On Dec. 2, 2020, Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314 “Black Knights” announced initial operational capability with its F-35Cs. VMFA-314 is the first Marine Corps squadron to transition to the F-35C variant of the joint strike fighter after the retirement of its legacy F/A-18 aircraft and receipt of its first F-35C on Jan. 21, 2020. 

This achievement means that the warfighters at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif. are officially trained and ready to fly and support a full squadron of the 5th-generation fighters aboard aircraft carriers to support combat operations.  

There is no stopping this squadron. VMFA-314 was the first 3rd MAW squadron to fly jet aircraft, specifically the F-9F Panther, in the early 1950s. It was also the first squadron to switch to the F-4B Phantom in the 1960s, and it was the first Department of the Navy squadron to fly the F/A-18 in the 1980s.  

Since their IOC declaration, the “Black Knights” has met the requirements of full operational capability with its F-35Cs in 2021. They joined the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as the first Marine squadron to deploy the F-35C on an aircraft carrier in January 2022.