F-35A Lightning II: Supersonic stealth fighter ready to strike

The Royal Australian Air Force’s F-35A Lightning II acquisition program has enjoyed a busy year despite the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Royal Australian Air Force’s F-35A Lightning II acquisition program has enjoyed a busy year despite the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Royal Australian Air Force’s F-35A Lightning II acquisition program has enjoyed a busy year despite the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since September 2020, the RAAF has continued to accept new aircraft from the Lockheed Martin production line Fort Worth, Texas, participated in major air combat exercises at home and overseas, and declared an Initial Operational Capability (IOC) on schedule in December 2020.

Other milestones during the period include the successful migration of pilot and maintenance personnel from the US to Australia, the start of the transition process for the second operational fighter squadron, and the induction of the first aircraft into an Australian facility for heavy maintenance work.

Australia is acquiring 72 Lockheed Martin F-35As under Air 6000 Phase 2A/2B and 37 aircraft have now been accepted and delivered to RAAF Williamtown, north of Sydney.

However further deliveries during 2021 are expected to be impacted by supply chain problems attributable to COVID-19.

“There are some forecast delays for some aircraft scheduled for delivery in 2021, with most expected to be delivered no more than two months later than contracted,” a Defence spokesperson said.

By the end of 2020, 45 pilots and 600 maintenance personnel had completed their training in the US. Following completion of the transition of training to Australia during 2020, full-scale pilot courses are now underway at Williamtown and the first candidates are expected to graduate in July this year.

To support training into the future, Lockheed Martin Australia was awarded a $5m sovereign Training Support Services contract in December 2020, which will oversee the operation and maintenance support of six F-35 Full Mission Simulators at Williamtown and installation and operation of four similar devices at Tindal, in the Northern Territory, for up to five years.

The IOC declaration on December 28 last year also marked the point in the program where the first fighter squadron has completed its transition to the 5th-generation aircraft and can now be deployed on operations.

In a statement to mark the occasion then defence minister Linda Reynolds said it represented the culmination of two years of rigorous validation and verification testing that assessed aircraft and system performance.

“The ADF now has an F-35A squadron ready to conduct technologically advanced strike and air combat roles, and another squadron dedicated to providing world-class training here in Australia,” Ms Reynolds said.

While the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have hampered the RAAF’s participation in multilateral exercises, the F-35A has nevertheless performed well in two major training serials.

The first was Exercise Lightning Storm, held on the east coast of Australia in August-September last year, which was designed to test the capabilities of the F-35A while sustaining a high rate of effort.

This local exercise was followed by Exercise Lightning Spear, held at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida in October 2020, in which RAAF F-35As operated concurrently from three different locations.

“Working with the United States Air Force provided important military-to-military engagement opportunities for air force to build on our shared understanding of a platform we both operate,” explained Group Captain John Haly, Officer Commanding No.81 Wing, in a statement after the exercise concluded.

In February the first F-35A was inducted into BAE Systems’ maintenance facility at Williamtown, which is slated to also become the Southern Pacific Regional Heavy Airframe Depot.

The second RAAF fighter squadron began its transition to the F-35A in January and the final operational unit, based at Tindal, will retire its F/A-18A/B Hornets in December 2021. Final Operational Capability (FOC) for the F-35A is expected to occur before the end of 2023.