Because the world is one big happy place right now, it’s not uncommon for the world’s armies to train and perform all sorts of other missions with allies and, at times, even with foes. That happens with pretty much all branches of the global military, and utilizing pretty much all hardware available, except, until now, for one: aircraft carriers.
Sure, these massive ships do train together, and so do the aircraft that take off from their decks, but we know not of instances when say an American plane used a foreign aircraft carrier for cross-deck operations.
That changed over the past weekend, when an F-35B deployed with the American Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 took off from the British HMS Queen Elizabeth and landed on amphibious assault ship USS America.
The plane had arrived on the Queen Elizabeth a while back, and conducted this “first-of-its-kind operation” on August 20. Once onboard the USS America, the plane was refueled and rearmed to “strike follow-on objectives.”
The achievement demonstrates, according to the Marine Corps, “the interoperability of the F-35B and the strategic importance of the joint integration between the United Kingdom Carrier Strike Group and the U.S. Navy Amphibious Ready Group / Marine Expeditionary Unit.” It also kind of increases the number of available floating bases for these planes in times of need.
The F-35B is one of three variants of the Lockheed Martin-made machine, and it has been designed specifically with the needs of the Marine Corps in mind. It can land vertically and take off from very short runways, making it ideal for use at sea. Aside from the American Marine Corps, the militaries of the UK and Italy are using them as well.
Generally called F-35 Lighting II, this family of fighter planes is capable of speeds of Mach 1.6 and flights at altitudes of 50,000 ft (15,000 m).
That changed over the past weekend, when an F-35B deployed with the American Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 took off from the British HMS Queen Elizabeth and landed on amphibious assault ship USS America.
The plane had arrived on the Queen Elizabeth a while back, and conducted this “first-of-its-kind operation” on August 20. Once onboard the USS America, the plane was refueled and rearmed to “strike follow-on objectives.”
The achievement demonstrates, according to the Marine Corps, “the interoperability of the F-35B and the strategic importance of the joint integration between the United Kingdom Carrier Strike Group and the U.S. Navy Amphibious Ready Group / Marine Expeditionary Unit.” It also kind of increases the number of available floating bases for these planes in times of need.
The F-35B is one of three variants of the Lockheed Martin-made machine, and it has been designed specifically with the needs of the Marine Corps in mind. It can land vertically and take off from very short runways, making it ideal for use at sea. Aside from the American Marine Corps, the militaries of the UK and Italy are using them as well.
Generally called F-35 Lighting II, this family of fighter planes is capable of speeds of Mach 1.6 and flights at altitudes of 50,000 ft (15,000 m).