combat aircraft

T

HE UK LIGHTNING Force

achieved a milestone on

June 6 when the  rst four

F-35Bs for No 617 Squadron

‘Dambusters’ were delivered

to RAF Marham, Norfolk.

Wg Cdr John ‘Butch’ Butcher, the unit’s

new commanding o cer, led the initial

quartet of British Lightnings to their new

home. Of the 4,000-mile (6,437km), eight-

hour, trans-Atlantic crossing to the UK

from Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort,

South Carolina, he commented, ‘Bringing

the four-ship over the top of Marham, it

was brilliant to be the  rst one to touch

down. Now we’ve got the jets back we

need to make sure we can safely operate

the aircraft; then we will get into the

exercises and mission rehearsals for us to

get to IOC [initial operating capability].

We’re in a good place [to make IOC].’

Chief of the Air Sta ACM Sir Stephen

Hillier said, ‘In the RAF’s centenary year,

it’s great to see the most advanced and

dynamic  ghter jet in our history arrive

today at RAF Marham — and with the

modern ‘Dambusters’ in the cockpit, this

homecoming truly feels like an historic

On June 6, the British

Lightning program took

a major step forward

as No 617 Squadron

‘Dambusters’ brought

its fi rst aircraft back to

RAF Marham, Norfolk.

This image: Four

No 617 Squadron

F-35Bs fl y over

the UK en route to

RAF Marham as

they arrived from

MCAS Beaufort.

Crown Copyright/

Cpl Tim Laurence

http://www.combataircraft.net // August 2018 25

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