The U.S. Air Force has performed a huge show of strength by launching more than 50 fully-armed Lightning II stealth fighters in a single wave following an elephant walk down the runway.
The 52 F-35A aircrafts, which are worth a whopping $4.2 billion, took off in quick succession from the Hill Air Force Base in Utah on Monday.
The exercise carried out by the active duty 388th and Reserve 419th Fighter Wings showed the Air Force’s ability to deploy a large force of the F-35As.
While the exercise has been planned for several months, the execution of it came in the same week the U.S. continues to brace for Iran to respond to the drone strike killing of its most powerful general in Iraq.
The Fighter Wings revealed on Monday that the F-35As have now finally reached full war-fighting capability.
We’re ready to fly, fight, and win, the 419th Fighter Wings tweeted after the exercise.
They added the exercise pushed the boundaries and tested our Airmen’s ability to deploy the F-35As en masse.
The 388th Fight Wingers said: ‘The exercise, which was planned for months, demonstrated their ability to employ a large force of F-35As testing readiness in the areas of personnel accountability, aircraft generation, ground operations, flight operations, and combat capability against air and ground targets.
A little more than four years after receiving their first combat-coded F-35A Lightning II aircraft, Hill’s fighter wings have achieved full warfighting capability.
Each F-35A fighter is worth about $89.2 million.
The U.S. received its first F-35A at the Hill Air Force Base four years ago.
Since then, the Fighter Wings have been training pilots, engaging in multiple large combat exercises and supporting two Middle East combat deployments.
Every training opportunity, exercise and deployment we’ve completed over the past four years has been a key stepping stone in reaching full warfighting capability, Col. Steven Behmer, 388th Fighter Wing commander, said.
This is just the beginning of sustained F-35A combat operations and we will remain focused on staying ready to deploy whenever, wherever we’re needed.
The F-35A is the conventional takeoff and landing variant version of the jet, and the first of the three versions to enter full service.
The F-35B, which is capable of vertical take-off and landing, only recently entered service.
Meanwhile the F-35C, which specializes in aircraft carrier operations, has consistently fallen behind in testing.
Esmail Ghaani, the general who replaced Qassem Soleimani after he was killed, has since vowed to take revenge as part of the fallout over the U.S. strike.
God the almighty has promised to get his revenge, and God is the main avenger. Certainly actions will be taken, he said on Monday in an interview with Iranian state television.
Soleimani’s daughter, Zeinab, also directly threatened an attack on the U.S. military in the Mideast while speaking to a crowd of hundreds of thousands in Tehran that stretched as far as the eye could see.
The families of U.S. soldiers in the Middle East will spend their days waiting for death of their children, she said to cheers.
It comes as Iran abandoned the remaining limits of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers in response to the slaying. Separately, Iraq’s parliament has called for the expulsion of all American troops from Iraqi soil.
Adding to the tensions, President Donald Trump threatened to demand billions of dollars in compensation from Iraq or impose ‘sanctions like they’ve never seen before’ if it goes through with expelling U.S. troops.