Aircraft
Marine F-35Bs Undertake Operational At-sea Deployment
VMFA-121 has the honor of making the F-35B’s ship-borne operational debut
An F-35B from VMFA-121 lands aboard Wasp at the start of the Joint Strike Fighter’s first operational deployment with a Marine Expeditionary Unit. (Photo: Cpl Bernadette Wildes/U.S. Marine Corps)
An F-35B from VMFA-121 lands aboard Wasp at the start of the Joint Strike Fighter’s first operational deployment with a Marine Expeditionary Unit. (Photo: Cpl Bernadette Wildes/U.S. Marine Corps)

On March 5 an F-35B from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron VMFA-121 “Green Knights” landed on the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp. This was the start of the F-35’s first operational deployment with a Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). The VMFA-121 detachment is assigned to the 31st MEU that is forward-based in Okinawa, while the squadron’s home base is at MCAS Iwakuni in Japan.

“This is a historic deployment,” said Colonel Tye Wallace, 31st MEU commanding officer. “The F-35B is the most capable aircraft ever to support a Marine rifleman on the ground. It brings a range of new capabilities to the MEU that make us a more lethal and effective Marine air-ground task force.”

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