US F-35 fighters fly first ever combat mission
WASHINGTON: American F- 35 stealth fighters have been used in a combat operation for the first time, officials said, marking a major milestone for the most expensive plane in history.
The mission took place against Taliban targets in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, when the F- 35s f lew from the USS Essex amphibious assault ship.
The planes deployed were the F- 35B variant, used by the Marine Corps and capable of taking off from a short runway and landing vertically. The Air Force and Navy have their own models.
“During this mission, the F35B conducted an air strike in support of ground clearance operations, and the strike was deemed successful by the ground force commander,” US Naval Forces Central Command said in a statement. Officials did not say how many planes took part in the operation, but the F- 35 flies in pairs or larger groups.
Israel – one of the F- 35 programme’s partner nations – said in May that it had used its newly acquired F- 35s in combat operations, becoming the first country to do so.
Launched in the early 1990s, the F- 35 is considered the most expensive weapons system in US history, with an estimated cost of some US$ 400 billion and a goal to produce 2,500 aircraft in the coming years.
Once servicing and maintenance costs for the F- 35 are factored in over the aircraft’s lifespan through 2070, overall programme costs are expected to rise to US$ 1.5 trillion. — AFP