The first F-35B short-takeoff-vertical-landing (STOVL) test aircraft (BF-1) arrived at Naval Air Station Patuxent River on Sunday where it will begin conducting vertical flight testing. The aircraft, piloted by Jon Beesley, left Dobbins AFB in Marietta, Ga., at 11:34 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 15, and arrived at Pax River a little more than an hour later. Beesley departed Fort Worth on Thursday and had to spend two days in Marietta waiting for the weather en route to Maryland to clear.
If you wanted to see the historic milestone of a short take-off, supersonic cruise and vertical landing of the X-35B, which happened on 20 July 2001, then check out the following url:
http://snurl.com/MissionX
Posted by: One Guy | November 17, 2009 at 12:22 PM