Air Force F-35 Version Cleared for Combat - prepared for global threats

On 2 August 2016 at Joint Base Langley-Eustis,Virginia,US Air Force General Hawk Carlisle,commander,Air Combat Command,declared the Air Force's F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter to be combat ready.The general said the aircraft met all criteria for declaring initial operational capability:
airmen trained,manned and equipped to conduct basic close air support,interdiction and limited suppression/destruction of enemy air defences in a contested environment with an operational squadron of 12-24 aircraft;
the ability to deploy and conduct operational missions using program of record weapons and mission systems;
and having all logistics and operational elements in place.
The F-35A will be the most dominant aircraft in our inventory because it can go where our legacy aircraft cannot and provide the capabilities our commanders need on the modern battlefield,General Carlisle added.*
Besides basic combat readiness,the aircraft provides great command and control functions through fused sensors,and it will provide pilots with unprecedented situational awareness of the battle space that will be more extensive than any single seat platform in existence,officials point out.*
Bringing the F-35A to initial combat readiness is a testament to our phenomenal airmen and the outstanding support of the Joint Program Office and our enterprise partners,according to Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James.This important milestone for our fighter force ensures the US,along with our allies and international partners,remains prepared to deter,deny and defeat the full spectrum of growing threats around the globe.*
The Air Force's first operational squadron of F-35As is the 388th Fighter Wing,Hill Air Force Base,Utah.They will fly and maintain the fifth generation fighter with Air Force Reservists from the 419th Fighter Wing at Hill.*
Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor for the F-35 and its three variants for the Air Force (F-35A),US Marine Corps (F-35B) and US Navy (F-35C),as well as allies and partners expressing an interest such as Great Britain,Australia and the Netherlands.*
Lockheed Martin (LMT)

Pacific Air Power:Interior Alaska Selected for F-35 Squadrons

Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James has signed a Record of Decision indicating that the US Air Force has selected Eielson Air Force Base in Interior Alaska to be the home of two Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter squadrons.Eielson is located near Fairbanks,Alaska.*
Alaska combines a strategically important location with a world class training environment,Ms.James said.Basing F-35s at Eielson AFB will allow the Air Force the capability of using the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex (JPARC) for large force exercises using a multitude of ranges and manoeuvre areas in Alaska.This combined with the largest airspace in the Air Force,ensures realistic combat training for the Defense Department.*
Three years of study produced an Environmetal Impact Statement on the project which considered impacts such as air quality,noise,land use and socioeconomics.The JPARC where the squadrons will train has 65,000 square miles of available airspace.*
The decision to base two F-35 squadrons at Eielson AFB,Alaska will double our fifth generation fighter aircraft presence in the Pacific Theatre,said General Mark A. Welsh III,Chief of Staff Air Force.Integrating that fifth generation force with Navy,Marine and allied F-35 forces will provide joint and coalition warfighters unprecedented survivability,lethality and battlespace awareness in contested environments.It's an exciting time for Pacific Air Power.*
The two F-35 squadrons,totaling 54 aircraft,will join Eielson's F-16 Fighting Falcon aggressor squadron.Construction for the project is expected to start in fiscal year 2017,or as soon as July,in order to be ready to receive the F-35s starting in 2020.Between now and 2020,the Air Force will be increasing the number of active duty maintainers to accommodate the F-35s.The F-35 is to be the Air Force's premier strike aircraft for the first half of the 21st century and will eventually replace the legacy air to ground fighter fleets,the Air Force said.*
We want to ensure,from a security perspective,that we've got all our bases covered-and that's what we're going to be able to do because we've positioned two squadrons of F-35s here at Eielson,said Senator Lisa Murkowski,R-Alaska,at an Eielson AFB celebration to mark the basing decision.*
This decision solidifies that this state has become one of the most critical hubs of air combat power in the US military,added her US Senate colleague Senator Dan Sullivan,R-Alaska.Think about it.That's likely going to mean more missions for all of you,which I know you like,Senator Sullivan told the Airmen.*
Lockheed Martin (LMT)