Fri, Mar 20, 2009
Becomes Fifth Person To Fly JSF
This week, Major Joseph T. "O.D." Bachmann became the first US
Marine Corps pilot to fly the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II,
logging the flight-test program's 90th mission. He is the fifth
pilot to fly the stealthy, multi-role fighter.
Bachmann departed the runway at Lockheed Martin's Fort Worth
plant at 11:29 am CDT Thursday, and flew the aircraft to 15,000
feet, checking handling qualities and engine response before
landing one hour and 15 minutes later.
"The plane performed wonderfully," said Bachmann, a member of
the F-35 Integrated Test Force and one of the team test pilots who
will fly the F-35B Lightning II at the Naval Air Station Patuxent
River, MD test site, beginning this summer. "The US Marine Corps
will be getting an aircraft with extraordinary capabilities that is
very easy to fly. Today is another step toward delivery of the
first jets to Marines on the front line."
Bachmann's first flight was in F-35 AA-1, a conventional takeoff
and landing variant with controls and flying qualities essentially
identical to the short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) F-35B. The
F-35B will replace Marine Corps AV-8B STOVL fighters and F/A-18
strike fighters.
Bachmann is the second active-duty service member to fly the
F-35.
As ANN reported, US Air Force Lt. Col. James
"Flipper" Kromberg first piloted the Lightning II on January 30,
2008. Bachmann has more than 2,000 hours of flight time in more
than 30 different types of aircraft and is currently qualified in
the F/A-18 A-F.
During his military career, Bachmann made two deployments in
support of Operation Iraqi Freedom -- one from the "Harrier
Carrier," USS Bataan, and the other land-based at Al Asad, Iraq.
During flight operations in Iraq, Bachmann earned four Air Medals
and a Navy Commendation with a Combat V.
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