Third RAAF F-35 makes first flight

The Royal Australian Air Force’s third F-35A Lightning II, A35-003, has completed its first flight.
Photographer Carl Richards captured these images of A35-003 taking off on its first flight, from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, on December 1.
The aircraft is due to be delivered to Luke Air Force Base, Arizona in early 2018 to be used for pilot and maintainer training, before being permanently relocated to Australia in 2020.
A35-003, known to its manufacturer Lockheed Martin as AU-3, had its RAAF markings, including its 3 Squadron tail flashes, applied in early November, the final phase of the aircraft’s production process.
australianaviation

F-35 altitude restrictions lifted at Luke Air Force Base

A wing commander at Luke Air Force Base on Wednesday lifted an altitude restriction on F-35 flights at the Arizona base, but Air Force investigators are no closer to understanding what prompted five incidents of pilot oxygen deprivation earlier this summer.
Between May 2 and June 8, five different Luke pilots experienced symptoms similar to hypoxia, or oxygen deprivation, while conducting F-35A training flights. That prompted Brig. Gen. Brook Leonard, commander of the 56th Fighter Wing, to order a pause in flight operations in June while officials from the Air Force and the F-35 Joint Program Executive Office analyzed each incident. Although they had hoped to find a common thread linking the incidents together, no root cause has emerged.
defensenews

USAF F-35A Catches Fire at Mountain Home Air Force Base

An F-35A caught fire during an exercise at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, the Air Force confirmed to Defense News.
The incident took place at around noon and involved an F-35A aircraft from the 61st Fighter Squadron located at Luke Air Force Base, the service said in a statement. No serious injuries seem to have been sustained by the pilot or nearby crew.
"The pilot had to egress the aircraft during engine start due to a fire from the aft section of the aircraft," Air Force spokesman Capt. Mark Graff said in an email. "The fire was extinguished quickly. As a precautionary measure, four 61st Aircraft Maintenance Unit Airmen, three Airmen from the 366th Maintenance Group and the 61st Fighter Squadron pilot were transported to the base medical center for standard evaluation."
Seven F-35As from Luke AFB, which is one of the bases responsible for joint strike fighter pilot instruction, had deployed to Mountain Home to conduct surface-to-air training from Sept. 10 to 24.
The root cause of the event is under investigation.
defensenews

Luke AFB receives Air Force’s 100th F-35 on heels of IOC announcement, unit activation

The F-35 Lightning II program took another huge step forward Aug. 26 when the Air Force’s 100th F-35, designated AF-100, arrived here following the recent announcement of the fifth-generation jet fighter’s initial operational capability.
“This marks a milestone and shows the fact that the F-35 program has continued to grow, progress and support initial operational capability,” said Brig. Gen. Brook Leonard, the 56th Fighter Wing commander. “It is also a ‘scare factor’ for our enemies that we are able to produce such an incredible platform at such a high production rate and that it’s getting out in the field in larger and larger numbers.”
Luke Air Force Base received its first F-35 in March 2014 and developed the training and tactics for the program. The fleet has since grown to more than 40 F-35s at the base, including those of partner nations such as Australia and Norway. The base also recently activated its third F-35 unit -- the 63rd Fighter Squadron.
af.mil

Singapore grounds US-based F-16Ds after structural cracks found

The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) has grounded an unspecified number of Lockheed Martin F-16D multirole combat aircraft attached to its Peace Carvin II training detachment at Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Arizona, Singapore's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) revealed to IHS Jane's on 29 August.
The US Air Force (USAF) announced on 19 August that it had removed 82 two-seat F-16Ds from flight status after canopy sill longeron cracks were detected between the front and rear pilot seats. According to the statement, the structural defect was confirmed after officials ordered further investigations of all US F-16Ds under an "immediate action time compliance technical order (TCTO)" when the cracks were discovered during routine post-flight inspections.
janes

First F-35 Lightning II arrives at Luke AFB

Luke Air Force Base's first F-35 Lightning II arrived March 10, from the Lockheed Martin factory in Fort Worth, Texas.
The aircraft is the first of 144 that will eventually be assigned to Luke AFB. Approximately 16 U.S. F-35s are expected by the end of 2014.
The 56th Fighter Wing is planning a formal unveiling ceremony for the jet March 14.
af.mil