UK Joins US in F-35B Lightning II Fast Jet Trials

A group of Royal Navy and Royal Air Force personnel are currently at sea onboard USS WASP, joining American colleagues in the latest F-35B Lightning II fast jet trials.

Lightning II is a STOVL aircraft: Short Take Off Vertical Landing.

It will place the UK at the forefront of fighter technology, giving the RAF a true multi-role all weather, day and night capability, able to operate from well-established land bases, deployed locations or the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers.

The six United States Marine Corps (USMC) Lightning II aircraft are onboard USS WASP, off the coast of the United States’ Eastern Seaboard.

The aircraft are assessing the ship/air integration and effectiveness across flight operations, communications, maintenance support and logistical supply.

Operational Test activity will include carrier qualifications for aircraft take-off and landing, and air combat/air defence missions over sea.

Image: US Marine Corps