Instagram Videos of USAF F-35 Demo Team Practice Leak Some New Maneuvers.

File photo of F-35A pulling up at air power demo at Nellis AFB. (Photo: Tom Demerly/TheAviationist)

USAF F-35A Demo Pilot Capt. Andrew “Dojo” Olson Seen in Practice of New Routine.

Following the Air Force’s official announcement of the new F-35A Lighting II Demonstration Team on December 4, 2018, demo pilot Capt. Andrew Olson, callsign “Dojo”, was captured in video during what may be a partial practice session or quick flyover at Luke AFB near Phoenix, Arizona.

Four clips appeared on Instagram on Thursday, January 10, 2019 and quickly collected over a thousand views. They were first posted by Instagram user user @theromanticjaguar and then reposted by @andyo_dojo, demo pilot Capt. Olson on Instagram.

The first video shows a remarkable sequence of maneuvers not previously seen at U.S. F-35A demonstrations where aerobatics were restricted. The first fully aerobatic F-35A demo was flown at the Paris Air Show in 2017 by Lockheed test pilot Billie Flynn.

In this clip, Capt. Andrew “Dojo” Olson approaches from the left, executes a pitch-up to the vertical with the first corner of a square loop to the inverted. Then it gets really good. Capt. Olson pulls back hard on the sidestick while inverted, backing off power and executing a quite tight loop. Once back to level flight the F-35A begins a descending flat spiral at almost zero forward airspeed. There is about one full 360° flat spin as Dojo repositions to exit show right.



Then, the remaining videos include a high AOA (Angle Of Attack), slow speed pass and a few vertical maneuvers as well as what seems to be leaf of a cloverleaf maneuver.

These video hint at some of the maneuvers we’ll see in the new F-35A Demo Team routine beginning this spring at their first airshow appearance in Melbourne, Florida at the Melbourne Air & Space Show on March 30-31, 2019 at Orlando Melbourne International Airport.

File photo of F-35A turning in at the air power demo at Nellis AFB. (Photo: Tom Demerly/TheAviationist)
About Tom Demerly
Tom Demerly is a feature writer, journalist, photographer and editorialist who has written articles that are published around the world on TheAviationist.com, TACAIRNET.com, Outside magazine, Business Insider, We Are The Mighty, The Dearborn Press & Guide, National Interest, Russia’s government media outlet Sputnik, and many other publications. Demerly studied journalism at Henry Ford College in Dearborn, Michigan. Tom Demerly served in an intelligence gathering unit as a member of the U.S. Army and Michigan National Guard. His military experience includes being Honor Graduate from the U.S. Army Infantry School at Ft. Benning, Georgia (Cycle C-6-1) and as a Scout Observer in a reconnaissance unit, Company “F”, 425th INF (RANGER/AIRBORNE), Long Range Surveillance Unit (LRSU). Demerly is an experienced parachutist, holds advanced SCUBA certifications, has climbed the highest mountains on three continents and visited all seven continents and has flown several types of light aircraft.