F-35C test aircraft CF-5 flies for the first time over Lockheed Martin’s production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, on Nov. 30, 2012.
Although the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has taken some public hits recently – most notably, the decision by Canada to reconsider their purchase of the fifth-generation fighter – the news isn’t all bad. The U.S. expects to finalize a deal for 32 new F-35′s on Friday, and contractor Lockheed Martin has released a new batch of photos on their Flickr stream. We’ve grabbed a couple of those for your enjoyment.
Join us below the jump for more.
All photos courtesy of Lockheed Martin.
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- F-35A test aircraft AF-4 flies a high angle of attack (AOA) mission Nov. 3. The F-35 is designed to fly to a 50 degree angle of attack, which was achieved on the fourth AOA test mission. The aircraft has an emergency spin chute installed to help return the aircraft to controlled flight in the case that AOA test push the aircraft out of flight control limits.
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- The Marine Corps re-designated Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 121 as the first operational F-35 squadron at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., Nov. 20, 2012. The ceremony also welcomed the squadron’s first three F-35B aircraft.
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- F-35C test aircraft CF-5 flies for the first time over Lockheed Martin’s production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, on Nov. 30, 2012.
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- F-35B test aircraft BF-4 approaches the runway at NAS Patuxent River, Md., for a slow landing just after sunset on Nov. 28, 2012.
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- F-35B test aircraft BF-3 completed the first aerial weapons release of an inert 500-pound GBU-12 on Dec. 3, 2012. This was the first GBU-12 Paveway II Laser Guided Bomb release for any variant of the aircraft. BF-3 dropped the GBU-12 over the Atlantic Test Ranges from an internal weapons bay.
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- An F-35B test aircraft known as BF-1 executes a vertical landing at NAS Patuxent River, Md., on Dec. 7, 2012. This flight, the 268th in BF-01, marked the 1,000th flight for the short takeoff/vertical landing variant of the Lightning II.
