Joint Strike Fighter News

Seahawk found this.

Makes sense considering some of the fields that the A-10 flies out of… elp

February 13, 2004

Air Force to buy F-35s capable of flying from short, rough runways

By Bruce Rolfsen
Times staff writer

The Air Force will buy some of the Marine Corps variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighters that are able to take off and land on short and rough airfields, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper announced Thursday at the Air Force Association’s Air Warfare Symposium at Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Jumper said the decision to buy the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing variant of the JSF was made as a result of the continued need to provide close-air support to the Army.

Jumper noted that some airfields in Iraq and Afghanistan are often in too rough to support jets such as the F-16 and the other variant of the Joint Strike Fighter that the Air Force will buy, the conventional-takeoff-and-landing version.

The Marine version, the STOVL JSF, can land and take off on roads or rough landing strips.

Jumper said it is yet to be decided how many the STOVL F-35s Air Force will buy and that the Air Force will continue to buy the conventional takeoff and landing JSF.

Development of training and tactics for the STOVL version of the JSF will be in conjunction with the Marine Corps, Jumper said.

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-292925-2640736.php