The lethal, interoperable, and connected F-35 Lightning II had its start in testing like many newly designed aircraft surrounded by talented pilots, engineers, analysts, and other experts in defense aviation. The F-35 Joint Program Office’s “Blast From the Past” series will revisit many of these milestones in the F-35’s journey to becoming a global coalition that delivers unmatched capabilities to its warfighters.  

On July 20, 2001, Mission X took place over the desert in California while an ongoing competition to choose the next joint strike fighter continued. One test pilot successfully performed an aviation hat trick: a short takeoff, a level supersonic dash, and a vertical landing in an aircraft named the X-35B. Read more about Retired (Ret.) Marine Corps Colonel Art “Turbo” Tomassetti’s story about operating the X-35B during the hat trick...and the lessons he learned that day.

https://www.dvidshub.net/news/425283/mission-x-blasts-high-into-history