In anticipation of its future assignment to the VFA-101 “Grim Reapers” at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, the F-35C CF-6 has received a cool high-visibility color scheme.
The Grim Repers were established in May 1952, flew various fighter jets, including the F-4 Phantom and F-14 Tomcat before being disbanded in 2005.
It was reestablished in May 2012, to support the U.S. Navy version of the CV (carrier variant) and serve as Fleet Replacement Squadron, training Joint Strike Fighter pilots and maintainers as a subordinate unit of the joint 33 Fighter Wing.
David Cenciotti is a freelance 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 four books.
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