USAF F-35s Making First Operational Deployment to Europe
The US Air Force’s F-35A is deploying internationally for the first time this weekend, heading to Europe to conduct training exercises with NATO allies
IsraelDefense
| 16/04/2017
The US Air Force’s F-35A is deploying internationally for the first time this weekend, heading to Europe to conduct training exercises with NATO allies. The drill will involve deploying a “small number” of F-35As from the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to an undisclosed location in Europe.
The joint strike fighters will take off sometime this weekend. After landing, they will then spend several weeks in the region as part of the European Reassurance Initiative, the US Defense Department’s effort to strengthen military ties with European allies to help deter Russian aggression on the continent.
Although the US Air Force won’t say where the F-35s will be based during their European deployment, one potential option is British Royal Air Force base Lakenheath, England, which is slated to be the first Air Force base overseas to receive the joint strike fighter. RAF Lakenheath will eventually host 54 F-35As, although the timeline for deploying those aircraft has slipped from 2020 to perhaps one or two years later, Col. Robert Novotny, then the commander of the base’s 48th Fighter Wing, told Defense News last year.
[Source: Defense News]
The US Air Force’s F-35A is deploying internationally for the first time this weekend, heading to Europe to conduct training exercises with NATO allies
The US Air Force’s F-35A is deploying internationally for the first time this weekend, heading to Europe to conduct training exercises with NATO allies. The drill will involve deploying a “small number” of F-35As from the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to an undisclosed location in Europe.
The joint strike fighters will take off sometime this weekend. After landing, they will then spend several weeks in the region as part of the European Reassurance Initiative, the US Defense Department’s effort to strengthen military ties with European allies to help deter Russian aggression on the continent.
Although the US Air Force won’t say where the F-35s will be based during their European deployment, one potential option is British Royal Air Force base Lakenheath, England, which is slated to be the first Air Force base overseas to receive the joint strike fighter. RAF Lakenheath will eventually host 54 F-35As, although the timeline for deploying those aircraft has slipped from 2020 to perhaps one or two years later, Col. Robert Novotny, then the commander of the base’s 48th Fighter Wing, told Defense News last year.
[Source: Defense News]
