bobdina
09-18-2009, 04:52 PM
Joint Strike Fighter timeline moved up
By Andrew Tilghman - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Sep 18, 2009 14:06:28 EDT
The Navy’s carrier version of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter will be ready for deployment earlier than expected, a Navy official said.
The Navy’s first F-35C squadron will be operational by September 2014, about six months earlier than the previous target date in 2015, said Lt. Callie Ferrari, a Navy spokeswoman at the Pentagon.
The F-35C’s timeline is critical, Navy officials say, to help reduce the “fighter gap,” the looming shortfall in fighter jets as the older F/A-18 Hornets wear out faster than the F-35Cs will arrive to replace them.
The Navy’s F-35C is slated for its first test flight later this year. The first operational aircraft will begin arriving in 2012 at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, where the first F-35 pilots will be trained, Navy officials said.
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2009/09/navy_F35_091809w/
By Andrew Tilghman - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Sep 18, 2009 14:06:28 EDT
The Navy’s carrier version of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter will be ready for deployment earlier than expected, a Navy official said.
The Navy’s first F-35C squadron will be operational by September 2014, about six months earlier than the previous target date in 2015, said Lt. Callie Ferrari, a Navy spokeswoman at the Pentagon.
The F-35C’s timeline is critical, Navy officials say, to help reduce the “fighter gap,” the looming shortfall in fighter jets as the older F/A-18 Hornets wear out faster than the F-35Cs will arrive to replace them.
The Navy’s F-35C is slated for its first test flight later this year. The first operational aircraft will begin arriving in 2012 at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, where the first F-35 pilots will be trained, Navy officials said.
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2009/09/navy_F35_091809w/