The first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) for Japan was photographed at the Fort Worth production facility in mid-August.

The images, released by the Japan Air Self-Defence Force (JASDF) on 14 August, show aircraft 69-8701 (also designated AX-1) in its completed state ahead of flight tests and delivery to the international training fleet at Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Arizona, in the coming weeks. Four aircraft for the JASDF are currently being built at Fort Worth.

Japan has committed itself to buying 28 F-35As over the next five-years (6 of the aircraft are under contract), and has a total requirement of 42 to replace its ageing Mitsubishi-McDonnell Douglas F-4J Kai (Phantom II) aircraft, which have been in service since the early 1970s.

On 25 June 2014, then Japanese defence minister Itsunori Onodera announced that the F-35 would initially be based at Misawa, which is expected to receive the first 4 of about 20 aircraft during fiscal year 2017. The initial operating unit is expected to be either 301 or 302 Squadron.

http://www.janes.com/article/62957/jasd ... first-f-35

Picture in the article is really blurry. Serial of AX-1 is said to be 69-8701. Roll out is planned to be on September 29, 2016 according to this source.

[ngroot]

DT-III has started aboard USS George Washington, with the following aircraft (F-35C):
CF-03 VX-23 SD-73 NAVY
CF-05 VX-23 SD-75 NAVY
169160 VFA-101 NJ-121 MARINES
169162 VFA-101 NJ-123 MARINES
169163 VFA-101 NJ-124 NAVY
169302 VFA-101 NJ-125 NAVY
169303 VFA-101 NJ-126 MARINES

I'm not 100% certain about the italic BuNos. These aircraft were previously flying without modex at Fort Worth. It would make sense they got numbered in this order after being delivered.

Source and source. High resolution pictures can be found here (search for F-35C).

[Melchior Timmers]

169160 VFA-101 NJ-121 MARINES
169162 VFA-101 NJ-123 MARINES
169163 VFA-101 NJ-124 NAVY
169302 VFA-101 NJ-125 NAVY
169303 VFA-101 NJ-126 MARINES

I'm not 100% certain about the italic BuNos. These aircraft were previously flying without modex at Fort Worth. It would make sense they got numbered in this order after being delivered.

All above are confirmed, except 169303, have not seen a picture of it with the code, but seems very likely to be NJ-126.

Regards,

[Melchior Timmers]

902 has also flown for the first time (credits to Joe Zerbe), 08 August:

F-35i 902 Aug 16 6 by Joe Zerbe, on Flickr

[Stratofreighter]

The Japanese Lightning II again:

[ngroot]

All above are confirmed, except 169303, have not seen a picture of it with the code, but seems very likely to be NJ-126.

169303 NJ-126 is now confirmed too. 169303 is readable in this picture and NJ-126 in this one.

[Melchior Timmers]

ZM140 (BK-6) had its first flight on 23aug16.
This one should be FMS 169299

[Melchior Timmers]

Japan 69-8701 had its first flight 24aug16