F-35A Performs First Night Flight | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-06.02.25

Airborne-NextGen-06.03.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.04.25

Airborne-AffordableFlyers-06.05.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.06.25

Fri, Jan 20, 2012

F-35A Performs First Night Flight

Lokckheed Martin Says It Has A Fix For The JSF's Fuel Dump System

The first night flight in the history of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Program was completed Wednesday at Edwards Air Force Base, CA. Piloted by Lockheed Martin Test Pilot Mark Ward, AF-6, an F-35A conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant, launched at 1705 PST and landed after sunset at 1822. The mission consisted of a series of straight in approaches in twilight and darkness. The pilot also performed an evaluation of the F-35’s cockpit lighting which Ward called, “the best he’s ever seen.” The testing will clear the way for night refueling and formation testing later this year.

Meanwhile, F-35 program manager Tom Burbage says the company has come up with a fix for an issue with the fuel dump system that had cropped up in early models of the airplane. Burbage told Defense News that the modification will be installed in a test airplane early this year, and testing will begin in the second quarter on a permanent modification for all production airplanes.

The problem arose with a fuel dump system nozzle that was flush with the wing in order to maintain the stealth characteristics of the airplane. The design allowed dumped fuel to remain in contact with the aircraft, causing a fire hazard.

Burbage offered no details about the fix, other than to give the timeline for its testing.

FMI: www.f35.com

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (06.04.25): NORDO (No Radio)

NORDO (No Radio) Aircraft that cannot or do not communicate by radio when radio communication is required are referred to as “NORDO.”>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (06.04.25)

Aero Linx: South Carolina Aviation Association (SCAA) Airports in South Carolina support the state’s economy and are themselves economic generators. Residents, businesses, an>[...]

Airborne 06.04.25: G100UL Legal Decision, FAA v Starship, Laser Conviction

Also: AV-8B Harrier For CAF Arizona, Boeing Gets ODA, Army NG Rescue, Longitude To C. America A California Superior Court judge recently ruled that GAMI’s unleaded avgas does>[...]

Airborne-NextGen 06.03.25: Hermeus Quarterhorse, VFS Forum, VX4 eVTOL

Also: Williams International Builds Up, Marines v Drones, NBAA v Tariffs, New GAMA Members Hermeus confirmed the flight of its Quarterhorse MK 1 aircraft at the Air Force Test Cent>[...]

ANN FAQ: Q&A 101

A Few Questions AND Answers To Help You Get MORE Out of ANN! 1) I forgot my password. How do I find it? 1) Easy... click here and give us your e-mail address--we'll send it to you >[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC