The Navy version of the Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35C, has completed its air system critical design review, paving the way for the carrier-variant to enter low rate initial production. In a Lockheed Martin release, Air Force Brig. Gen. C.R. Davis, JSF program executive officer, says, “Completion of this design review is a very significant milestone; the die is now fully cast for the unique, three-variant Joint Strike Fighter program envisioned when the planning began in the late 1990s.” The F-35C has larger wings and a more robust internal structure than the other two variants—the Air Force’s F-35A conventional takeoff and landing aircraft and the Marine Corps’ F-35B, short takeoff and vertical landing version—to handle repeated catapult launches and arrested recoveries on a carrier deck. Lockheed has begun fabrication of the first production JSFs, two F-35A models.
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.