Italian F-35B Lands on Carrier for 1st Time
An Italian Navy F-35B Lightning II landed on the ITS Cavour aircraft carrier for the first time Friday. The landing follows the compatibility testing in the US earlier this year, when two F-35Bs from NAS Pax River were deployed on the ship to test every aspect of the aircraft operations.
Italian Carrier Readies for Its 1st F-35B
Italy’s ITS Cavour will receive its first F-35B this month after the aircraft carrier started certification work in the US earlier this year. Final checks are being conducted at Cameri air base. The assembly facility is expected to turn out 90 F-35s for Italy, including 30 F-35Bs. The Cavour began its certification in February 2021 out of Naval Station Norfolk, VA.
F-35B Sea Trials on Cavour Completed
The four-week sea trials on the Italian navy’s Cavour aircraft carrier for the operational use of the F-35B fighter jet have been completed. The trials — more than 115 ski jump short take-offs, 120 vertical landings, and two vertical take-offs – were conducted with two specially instrumented F-35Bs that belonged to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 from NAS Patuxent River.
Blue Angels & Thunderbirds Unveil ‘Super Delta’
The F-16 Fighting Falcon and F/A-18 Super Hornet flight formation grew out of a series of joint training opportunities for the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds held in 2020 and 2021.
