World’s first operational JSF squadron welcomes its first F-35B at MCAS Yuma

On Nov. 16, at approximately 1 p.m., Third Marine Aircraft Wing’s first F-35B, piloted by F-35 pilot instructor Maj. A. C. Liberman, landed at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma.

The arrival of the first next gen aircraft is the highlight of the official re-designation of Marine All Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 121, an F/A-18 Hornet Squadron, as the world’s first operational F-35 squadron. The formal ceremony is scheduled for Nov. 20.

Capable of short take off and vertical landing (STOVL), the F-35B is the Joint Strike Variant the USMC will use to replace the Corps’ F/A-18 Hornet, AV-8B Harrier and EA-6B Prowler.

A new F-35 is expected to be delivered each month until a squadron is fully operational on the type at Yuma, something the service expects to complete by early summer next year. By 2020, five squadrons with 16 airframes each and one test squadron with 8 planes: 88 F-35s will replace the base’s existing squadrons of 56 Harriers.

Noteworthy, VMA-211, that lost six AV-8B Harrier jets in a deadly Taliban attack on Camp Bastion that took the life of the squadron commanding officer in September, will be the second Yuma squadrom to transition to the F-35.

Photo by LCpl. Bill Waterstreet

Related articles

• Camp Bastion attack could be U.S. Marine Corps Harrier fleet’s ground zero
• Photo: This is what remains of a U.S. Marine Corps Harrier jet after the Taliban attack on Camp Bastion
• VMA-211 mourns its Commander as it pushes forward to complete deployment in Afghanistan
• Reaper drone and Apache helicopter involved in the Camp Bastion battle that wiped out the U.S. Marine Corps Harrier force in Afghanistan
• U.S. Marine Corps Harrier flight ops aboard USS Bonhomme Richard. As seen through the Night Vision Goggles.
• U.S. Marine Corps EA-6B Prowlers on the move: “Death Jesters” returning to CONUS
• U.S Marine Corps F/A-18A Hornet jets deploying to the Middle East
• Photo: First U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Joint Strike Fighters perform aerial refueling from KC-130J

About David Cenciotti

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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.