F-35C Lightning II VFA-101

The F-35C carrier variant (CV) is the world’s only 5th Generation, long-range stealth strike fighter designed and built explicitly for carrier operations.The U.S. Navy is the largest customer receiving F-35Cs, with the U.S. Marine Corps also planning to acquire the C variant in addition to the F-35B. The F-35C combines this unique capability of operating from a carrier deck with the unmatched 5th Generation capabilities of stealth, fused sensors and reliability, making the F-35C the Navy’s future first-day-of-the-war strike fighter.
The Navy and Marines require an aircraft capable of overcoming a variety of threats — surface-to-air missiles, air-to-air missiles and tactical aircraft. By leveraging this potent combination of stealth, advanced jamming and threat system destruction, the F-35C enhances survivability and increases mission success rates. The F-35C variant has larger wings and more robust landing gear than the other variants, making it suitable for catapult launches and fly-in arrestments aboard naval aircraft carriers. Its wingtips also fold to allow for more room on the carrier’s deck while deployed. The F-35C also has the greatest internal fuel capacity of the three F-35 variants. The F-35C carries nearly 20,000 pounds of internal fuel for longer range and better persistence than any other fighter in a combat configuration. And, like the F-35B, the F-35C uses probe and drogue refueling. This allows the Navy to operate its carriers a safe distance from the threat while its fighters reach remote targets.

Celebrating the Grim Reapers 60th Anniversary on 1 May 2012, VF-101 was reactivated and redesignated as Strike Fighter Squadron 101 (VFA-101), with a homeport change from NAS Oceana, Virginia to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. VFA-101 again serves as a U.S. Navy Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS), this time for the F-35C Lightning II, the Navy variant of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) which will serve the US Navy and US Marine Corps from the flight decks of aircraft carriers.