F-35Cs Arrive at Miramar as Marines Prepare First Carrier Squadron - USNI News

The Marine Corps’ first squadron of F-35C Joint Strike Fighters will reach an initial operating capability next month ahead of future carrier deployments, officials said Friday.


The second F-35C Lightning II belonging to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 arrived Friday at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, Calif., ten days after the first jet arrived in San Diego.

“We will get our third airplane here shortly,” Maj. Gen. Kevin Iiams, the commander of the Miramar-based 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, told USNI News. “And we are on track to establish our safe-for-flight operations – i.e., our ability to conduct operations just with 314 and no external support – probably by the end of March.”