Lockheed Martin announced the first vertical landing March 18 of the F-35B Lightning II at Patuxent River, Md., Naval Air Station.

The BF-1 aircraft used in the test is one of three F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) jets undergoing flight trials at Patuxent River. It is powered by a single Pratt & Whitney F135 turbofan engine driving a counter-rotating Rolls-Royce LiftFan.

F-35 Lead STOVL Pilot Graham Tomlinson performed an 80-knot short takeoff to begin the test. About 13 minutes into the flight, he positioned the aircraft 150 feet above the airfield, where he commanded it to hover for approximately one minute, then descend to the runway.

"Today's vertical landing onto a 95-foot square pad showed that we have the thrust and the control to maneuver accurately both in free air and in descent through ground effect," Tomlinson stated.

"The low workload in the cockpit contrasted sharply with legacy STOVL platforms. Together with the work already completed for slow-speed handling and landings, this provides a robust platform to expand the fleet's STOVL capabilities."

Editor's note: Look to the July 2010 issue of Avionics Magazine for an update on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.