[Composite Image] F-35A AF-1 completing a 360-degree roll with external load

February 22, 2014 F-35

David Cenciotti

Composite image, built from 17 photos of the F-35 doing an aileron roll.

The maneuver itself is far from being special. It’s a standard 360-degree roll, that the F-35A AF-1 completes with external weapons load (4 x GBU-12s and 2 AIM-9Xs).

Still, the composite image is quite interesting as it shows the whole maneuver in a singole composite photo, which shows the Joint Strike Fighter lost some altitude during the roll.

Image credit: Matthew Short via Lockheed Martin/Code One

About David Cenciotti

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.