OFF THE COAST OF SAN DIEGO — Two F-35Cs landed smoothly on the USS Nimitz on Monday, a historic day for the Navy's oldest aircraft carrier and newest aircraft.
The Navy’s version of the Joint Strike Fighter, designed for arrested landings on aircraft carriers, had undergone extensive testing on land but had never landed on a carrier at sea.
While the Marines have moved forward with their F-35Bs and expect to have them operational next summer, the Navy’s F-35Cs had long been delayed because of problems with the tailhook. Lockheed Martin announced that it had come up with a new design for the hook in 2013.
Senior Chief Petty Officer Alistair McIntyre, the senior maintainer for the aircraft, said there were “no problems, no issues” with the tailhook during the test landings.
“It looked like both pilots were old pros,” he said. “I was absolutely amazed.”
Cmdr. Tony "Brick" Wilson, the test pilot who was first to land successfully on the Nimitz, said the jet "flew magnificently" and that he couldn't have taken it out of the glide slope if he tried.
"It is very, very easy to fly," Wilson said.
Lt. Cmdr. Ted "Dutch" Brickman, who landed the second F-35C on the carrier, said he had expected more air disturbance.
"It was just smooth and easy," he said.
Monday was the first day of a two-week initial testing phase aboard the Nimitz; two more testing phases will follow during the next two years. Navy officials had also planned catapault takeoffs for the planes Monday, but those were delayed because of a data issue.
The Joint Strike Fighter will be the Navy's first stealth platform and will supplement the service's fleet of F/A-18 Super Hornets.
Each F-35C costs $129 million, a program official said, but the price is expected to drop to $107 million by the time the planes are operational in 2018.
hlad.jennifer@stripes.com
Twitter: @jhlad
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